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What is emotional intelligence?
The School of Life - The School of Life
The School of Life offers a reflective introduction to emotional intelligence, exploring patience, insight and imagination in how we understand ourselves and other people. Treat it as a perspective on relationships, not a clinical assessment.
Key takeaways
- Pause before treating your first emotional interpretation as the whole story.
- Consider other explanations for someone's mood or reaction.
- Understanding emotions does not mean abandoning boundaries or agreeing with everyone.
Reflect on it
- Which emotion do I find hardest to name at work?
- What alternative explanation could I consider before judging a colleague's reaction?
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The School of Life presents emotional intelligence through patience, insight and imagination in our relationships with ourselves and other people. It is a reflective perspective rather than a clinical definition or an assessment of your abilities.
What to consider while watching
Notice the difference between having an emotion and understanding it. Our first explanation for someone's behaviour may be incomplete. Pausing to consider other possibilities can change how we approach a conversation.
Applying it at work
Think of a meeting where you felt defensive or frustrated. Name the emotion, describe the situation and consider what else might explain the other person's response. You can check your interpretation with a respectful question rather than treating it as a fact.
Empathy is not the same as agreeing with everyone. You can understand how someone feels while maintaining boundaries, giving clear feedback or making a difficult decision.
Read alongside the video
Explore emotional intelligence at work and emotional intelligence in communication.
Turn it into CPD
Watch the video, answer the reflection questions and log an example of how you will apply the learning in your free Passport.
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Sign in to save what you've read - we'll create a free CPD log for you.