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JIMINY SELF-HELP HANDBOOK 13

Methods/ Tools for Developing the EQ

When thinking of methods for developing the EQ, based on the main four dimensions of EQ described
in chapter 2.1.2, we should seek to improve the way we:

1. Notice and understand emotions in ourselves
2. Notice and understand emotions in others
3. Mange effectively the emotion in ourselves
4. Use emotions to facilitate performance

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1. Notice and understand emotions in ourselves involves the ability to understand our deep emotions
and to be able to express them naturally. It means that we have to learn:
 how to be aware of thoughts and physical sensations
 how to allow emotions to be present
 how to be able to label our emotions.
2. Notice and understand emotions in others relates to the ability to perceive and understand
emotions in other people. It means that we have to learn:
 how to be aware of emotional signs
 how to deduce emotions from verbal and non-verbal signs (e.g. body-language, facial
expressions, tone of the voice etc.).
3. Mange effectively the emotion in ourselves involves the ability to effectively deal with our own
emotions (for example, when experiencing anger, we’ll be able to manage it in such a way that we
do not say or do anything that we may regret later). It means that we have to learn:
 how to choose the way we respond to emotions
 how to think before acting
 how to separate of emotion from logic.
4. Use emotions to facilitate performance relates to the ability to make use of emotions by directing
them toward constructive activities and personal performance. It means that we have to learn:
 how to use positive emotions to enhance performance and manage difficult circumstances
 how to use emotions to influence the social environment.
“When we think of someone who’s emotionally mature, we typically picture a person who has a good
understanding of who they are.

Even if they don’t have all the answers, an emotionally mature individual gives off a sense of “calm
amid the storm.” They’re the ones we look to when going through a difficult time because they perform