One Sentence Summary
- The book is organized around the four elements of personal and social competence.
Best Quotes
“Emotional intelligence is your ability to recognize and understand emotions in yourself and others and your ability to use this awareness to manage your behavior and relationships.”
“Remember, feedback is meant to address the problem, not the person.”
“Intelligence is your ability to learn and it’s the same at age 15 as it is at age 50.”
Key Takeaways
- Self-Awareness = Know thyself
This is your ability to accurately perceive your own emotions in the moment and understand your tendencies across situations. Self-awareness includes staying on top of your typical reactions to specific events, challenges and people.
- Self-Management = Balance your emotional and rational self
Self-management is dependent on your self-awareness and is the second major part of personal competence. It is your ability to use your awareness of your emotions to stay flexible and direct your behavior positively.
- Social Awareness = Be aware of the other people
Listening and observing are the most important elements of social awareness. We have to stop talking, stop the monologue that may be running through our minds, stop anticipating the point the other person is about to make and stop thinking ahead to what we are going to say next.
- Relationship Management = Criticism isn´t bad at all
Relationship management is your ability to use your own emotions and those of others to manage interactions successfully. This ensures clear communication and effective handling of conflict.
There are 66 incredible, incredible strategies outlined in this book. Simply reading through the text isn’t adequate because the knowledge covers a lifetime of learning. Henceforth, this book ought to be revisited often and slowly, but surely, implemented into our daily life. Perhaps you can focus on a new practice each week. Think regularly about the weekly strategy and be very intentional to improve upon it.
About author
- Dr. Travis Bradberry was born in South Dakota/USA and he is the award-winning author of the #1 best selling book, Emotional Intelligence 2.0 and the cofounder of TalentSmart®⎯a consultancy that serves more than 75% of Fortune 500 companies and is the world’s leading provider of emotional intelligence tests and training.
