Photo by Noelle Rebekah on Unsplash
Got emotional intelligence?
We sure hope so. Emotional intelligence is increasingly important in the modern workplace.
EQ, or emotional intelligence, is the ability to understand both your emotions and the emotions of others around you. Those with high EQ can manage their own emotions—they are self-aware—and can help relieve stress, communicate effectively with others, manage challenges and empathize with those around them, as well.
Psychologist Daniel Goleman’s work in emotional intelligence outlines five main areas of this intelligence—self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills.
The Importance of EQ or Emotional Intelligence at Work
EQ is important, especially in the workplace, because it helps create positive social interactions. Those with high EQ can better relate to those around them, enabling them to progress in their careers through networking or exhibit leadership traits by inspiring others around them.
In navigating the workplace more successfully, those with higher EQ can build successful teams since they understand how people react and work with one another. They can also be flexible, responding rapidly to new situations which is crucial in successful leadership roles.
On the other hand, those with lower EQ in the workplace may come across as bullies or as arrogant. If someone with a lower EQ is given a leadership role, the staff will likely suffer from low motivation, fear, and general discontent. As such, emotional intelligence is extremely important in the workplace, and cultivating higher EQ can be fruitful.
5 Ways to Show Your EQ in Your Resume
So, we've explored why emotional intelligence is important at work but is there a way to communicate that on your resume or your cover letter? Yes!
Anyone can claim to have a high level of emotional intelligence, but it's one of those qualities that is shown in actions over words. To showcase your EQ in your resume, you want to communicate the actions fueled by your emotional intelligence. Let's dive into it.
1. First, Use a Number of Terms That “Show” EQ
It can be challenging to demonstrate EQ without landing an interview, which is why it’s crucial to demonstrate EQ in your resume. One of the easiest ways to do this is by using words that allude to EQ such as “inclusion” or “leading with empathy” or even “sensitivity.”
Other Terms That Relate to EQ
- Inclusive
- Sensitivity
- Openness
- Flexibility
- Empathetic
- Familiarity
- Optimistic
- Awareness
- Experience
- Perception
2. Describe Actions That Demonstrate EQ
Another way to show EQ on your resume is to describe actions that demonstrate a high level of EQ. Actions that indicate you are insightful and understand emotions well could be anything from leading a team or improving a significant process for the company or even assisting with a business merger or acquisition.
All of these are important to highlight on your resume anyway, but they can be critical to emphasizing emotional intelligence, as well.
Actions that demonstrate EQ don't have to be huge, either. A good sign of EQ can be simply communicating how always lent a compassionate ear to your team, how you take others' feelings into account when leading a project, or how you use optimism as a core value in all of your work.
An important element of real emotional intelligence is that it's rarely loud or bombastic. Instead, it's often small, gentle ways that you handle things to create transparency, teamwork, and trustworthiness amongst those you work alongside.
Actions That Demonstrate EQ
Some of the most important demonstrations of EQ cannot be quantified in deep data or quarterly KPIs. Emotional intelligence behaviors can't technically be quantified with a dollar amount or a percentage increase.
However, when you think of a person who has had a major impact on your career, they probably gave you something more important than a large paycheck or an elevated job title.
Emotionally intelligent coworkers give gifts like confidence, reassurance, or simply a silent and safe place to vent. Here are a few examples:
- Mediating disputes and conflict management by simply listening and providing feedback, when requested
- Keeping a positive outlook through challenging moments in the workplace
- Being generous with giving praise and graciously accepting praise with humility
- Giving compassion to team members having bad days, bad weeks, or even bad months by providing a space to chat or solve setbacks.
- Social awareness of your teammates, especially in recognizing the potential of underrepresented team members
- Leading with self-confidence that becomes contagious
3. Do You Manage Your Emotions Well? Write About It!
If you’re an asset to have during times of stress, or are easily able to manage conflicting priorities or juggle various deadlines, write about it. Whether on your resume or when detailing a situation on your cover letter, it is important to indicate those qualities to a future employer.
Talk about your reliability in heightened moments of stress at work. Are you able to keep a level head, move with adaptability, and to come out of the other side?
If so, this is a huge asset to any team (as long as you're not shouldering everyone else's stress and anxiety in doing so.)
4. Be Specific
The more specific you are in your resume, the more intriguing your application will look to a potential employer. This will allow you to expand upon your examples of EQ in an interview.
If you have high EQ, an interview is where you are most likely to shine, especially since interviewers often ask questions about how you react in high-stress situations or how you would manage a difficult team. By being specific in your resume itself, you can better highlight your EQ as an asset and are likely to get more questions surrounding those topics in your interview.
5. Highlight Perception
Finally, find ways to highlight your perceptive nature. Those who have high EQ are usually highly perceptive, and this often comes across through their one-on-one interactions as leaders or in their ability to understand clients in a way others could not.
Emotional intelligence is the type of intelligence defined as an ability to regulate emotions in order to facilitate measured actions.
It’s always best to find quantitative ways to display your skills on your resume, and highlighting perception through numbers can be a powerful nod to both EQ and IQ.
Jobs That Prioritize Emotional Intelligence
At the end of the day, all jobs require a degree of EQ if you hope to succeed—especially if you want to become a leader.
Being an empath is a strength in any workplace, though there are some positions, such as a healthcare worker or nurse, that reward an empathetic nature more than others.
Other jobs, such as a sales role or a consulting position, also require high EQ as they require direct communication with clients and effective communication skills. Ultimately, emotional intelligence is never a weakness, and you can find ways to use this strength in any career.
