Weekly Wisdom Newsletter #43

Published Date: August 18, 2019

Hi All!

This week's newsletter is centered on the book Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman. The book has so many important insights, so I'm going over the usual three bullets.

1. IQ vs. EQ: IQ contributes, at best, 20% towards a person’s success. The rest is largely EQ.

2. Anger: One of the best ways to rid anger is to reframe the situation positively.

3. Depression is a low-arousal state, so exercise helps lift the mood and relaxation makes it worse.

4. Anxiety is a high-arousal state, so relaxation helps and exercise makes it worse.

5. Empathy requires us to be calm enough such that we can mirror the other person's physiological state (literally feeling what they feel).

6. The artful critique focuses on the person's actions not character, is specific about what needs to change, and offers a solution for improvement.

7. In team performance, harmony is the biggest determinant. Harmony allows every member to contribute their fullest to the team.

8. Top performers are better at three things: taking initiative, promoting cooperation, and regulating oneself emotionally.

Here are this week's recommended actions:

• If any of the bullets were interesting to you, I recommend checking out my blog post: Emotional Intelligence - 12 minute summary.

• Reflect on a time you were angry, depressed, or anxious, and identify if/how you could've handled that situation better using bullets #2-4

• Think of a time you gave criticism. Identify how you could've given a better criticism using bullet #6.

• If you need/want to update your resume or cover letter, talk about some of the characteristics mentioned in bullets #7-8

If you think someone else would find this newsletter useful, please forward it to them. Thanks, and have a wonderful week ahead!