Emotional and Social
Intelligence for Leaders
Creating Powerful Connections
and Sustaining Effectiveness
IQ and technical skills are important
but
Emotional Intelligence is the sine qua non of
leadership
The EI Story
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In 1990, Mayer and Salovy developed the first
theory of EI
In 1995, Goleman proposed that emotional
intelligence was integral to life success
In 2001, neuroscience literature supports theories
of EI – lending credibility
In 2002, “Primal Leadership” defined leadership
competencies
In 2008, it became common for organizations to
have EI competency models to evaluate leaders
Harvard Business Review
Articles
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What makes a leader?
(Nov/Dec 1998)
Leadership that gets results
(Mar/Apr 2000)
Primal leadership: The hidden
driver of great performance
(Dec 2001)
Reawakening your passion for
work (Apr 2002)
What makes a leader? (Jan
2004)
Leading by feel (Jan 2004)
Social Intelligence and the
Biology of Leadership (Sep
2008)
Harvard Business Review
Articles
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Primal leadership: The hidden
driver of great performance
(Dec 2001)
Reawakening your passion for
work (Apr 2002)
Social Intelligence and the
Biology of Leadership (Sep
2008)
Is Emotional Intelligence (EI) …?
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A set of skills
A bag of tricks
A way of being in a relationship with others
A set of beliefs, values, principles
Biologically determined
Respect for human goodness
A belief of people’s ability to grow and change
Exercise
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Think of a leader with whom you worked – one
that brought out the best in you and one that
you would gladly work with, and for, again.
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When you were around them, what did they say or
do?
What feelings, thoughts, and behaviors did they
invite out in you and others?
How do you suppose
some leaders are
emotionally and socially intelligent
while others are not?
The good news!
Emotional and social intelligence
can be cultivated
and grown over a lifetime.
Does anyone believe that the above is not true?
Masterful Leadership Begins with
Emotional Intelligence
Self-Awareness
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Are you aware of how your body, mind, emotions,
and spirit influence each other through the course
of the day?
What practices do you employ to calm yourself,
pause, and reflect when you are unsettled?
Attention is one of our most valuable resources;
yet we seldom pay attention to how we pay
attention. Why do you think the latter is true?
When did a shift in attention result in
breakthrough thinking for you or your team?
Why do you choose to lead?
What is your management code?
Self-Management
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What situations, stressors, feelings,
assumptions, filters, or work/lifestyle choices
challenge your ability to exercise self-control?
When you get tense, what is your default
program? How does it serve you well? How
does it work against you and others?
What happens when we don’t take time for
renewal and reflection?
Leadership Myth
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Your mood does not matter
The Truth
 Emotions are contagious and a leader can
create resonance and a climate that supports
success or can spread emotions that create a
dissonant, unproductive, and unhealthy
climate.
Leadership Myth
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Great leaders thrive on constant pressure
The Truth
 Sacrifice and power stress are inherent in the
leader’s role. The best leaders manage the
pressure through adopting practices of
renewal.
The Sacrifice Syndrome
The sacrifice of
being a leader
causes
STRESS
Hormones activated:
Stress
arouses the
EPINEPHRINE &
NOREPINEPHRINE
SYMPATHETIC
NERVOUS
SYSTEM
Hormones activated:
CORTICOSTEROIDS
• Blood pressure
increases
• Large muscles
prepare to fight or run
• Brain shuts down nonessential neural circuits
• Less open, flexible
and creative
• Leads to reduction in
healthy immune system
• Inhibits creation of new
neurons
• Over stimulates older
neurons leading to
shrinkage of neurons
RESULTS:
• Brain loses
capability to learn
• We feel anxious,
nervous, even
depressed
• Perceive things
people say or do
as threatening
and negative
• More stress
is aroused
© Richard E. Boyatzis and Annie McKee, 2005.
Renewal: Engaging the
parasympathetic nervous system
Wanting to
understand, care
for another
person, and to
initiate some
action contributing
to their well-being
Feeling hopeful,
optimistic, at peace or
exciting but look
forward to the future
Neural circuit activated:
limbic system to the left
pre-frontal cortex
Aroused compassion
Systolic & diastolic
blood pressure
decreased
Release of oxytocin
& vasopressin
Adrenal-pituitary axis
activated; arousal of
the PSNS
Increased secretion of
immunoglobulin A and
natural killer cells
© Richard E. Boyatzis and Annie McKee, 2005.
Social Awareness
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How are you trustworthy? How have you been
untrustworthy?
How do you let your staff know you care? What
feedback have you received from your staff that
indicates you exhibit caring behavior? What feedback
have you received that indicates some see you as not
“caring” about them as a human being?
How do you provide stability for those you lead? Do
your staff know what your guiding principles/values
are? Are you consistent?
Do you have a compelling vision that sustains staff
through difficult times?
Relationship Management
“What we accomplish in organizations, is accomplished
through others.”
~ Jane Dutton
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What enables people to give the very best of themselves?
How does your language reflect how you see yourself,
others, and the world?
How do we engage everyone without becoming paralyzed by
endless process?
What simple touches have you used or could you use to
bring more life into your workplace?
How much time, each week, do you devote to relationship
development?
Do you believe self-awareness, self-management,
and social awareness lead to more choice and
high quality relationships at work?
Are you an emotionally and socially
intelligent leader in practice?
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What do you do to create a positive, hopeful,
emotional tone?
What is it that you do so you can stay in touch
with others?
Do you know what is on people’s hearts and
minds?
How do you experience and demonstrate
compassion in your work relationships? With
yourself?
What practices do you employ so you are in tune
with yourself and others in your environment?
Authentic Leadership
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Creates spaces where inspired thinking, deep
learning, and bold emergent action can take
hold, wherever we are
Entails connecting to reality as it is and
choosing to be helpful
Taps into the wellspring of human goodness
and aspiration
“If you aspire to mastery, you must use your
head, use your heart, and use your hands. You
need a logical model that guides your approach
to leading people and change (head), a clear
sense of purpose and an authentic and gracious
way of engaging others (heart), and practices
that enable you to be prepared and competent in
the moment (hands).”
~ Doug Conant
Masterful Leaders
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Are attuned: mind, body, heart & spirit
Inspire through hope & vision
Spread compassion
Create resonance
Engage in a conscious process of renewal, both
on a daily basis and over time
What do you need
to become
the masterful leader
you aspire to be?