By Thomas Davis, CRNA, MAE, Lt. Col. (ret)
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Emotional intelligence is the ability of a person to be aware of and control his/her own emotions, to sense to the emotions of others and to handle interpersonal relationships in a manner that preserves the integrity of both parties. Writing about emotional intelligence in Forbes.com, author Christine Comaford states that emotional intelligence accounts for 58% of your team’s performance regardless of the industry in which you work. Clearly, the most effective leaders control their own emotions while boosting the self-esteem of those they supervise. Conversely, leaders who lack emotional intelligence quickly undermine collaboration and demoralize individuals on the team.
A busy Gastroenterology center commonly schedules 12-18 cases per room per day and assigns patients an arrival time based on starting a new case every 20 minutes; productivity and efficiency are top priorities. Today the outpatient endoscopy center has an irate patient in the waiting area; MaryJane arrived at the designated time and has been waiting 2 hours for her procedure to begin. She demands to talk with George, the clinic manager and doesn’t hold back when unloading her anger about the excessive waiting time. When the scheduled cases are completed, the stressed clinic manager assembles his workers to pass on the patient complaint and puts the blame on them for the delay stating, “If you were competent and knew your job, this would never happen.” He went on to threaten the team with disciplinary action if things did not improve. Having no control over the speed at which the physicians can complete a case, the chastised team members felt demoralized.
Leaders who lack emotional intelligence may alienate either an entire team or selected individuals through thoughtless comments. In a similar event at the same center, a technician set up for the next scheduled case, however the patient brought into the room was out of sequence and was scheduled for a procedure that required special equipment. The doctor entered the room at the same time as the patient, found the wrong equipment in place and became irate demanding that the technician be replaced by, “someone who knows what he is doing.” The rejected technician left the room feeling completely devastated and defeated.
Your reaction to stress matters and affects the performance of your team. Emotionally intelligent leaders can challenge a team to correct a problem and have the group walk away feeling empowered and committed to resolving the issue. If the leader lacks emotional intelligence, teams feel demoralized and defeated when faced with similar challenges. Here are some tips for infusing emotional intelligence into your leadership style:
Tune into yourself
As the gatekeeper of your emotions, be aware of the moment the gate starts to open and react quickly. If something is not quite right and causes a little twinge of anxiety, trust that something is driving your gut feeling and don’t dismiss the emotion that you perceive.
- What to do: Take a moment to identify your sentiment and put a label on it; “I’m feeling nervous,” “I’m feeling defensive,” “I’m sensing that I’m being unfairly blamed,” or “my GERD is acting up.” Putting a label on what you feel requires you to shift from an emotional response to one that is intellectual and diminishes the likelihood of a knee-jerk reaction that will add fuel to a smoldering fire.
Slow your reaction
The emotional area of the brain, called the amygdala, kicks in when you are stressed and triggers a fight, flight or freeze reaction. Unfortunately, when the emotional brain takes charge, the thinking brain shuts down and you may respond in ways that you later regret.
- What to do: Take control by pausing when you first perceive that your emotions are being challenged; take a deep breath, count to ten and ask yourself, “What is my desired outcome?” or “What do I want?” Continue the intellectual activity by clarifying facts asking questions to gain insight into the other person’s point of view. This process quickly quiets your emotions by stimulating problem solving areas of your brain and saves you the embarrassment of saying or doing something that will require an apology.
Assess and leverage your resources
Leaders of collaborative teams never need to face a problem alone. When challenges emerge, take a moment to assess your resources and utilize those that will help you resolve the problem. Two of your most powerful yet frequently overlooked assets are your team and your positive attitude.
- What to do: Approach a stressful situation with confidence and avoid dictating a quick fix or assigning blame until facts are known. Explain your desired outcome to your team and solicit their ideas for resolution. Use your emotional intelligence to be inclusive and harness the creative power of your team rather than shutting them down.
Focus on the desired outcome
Focus on the desired outcome in a positive and proactive manner that looks beyond the immediate problem at hand. A type I solution fixes your immediate problem whereas a type II solution ensures that the problem will not recur for you are anybody else on the team. In the case of the GI center, the goal was more than appeasing today’s irate patient; the type II solution involved realistic scheduling that reflected the reality of the patient flow.
- What to do: Create a group-think environment, assume that your team shares your goal and use emotional intelligence to validate and implement their creative ideas. Those who work on the front line have personal knowledge of problems as well as solutions. Tap into your team’s fountain of knowledge
Take control of your emotions and gain a sensitivity for the feelings of those around you. This does not mean that you should ignore problems for fear of hurting feelings; instead, address every problem in a forthright manner that preserves the emotional integrity of the person you are correcting. George could have brought the team together to discuss the patient flow problem, gain a better understanding of causes and create a solution that offered a feasible chance for success. Had he talked to the team, George would have learned that the average time per case was 32 minutes and scheduling a new case every 20 minutes was a receipt for failure. The first step toward staying on the timeline was to develop a realistic schedule that allotted enough time for each case. Rather than working harder or more efficiently, the solution rested in creating a schedule that reflected reality. Similarly, had the doctor in the second example been sensitive to the fact that the technician had set up correctly for the scheduled patient, he would not have launched into a personal attack on a competent worker.
Emotionally intelligent leaders know and control their own feelings while tuning into and uplifting those around them. Elevate the productivity of your team by being sensitive the emotions that drive behavior.
Thomas Davis is a noted leader, educator, speaker and clinical anesthetist.