In todayâs competitive landscape, investing in employee development is not merely a nice perk; itâs a strategic imperative for enhancing well-being, communication, collaboration, relationships, and performance. While this sounds like a lot to tackle, we can do so by turning to Team Emotional Intelligence (EQ).
Team EQ focuses on emotions and relationships, the two key factors in performance. Managing emotions builds strong internal and external relationships. By integrating Team EQ principles and strategies into employee development programs, you can transform your team and your organization. Letâs take a look at how.
Cultivate emotion awarenessÂ
Just under the surface of every meeting, email chain, or conference call are emotions. Feelings about the work and about one another influence your teamâs conversations, decisions, and relationships. By getting to know the teamâs moods and emotional habits, you can better understand how the team operates at a deeper level. Emotion awareness is a core Team EQ skill that helps us more accurately observe teammates and the team as a whole. Observe how teammates respond in various contexts, whether during normal, stressful, certain, uncertain, cohesive, or divided situations. Getting in touch with your teamâs emotions takes time. Take gradual steps forward and be patient. By noticing how your team feels and behaves, youâre helping to enhance awareness of each other, which builds trust and drives results.Â
Manage the teamâs emotions
This is not about stuffing feelings away or ignoring the mood of the room. Managing the emotions of your team is about responding effectively to the range of emotional situations your team experiences in both good times and not-so-good times. Use both verbal cues and body language to decide what to say, do, or avoid in each situation. Keep simple statements in your back pocket to help manage the emotions on the team, such as: âWait, letâs hear them out,â âMaybe we take a break,â or âWhat are alternative perspectives on this?â The key is that anyone on the team (not only the leader) can step up and make all the difference in moments that require emotion management.
Enhance internal relationships
Relationships are collections of many small interactions. The quality of these interactions gradually impact the quality of the teamâs internal relationships, which in turn influence the quality of your work and results. A teamâs internal bonds are not forged overnight. It takes time and investment in the teamâs relationships. Focus on each interaction. Be open and curious to learn as much as you can about each member of your team. How do they respond to stress? What motivates them? What are their strengths? How can you best support them? Lastly, make sure to also share these items about yourself to help your team help you.Â
Strengthen external relationships
Your performance is in large part measured by how well you meet the needs of the organization, and the same is true of your team. Teams that seek out and develop strong external relationships can grow their understanding of the bigger picture, know how their work fits into the larger organization, and elicit external support for more strategic impact. Organizations depend on effective cross-functional collaboration. A talented team must build strong external relationships to achieve success.
Bringing it all together
Think about it like this: Most work happens in teams, and challenges often arise from emotions and relationships. Impactful and sustainable employee development initiatives must address and strengthen team dynamics, otherwise they donât truly meet the needs of todayâs increasingly integrated workforce â not the least of which include individualsâ needs for connection, inclusion, and empowerment. Embedding Team EQ strategies into development helps organizations build a supportive and high-performing workforce.
By Josh Rosenthal, Director of Training for TalentSmartEQ. For more information, please check out our additional resources.
These strategies were adapted from the new book, âEmotional Intelligence Habitsâ by Dr. Travis Bradberry. To order, click here. For more strategies that can help you improve engagement at your organization, check out our training programs or contact us.