Making Emotionally Intelligent Decisions
Bruce Willis just announced that he is stepping away from his acting career after being diagnosed with Aphasia, a disorder that affects the brain’s language center and a person’s ability to understand or express speech. But what must that decision have entailed? Considering the desire of an actor to continue to work and enjoy their craft, this feels like an incredibly emotionally intelligent decision.
Self & Social Awareness
Consider the self-awareness and social awareness this decision takes to make. From a social awareness aspect, seeking the whole picture and understanding the toll this will take on those around him and then deciding to live in the moment, is allowing Willis to step back and truly take others into consideration. He can’t work through this on his own, so taking the emotions of others into account at this early point is a very emotionally intelligent act to make.
It also takes some strong self-awareness skills. When you step back and observe the ripple effect of your own emotions and understanding the depth of what is about to take place…it becomes a very unselfish act to make the decision to step away from the career you have loved your whole life. Clearly when Willis visits his values from a self-awareness point of view, his family and his close circle mean more to him than only own.
We’ll be seeing more of the Die Hard star in the coming year on the big screen because of the 10 movies that he has in post-production. As Willis goes on this journey, it is a great reminder for us all to consider how what we may be dealing with is something to step back and consider those around us and how the decisions we make, truly impact them. The strength of our own EQ may be what will allow us to make the hard decisions easier.
Read more on the story from the Hollywood Reporter: Bruce Willis Stepping Away from Acting