Tipping
Points of Emotional Intelligence
Boyatzis (2006) wrote that a good
(effective) leader distinguishes him or herself from their contemporaries through
his or her enhanced competencies. In the
context of this topic, competencies are described as those behavioral abilities
or attributes needed to be successful in a job (University of Nottingham, 2016) . Whether one is a leader or a follower,
competencies are considered “necessary” to successful performance (Boyatzis, 2006) . Riggio (2010) asserted that the most successful
leaders possess these top ten leadership competencies – the competencies are
social intelligence, interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, prudence,
courage, conflict management, decision-making, political skills, influence skills,
and area expertise/competence. I want to
highlight that Boyatzis (2006) wrote that, “Some of the competencies related to
effectiveness reflect cognitive intelligence, but many of them are behavioral
manifestations of emotional intelligence” (p. 124). If one notices, many of the aforementioned
competencies (top ten) are related to one’s behavior, that is, his or her expression
of personal emotion e.g. courage or perceiving others emotions e.g.
interpersonal skills. Thus, while success
may be attributed to one having a high intelligence e.g. IQ, it seems that the
truly successful are those who are in tune with their and others emotions.
Therefore, as a leader I ask myself,
“How many of these competencies do I have?”
My response is that I believe I have demonstrated every one of the
aforementioned competencies. Yet, as I
reflect, I consider the following question, “How well have I demonstrated my
competencies?” It is one thing to have
done something, and yet another to have done something well (or even have
mastery). However, how do I quantitatively
measure my “levels” of competency?
Boyatzis (2006) wrote that a ‘tipping point analysis’ helps examine “how much of the competency is sufficient
for outstanding performance” (p. 214). In his research,
Boyatzis used mathematical models to determine a correlation between those
deemed “superior” (in terms of performance) and the frequency in which they demonstrated
a particular competency (as observed by others). The ‘tipping point’ was the frequency in
which those competencies were displayed – on a scale of 1-3: 3= consistently
and frequently; 2= occasionally; 1= rarely or never (Boyatzis, 2006, p. 128) . For instance, the tipping point for the
competency ‘empathy’ was 2.78 – the correlation was that a “superior” performer
demonstrated empathy ‘consistently and frequently’. Other competencies that correlated with
superior performance included planning, achievement orientation, adaptability,
conscientiousness, values learning, coaching, and systems thinking (Boyatzis,
2006, p. 130) .
Yet, the ‘tipping point’ is more
than simply demonstrating a competency more frequently; it is demonstrating the
competency (or competencies) at the right moment. For instance, when I have demonstrated
empathy for others, did I do it when they needed it the most? Did I demonstrate compassion (turning my
empathy into action)? The tipping point
may also be that moment when a competency is realized. A tipping point in which I realized a
competency occurred early in my Army career – the competency I speak of is ‘values
learning’. I have written before in my reflection
blogs and general assignments that as a teen, I was rudderless and without
direction. I was not in control of my
emotions and actions. Yet, all of that
somehow (and inexplicably) changed when I joined the Army. The competency of values learning was invoked
by leaders; those who would coach and mentor me. It would be hard for me to attribute this to
any one person, therefore, I will recall those I who believe were influential in
this development e.g. Mitch McCall, Jaime Aburto, and Ricky Yates to name a
few. The values that I learned (and live
to this day) are loyalty, duty, respect, selfless-service, honor, integrity,
and personal courage. It is no
coincidence that these values are the Army’s core values and carry the apt
acronym LDRSHIP. The leaders I mentioned
demonstrated these values and encouraged me to do the same. They inspired me though their personal
example. They taught me what to do. Ricky constantly told me, “If you always do
the right thing, you will never have regrets”.
I believe that my other competencies
would not have developed if I had lacked core values. For instance, my learned values laid the
foundation for which I could build by social and emotional intelligence. Having core values and living by those values
is self-management. Self-management enabled
me to engage my emotions in a way that was positive.
References
Boyatzis,
R. (2006). Retrieved from Psicothema: http://www.psicothema.com/pdf/3287.pdf
Riggio, R. (2014,
April 27). Retrieved from Psychology Today:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/201404/the-top-10-leadership-competencies
University of
Nottingham. (2016, July 11). Retrieved from www.nottingham.ac.uk:
https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/hr/guidesandsupport/performanceatwork/pdpr/pdpr-behavioural-competency-guide/what-are-competencies.aspx
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