To fully understand the purpose of and need for emotional intelligence coaching we must first have an understanding of what is meant by emotional intelligence. This concept introduced by Daniel Goleman is described as the ability to perceive and understand emotions.
Therefore the goal of emotional intelligence coaching is to teach, promote and coach a client’s ability to not only be able to perceive and understand their own emotions but to also be able to do the same for other people’s emotions. As it’s actually not enough for us to just focus on our emotions.
If we are to become truly effective and successful in life, we must also be able to get along with others and understand where they’re coming from as far as their feelings are concerned.
The good news about emotional intelligence is…
It can be taught which makes it possible for people to improve this area of their life quite easily through coaching which can vastly improve their chances for success.
There are many emotional issues all of us face everyday of our lives but oftentimes those coming in for emotional intelligence coaching are dealing with such issues as stress, anxiety and even depression either within themselves or in others that they must deal with on a daily basis.
And any one of these issues can have quite a detrimental impact on a person’s ability to become successful in their personal as well as professional life if not handled appropriately.
Stress, anxiety and depression even on a small scale can become barriers to success. When these emotions have a hold on your life it becomes much more difficult for you to think clearly and make good decisions. Your perspective on things can become quite distorted which can also prevent you from seeing situations in an objective or positive light.
When these emotions become severe people have a tendency to experience feeling of doom and gloom and even helplessness. Once this sets in people have a much more difficult time learning and processing information and begin to believe that they don’t have any control over their situation.
A person suffering from anxiety or depression who reaches this severe level often ends up doing one of two things:
- They resign themselves to their situation
Because of the anxiety or depression, a person’s mind has a tendency to shut down and focus on his or her anxiety instead of the actual problem at hand which prevents them from moving forward. They become unable to act on their own behalf and just wait for what they think is inevitable.
- They act rashly
People who are overcome by anxiety or depression often lose focus of the world around them. They make decisions that are fueled by these negative emotions. Because of this, they often end up making all the wrong moves.
I’m sure you can see by now how our lack of emotional intelligence can lead to us failing in our life even if we have an above average IQ. With all of these negative emotions floating around out of control, our mental intelligence becomes rather useless to us.
So, now the million dollar questions is…
How does emotional intelligence coaching help with stress, depression and anxiety?
Understanding –
This is the key to using emotional intelligence against depression and anxiety. Through the increased understanding of their emotions, people can begin to put things back into perspective.
This is the first step in breaking the hold these emotions have on them. Through coaching, they learn the source of their emotions and thus, learn the most effective way to fix them.
Distinction –
A person can use emotional intelligence to distinguish what emotions are bothering them and how they are being affected by them. They’re able to distinguish their feelings from their thoughts. In other words, they’re able to distinguish the part of the emotion that actually comes from inside them as opposed to what they think is causing their feelings.
It’s this distinction that enables a person to use emotional intelligence against depression and anxiety. They are able to take control of their emotions and use them properly in a healthy way that allows them to move forward and succeed in life.
Cultivation –
Depression and anxiety are often caused by unfulfilled emotional needs or because of anger they have turned inward. Emotional intelligence coaching is all about learning how to cultivate these buried or unfulfilled emotions. Many people have been ignoring their emotions for years, but they fail to realize that these pent up emotions must come out sooner or later.
Through emotional intelligence coaching, people learn how to combat depression and anxiety by letting emotions grow naturally while expressing them safely in a controlled manner.
There are many other ways that emotional intelligence coaching is used to gain an understanding of emotions. However, these few ways should give you some insight into how emotional intelligence coaching works and why it’s helpful in promoting a person’s success.