Leading with Emotional Intelligence: Hands-On ... - always yours

EMOTIONAL SELF-CONTROL TOOLS AND STRATEGIES 85
results suggest that “Stress may reduce the leader’s access to his
or her full EI ability.” 6 Thompson had similar fi ndings when using
the MSCEIT assessment: the “stressed-out” mindset had an average
total score again almost one standard deviation (13 points) below
the normal group.
When stress is high, as it is in most organizations, it is critical
that the leader be able to manage his or her stress as well as the
teams’. Leaders who are unable to manage their stress fall into the
EQ, IQ Brain Drain Loop discussed in the Introduction. When their
EQ goes down it affects their IQ and their cognitive decision-making
abilities. Thompson has stated that a “high stress environment
would be expected to restrict leaders’ access to their full EQ and
IQ potential.” 7 This is exactly what I have witnessed time and time
again with the business simulation we conduct with organizations.
Are you a Star Performer in emotional self-control or just
average? Do you regularly, consistently (at least 80% of the time)
stay calm, unflappable, and clearheaded in high-stress situations?
WHERE DID MY IQ GO?
We have all had the experience of doing something in the heat
of the moment that we regretted later. Our reaction flew out of the
gate before we could catch it. It’s as if our rational mind stopped and
what came out not only surprised us, but everyone around us too.
We ended up saying, “How could I do that? What could I have possibly
been thinking?” Well, in reality, we weren’t thinking clearly, we
were overwhelmed with an emotional reaction. We were hijacked.
The amygdala hijack is a term coined in Daniel Goleman’s Emotional
Intelligence, his first book on the subject. The amygdala is the
emotional part of the brain that regulates the fight, fl ight, or freeze
response. When threatened, it can respond irrationally. A rush of
stress hormones floods the body before the prefrontal cortex (PFC)
can mediate this reaction. The prefrontal cortex regulates executive
functioning, which includes understanding, deciding, recalling,
memorizing, and inhibiting emotions. It is essential for thinking