The Big Benefits of Emotional Intelligence for Students
There is always a discussion on IQ and its importance in succeeding academically during school. But—despite IQ playing a role in academic performance—it isn’t the only denominator to keep in mind. Emotional Intelligence (EQ) is not mentioned or referred to as much as it should be when it comes to the role it plays in schooling, but it can make a huge difference in your success!
Today, we’re going to explain what EQ is, and the big benefits of emotional intelligence for students!
What is emotional intelligence?
Emotional Intelligence is the ability to understand yourself and others better. As a student or in high school, this can allow you to analyze situations better.
Imagine you’re in school, and you have a group project in which you have been appointed group leader. The more you understand how to relate to your fellow group members, the easier it is to lead the team. This can help you prepare for how you can succeed academically overall, too.
Having a good and strong understanding of yourself and your emotions can also translate to having a good understanding of your studying habits and learning styles in order to avoid anxiousness, stress, and burnout.
To better understand your EQ, first, you need to learn on what basis it’s calculated. So, let’s get started!
The Four Types of Emotional Intelligence
EQ can be broken down into four subcategories:
Self-awareness
Self-management
Social awareness
Relationship management.
Each of these categories has different characteristics that compromise a student’s emotional intelligence.
Self-awareness
Self-awareness is the ability to be aware of your own emotions. In order to achieve self-awareness, it is important to put more attention to how others' behaviors impact your emotional state. But also, it is important to recognize how you behave towards others and how it impacts them, and indirectly you.
So, self-awareness is based on the self and the recognition of it.
Self-management
Self-management is based on how you keep your emotions in check and how you respond in moments of change. This correlates with being in sync with your values and standing behind them. This way, you are able to express your ideas and beliefs in a clean manner.
The main idea of self-management is keeping your emotions in check to self-regulate.
Social awareness
Social awareness is focusing on other people’s feelings and understanding them. This means being able to read the energy of the room and actively listening to what others are saying. Social awareness signifies that you care what others are going through and you are being an active participant in a discussion.
In this category, social awareness requires social recognition.
Relationship management
Relationship management focuses on how you get along with others. It centers on how you operate when conflict arises. Being able to clearly communicate with external information and being empathetic towards others to create relationships is very important.
In relationship management, empathy is the main key to social regulation.
The Benefits of Emotional Intelligence for Students
A lot of students are better in some categories compared to others. That doesn’t necessarily mean that your EQ is low, but rather that you have certain strengths in specific areas. The key to becoming more emotionally intelligent is first understanding which categories are your strongest or weakest points.
There are many free tests you can take online by searching: Emotional intelligence tests.
Once you are more aware of what you need to work on, you can start by practicing your soft skills. Here are some things you can overall do:
Observe your habits:
How do you work in your environment? How do you work with others?
How do you react when under stress?
Do you work better by yourself or in group projects?
Are you actively listening when your teachers and classmates are speaking?
Observation can help you move on to the next step, which is working on the things you notice you do or don’t, and which do not necessarily correlate with the characteristics of each category.
Final Thoughts on the Benefits of Emotional Intelligence
Understanding emotional intelligence and your strengths in it can help you not only in school but in everyday social interactions. Being able to navigate your emotions efficiently and those of others can help you create healthier studying habits for you. From studying for a test to working on a group project, you can exercise emotional intelligence daily.
If you want more help when it comes to schoolwork, try signing up to work with an online tutor. UPchieve’s volunteer tutors will work with you one-on-one to help you succeed, and—best of all—it’s completely free to qualifying students!