This
Month’s Topic of Interest:
“Emotional Intelligence
– What Is It?”
I would first
like to introduce the definition of
Emotional Intelligence (EI). Based upon
Wikipedia’s definition, EI describes
“the ability, capacity, skill or, in
the case of the trait EI model, a self-perceived
ability, to identify, assess, and manage
the emotions of one's self, of others,
and of groups.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_intelligence
Basically, EI is the ability of one
to master self-control over their emotions.
As Wikipedia states in the Origins of
the Concept, “The earliest roots of
emotional intelligence can be traced
to Darwin’s work on the importance of
emotional expression for survival and
second adaptation.”
I will stop here as I want to expand
on this concept as it relates to horses
and our level of success, within us,
and with them. There is a lot of research
being conducted today that centers on
the study of a horse’s EI, and how their
ability to govern their emotions has
led to their incredible survival success
as a prey animal. Mostly it is the horse’s
ability to utilize all of their senses,
within a heightened state of emergency,
strategically placed for survival. This
is the foundation of their deep sense
of self-preservation and marked ability
to remain focused within the moment,
i.e.; they aren’t bogged down by past
thoughts, nor do they dwell on any one
emotion for too long. This is most important
as it allows them to “feel” the energy,
or emotion, being projected by others
and at the same time, they don’t lose
sight of where they need to be in that
moment.
I found a wonderful article, written
by Robert Kramer, PhD, that elaborates
on his studies of human EI: Beyond Max
Weber: Emotional Intelligence and Public
Leadership
This article doesn’t refer to a horse’s
EI as much as it refers to the qualities
of obtaining EI within ourselves. It
has been my experience, as a horse behavioral
specialist, that these qualities can
also be directly linked to the way in
which horses relate to their surroundings,
the societal dynamics within the herd
and the relationships, friendships they
share.
“Without the intelligent guidance of
emotions, human beings cannot respond
to situations very flexibly, take advantage
of the right time and right place, make
sense of ambiguous or contradictory
messages, recognize the importance of
different elements of a situation…”
“Emotional intelligence is registered
through deep listening -- listening
to oneself and listening to others (Kramer
1995, 1999).”
“Emotionally intelligent behavior is
a prerequisite for building bridges
of mutual understanding and trust in
the space between people…” And horses!
Leading by Listening
“The Chinese characters that make up
the verb “to listen” tell us something
significant about this skill. Chinese
characters are really picturegrams.
“When in stillness,” reads this picturegram,
“a king listens with the heart. The
ear is worth ten eyes.” In order to
be a good king, one must listen with
ears, eyes, and heart, giving undivided
attention to the people. In the philosophy
of Taoism, a king is defined as a servant-leader
who is a mindful listener. In a sense,
the Chinese pictogram suggests an ancient
wisdom: “leadership” is a metaphor for
being integrated, focused, and centered,
a metaphor for emotional and intellectual
balance in all aspects of life. Leadership
is connecting mindfully and feelingly
to what moves in one’s soul -- and makes
one come alive -- and to what moves
in the souls of others and makes them
come alive. Public service leadership
is soulwork.”
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