At first glance it might appear that an industry as technical as construction has little room for emotional intelligence. The role of emotional intelligence in the success of our projects is often overlooked. We tend to favour ‘hard skills’ over ‘soft skills’ and miss giving soft skills the recognition they deserve in the Project Managers toolbox. Over my 10+ years experience, I have learnt that for a Project Manager emotional intelligence is perhaps one of the most important skills we can master. Soft skills help us, our teams and help our companies succeed better. This article explains how and why emotional intelligence is so important for Project Managers.
What is Emotional Intelligence?
Emotional intelligence is the ability to identify, understand, manage and use our emotions in positive ways. It is an important skill that used correctly can foster excellent leadership, teamwork and collaboration. It refers to your ability to understand your own emotions as well as the emotions of those around you.
The term was popularised in the 1990s with the release of Daniel Goleman’s book ‘Emotional Intelligence’ published in 1995. In the book, Goleman argues that Emotional intelligence (EQ) is as important as Intellectual intelligence (IQ). IQ refers to your ability to use logic, solve problems and grasp complex ideas. EQ is your ability understand yourself, others and work out motivations so you can work together.
Goleman identifies 5 key emotional intelligence skills
- Self-awareness – the understanding of your own emotions
- Self-regulation – the ability to manage your emotional responses
- Motivation – your internal intrinsic drive
- Empathy – the ability to understand the emotions of others
- Social skills – the ability to build and retain healthy relationships
Importantly, Goleman identifies that Emotional intelligence can be developed and refined, i.e. it is not inherent in a person, but something that anyone can learn.
Why is Emotional Intelligence important in our industry?
Like it or not, construction is still a people based industry. It is commonplace that we have large teams coming together from different companies, with potentially differing, or even competing, interests. Every project is different and the majority of project teams are different. Knowing how to get new teams to bond and work together is a key quality of high emotional intelligence.
Construction is also a stressful industry. We are a fast paced, multifaceted industry where the pressure can arise and affect anyone. Being an emotionally intelligent project leader enables you to read your team. To know when to push them and when to back off. Being able to understand different team members abilities and capabilities, and therefore being able to create an environment where they can thrive on an individual and collective level.
Emotional intelligence is also critical for conflict avoidance and dispute resolution. With the right EQ tools, we have the ability to deescalate situations, using communication and negotiation to navigate difficult conversations and situations and create win: win outcomes. Ultimately, it is the skill of working with people, rather than against them, and of uniting your project team in a common goal.
So how can you improve your emotional Intelligence?
Here are some top tips!
- Become self-aware. Emotional intelligence should start with you. Look inwards to start recognising the patterns and behaviours of your own emotional responses. Become attuned to how you are feeling so you can identify what prompts those feelings.
- Get curious. Next time a team member behaves in a certain way, get curious. Rather than allowing their behaviour to influence you, analyse the situation that led to their response. Is there a way you can intervene to create a better outcome? Start to notice the social cues that prompt reactions in other people’s behaviour.
- Practise active listening. When people speak, listen fully. Don’t instantly start forming a response in your head. Don’t talk over them or interrupt them. Allow them to speak and listen fully. Consider using cues such as nodding your head and repeating back key points to demonstrate that you understand them. Be open to other people’s ideas and thoughts without judgement.
- Ask questions. Try to avoid jumping into a situation with your own pre conceived notions. Give your team the space to share what they are thinking by asking open ended questions that get people expressing themselves. Asking the right questions will help you understand the individual, their motivations and how you can help them succeed.
- Learn to read your team. Notice the way people communicate. Learn to spot signs of frustration, anger or annoyance early and step in to mediate the situation and get people back on track. Then learn how to avoid that situation so it does not happen again. Create an environment of trust and respect in your team by setting rules about how people communicate with each other and by calling out bad behaviour.
Emotional intelligence is an underrated skill in the construction industry, but it is a hugely important one. Emotional intelligence enables you to develop and maintain positive relationships with your team and yourself. It can help you understand a situation better so that you can help projects move toward a more successful outcome, avoiding unnecessary conflict and dispute along the way. Use the tips in their article to start improving and practising the skill of emotional intelligence on your construction projects.