The Good, The Bad & The Ugly - Stories of Emotional Intelligence (or lack thereof) - In Real Life

Each day provides examples of EQ Rock Stars....and....well.... those who may not be aware of EQ and the role it plays in their world. 


During a recent week I crossed paths with two mail carriers in my neighborhood who were in very different places emotionally.


Both interactions took place on beautiful, sunny spring days in Denver, CO within 5-7 blocks of one another.

The first interaction.....

Me:  "Good Afternoon!"

Him:  "humph"  (seriously....he said "humph")

Me:  "Beautiful day to have an outside job, isn't it?"

Him:  "I suppose.  I would rather be doing just about anything else."



The second interaction.....

Me:  "Good Morning!"

Him:  "And to you as well!"

Me:  "It's a beautiful day to have your job isn't it!"

Him:  "EVERY day is a beautiful day to have my job!"


Which of these individuals would YOU rather work with? 

Attitude Matters. 

Happiness Matters. 

Emotional Intelligence Matters.

Raindrops keep falling on my head.......

We had more than the usual amount of precipitation in Denver over the past few days. Snow, Sleet, Rain – it was messy. It was perfect “stay in” weather.

Unfortunately the rain, snow, sleet also decided it was a good weekend to be “in” .........“in” my basement.

ick

Earlier this week I read Ashley Andrus’ post on Jobing.com Denver about Kathy Stroh being stranded in Wyoming. Sometime after running the wet-vac, having friends come by with a back-up wet-vac, my neighbor adding apoxy to the outside of the house to keep more water from coming in, etc --- I flashed back to her post.

I was slow to realize the ‘Comic Vision’– but it was there.

Thankfully I discovered it before the water restoration guy showed up.

As he felt around the edges of the guest room closet I heard him grown as he discovered a new challenge to our clean-up….…. “Now that’s the sound you never want to hear coming from your doctor or your home contractor” I chucked out loud upon hearing that groan. Finally – my ‘Comic Vision’ had returned!

He laughed in response and said, “at least you have a positive outlook through this”. But I hadn’t. That ‘Comic Vision’ had not been present the previous five hours. I had been very stressed, sad and frustrated.

This relates directly to the components of Emotional Intelligence ---- Stress Tolerance and Impulse Control in particular. Had my Stress Tolerance been stronger my ‘Comic Vision’ could have found it’s way more easily. Instead, I had stacked up my "bummers"(watch the full video for more on that phrase)

Those hours immediately following the discovery of the flood in my basement could have been far less frustrating….and I a much more enjoyable person had my stress tolerance been stronger and my 'comic vision' in play.

A great reminder that regardless of the strength or weakness of our general EQ there is always room for improvement -- and it's important to always be aware of your 'Comic Vision'.

If you have not yet watched Tim Gard’s video regarding 'Comic Vision' I encourage you to watch it now – it is well worth your time! I'm going to go watch it again myself.....

May all your Endeavors be Insightful,

Nora A Burns, SPHR

www.insightfulendeavors.com

www.twitter.com/noraburns

www.twitter.com/phrsphr

My Name Is Nora.....and I'm a Twitter Addict

It's official.  While I am late on the scene, having joined the Twitter craze less than 48 hours ago, I am already hooked.  

No, I'm not addicted to knowing who is going to the grocery store, the coffee shop and the bathroom (Seriously people --- note item #4 below).  I'm addicted to the knowledge sharing.  

A curious person by nature, I'm finding Twitter to be the equivalent of a 7-shot espresso.  This morning, compliments of Twitter-ers (ites, ies?), I learned:

• Emotional Intelligence DOES affect SAT scores!
  
• You can find the blogs of many big companies all in one place.
  
• Blogging moms rule the world (simply search Mom and Motrin to see what I mean!)
  
• Obama will likely have to give up his Blackberry when he takes office! (I can't even fathom doing this)
  

....and so much more. 

People have information -- and they want to share it.  Twitter provides another opportunity for us to do just that --- in REAL TIME. 

Quick tips from one Twitter Rookie to another:

1. Content vs Fluff Solution : It's all about who you choose to follow.  Find interesting people and follow them -- and look at who THEY are following since interesting people tent to follow interesting people. 
2. If you use Mac....set up TwitterDeck to organize your twittering. 
3. iPhone users visit the App Store and find "Twitterrific".
4. Assume your boss, clients, professors, friends, family, etc will find you on Twitter.
   

Follow me on Twitter.......I promise not to tell you when I am on my way to the bathroom...well, except maybe on April Fools Day. 

Wishing you the best in all your endeavors, 

Nora A Burns, SPHR

www.insightfulendeavors.com

Nora A Burns, SPHR is founder of Insightful Endeavors International (IEI), Inc.  A native of Wisconsin with 20 years experiences in Learning & Organizational Development, Nora currently resides in Denver, CO with her insanely cute Labradoodle Bella and Bella's sidekick Baxter.  

IEI specializes in building innovative, sustainable teams to drive bottom-line results.  We pride ourselves on being a top-tier resource for leadership development, team development and assisting organizations in finding innovative solutions.