If you put your mind and heart to the task, you can learn the necessary skills to improve your emotional intelligence.

Healthy, productive relationships not only are key to our psychological well-being, they’re also vital to physical health.įortunately, emotional intelligence is not simply an inborn ability, something you do or don’t have. In a nutshell, emotional intelligence refers to the ability to identify and regulate our own emotions, to recognize the emotions of other people and feel empathy toward them, and to use these abilities to communicate effectively and build healthy, productive relationships with others. This capacity, known as emotional intelligence, can have a surprisingly powerful effect on our lives, from our ability to foster long-term relationships with friends and romantic partners to whether we’re able to succeed in school and pursue meaningful work that gives us a sense of purpose. People differ in how adept they are at recognizing emotions, both in themselves and in others, and how well they’re able to use that understanding in constructive ways. The other person may feel the same way you do-or have a completely different reaction. But sometimes you may end up feeling upset and alienated. Ideally, the most important ones leave you feeling content and connected. These interactions may be in person or virtual, brief or prolonged, mundane or profound. You probably interact with a range of people-loved ones, neighbors, colleagues, and strangers-in a variety of situations every day. And your behavior-your words, actions, and facial expressions-affects how well you navigate your day-to-day life.

Either way, your emotions have a major effect on your behavior. Or perhaps you tend to keep them to yourself. Maybe you’re the type of person who expresses emotions openly. As with other human traits, how you experience and express emotions is a result of both nature and nurture: your genetic legacy and the myriad experiences you live through, starting from the moment of your birth. Throughout the course of a single day, chances are you’ll experience a range of emotions-joy, frustration, contentment, sadness, anxiety-depending on how that particular day unfolds.

Emotional state of mind download