Vet Times The website for the veterinary profession https://www.vettimes.co.uk Value of emotional intelligence in veterinary practice teams Author : MAGGIE SHILCOCK Categories : Vets Date : February 17, 2014 EMOTIONAL intelligence (EQ) is a person s ability to perceive, control and evaluate emotions. High EQ enables people to communicate effectively, empathise with others and manage emotions, thus helping them diffuse conflict and relieve stressful situations. In a nutshell, they are good with people. There are many in veterinary practice with high or very high intellectual intelligence (IQ), but having a high IQ is not enough when it comes to dealing with people. A high IQ will help someone pass exams, diagnose illness and be good at the intellectual side of his or her job, but it s his or her EQ that will help with stressful and emotional situations, and relate well to the people he or she works with both clients and colleagues. Typically, people with high EQs will have good skills in the following areas: Self-awareness recognising one s own emotions and how they affect one s thoughts and behaviour, and understanding one s strengths and weaknesses. Self-management being able to control impulsive feelings and behaviours, manage one s emotions and adapt to change. Social awareness being able to read body language and other non-verbal communication, such as facial expressions; understand the emotions, needs, and concerns of other people and pick up on emotional cues. Also, the ability to hear words not spoken, by being aware of tone of voice, pauses in speech, inflection of the voice and so on. Relationship management knowing how to develop and maintain good relationships, communicate clearly, control and handle emotions so they do not get out of hand, and work well in a team, including understanding the effect his or her actions or words are having on others. There is the usual nature versus nurture debate when it comes to EQ, and it s true there are 1 / 5
people who naturally have a high EQ. They are the ones who seem to get along with everyone, tend to be the peacemakers in difficult situations and always seem to be liked by clients. We might all like to have their ability, but for some, it can be an uphill struggle, while for others there is a real unawareness of their lack of EQ. All is not lost however, as it is possible to improve one s EQ by practising some of the following ideas. Focused listening we tend to be thinking of our response to the other person when he or she is talking to us, rather than actually listening to what he or she is saying, so focus your mind and attention on what is actually being said and on the questions you might ask to clarify and understand fully what the person is really saying. Summarise and feedback an excellent way of ensuring you have really heard what someone has been saying to you is to summarise what he or she has said or you think he or she has said. For example: "So what you are saying is " Not only does this clarify communication, but it also shows the other person you are listening and are interested. Ask questions to identify emotions and feelings if you have difficulty reading how someone is reacting to a situation emotionally particularly if it is something you are having to tell him or her ask how he or she feels about the situation. It is far better to ask the question than assume incorrectly everything is fine, giving the impression you don t really care about the person. Awareness of body language/non-verbal communication if body language is inconsistent with the words spoken, this suggests all is not well. It takes time to interpret body language and there can be many pitfalls along the way, but having a basic knowledge of non-verbal signals and watching out for them will make for much better communication and understanding. Observe your own reactions be aware of your own reactions to situations. Try to understand what emotions you are feeling and how these may perhaps be seen or heard by the other person. Developing and improving your EQ takes time and perseverance, but for those working in a veterinary practice where so much is about emotions and relating well with people the ability to recognise one s own emotional state and that of others, and be able to engage with people, is very important. Obviously, some work roles require more EQ than others, but the fact is, most staff will be dealing with clients at some point in their day and, for much of their time, they will be part of a team and need to work well and harmoniously with others. 2 / 5
The need to have veterinary staff with high EQs makes recruiting the right people so important. When we interview for new staff we can get a pretty good idea of their IQ, but how do you measure EQ in the short space of interview time? You may opt to go down the psychometric testing route, but if this is not for you, there are three important aspects that can help identify candidates with high EQs and, at the very least, eliminate those who are really not going to improve the harmony in the practice. Below are some of the emotional qualities you need to be asking yourself about potential new members of staff and the type of questions to ask to try to identify them. How good is his or her self-awareness and self-control? It s important people understand the emotions, needs and wishes that drive them and how these may affect the way they behave. It s also important they are able to control their emotions so anxiety or anger does not make them lose control of their emotions in the workplace or spread to their colleagues. Try to establish this aspect of the candidate s EQ by asking the following questions: Give me an example of when your mood/emotions affected the way you worked, either negatively or positively. Can you give an example of a time when you had conflict with someone you worked with and describe what happened? How do you remain calm and positive in a work situation, even when you are really upset or anxious? Could you give an example of this? These questions help to show how aware the candidate is of his or her emotions and what he or she attempts to do about them. Read others The ability to read other people, pick up their feelings and emotions and behave in an empathetic way is an important communication skill. Misreading colleagues or staff can have serious consequences, so asking the following sort of question can help to establish this ability: Describe a situation you have been in where something you did or said had a bad reaction from the other person and tell me what you did to resolve the problem. 3 / 5
Learn from mistakes Those with good social and communication skills are able to recognise their mistakes and learn from them. This ability to recognise and reflect is an important part of providing good customer care and workplace relationships. To find out how well a candidate might be able to learn from mistakes, you may ask something like: Tell me about a situation where you realised you needed to modify what you were doing or saying because you were heading off on the wrong course of action. What made you realise this and how did you alter the situation to get a better outcome? Asking questions similar to those above, together with your impressions of the person s communication and empathy skills, will at least go some way to identifying his or her level of EQ and how suitable he or she would be for your practice. Without emotional awareness we cannot fully understand either our own emotional needs and motivations, or communicate effectively with others the very thing we need to excel at in our profession. 4 / 5
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