A Path to Success

There is a popular myth that people must be born with the innate qualities needed for success, and therefore only a select few can create the lives they want.

Our experience at Possibilities Consulting suggests this is simply not true. We have long held the belief that anyone can accomplish extraordinary things, given the passion, the motivation, and a realistic understanding of how the world works. We have known for years that anyone who really wants to succeed can substantially improve their ability to do so. Now we have scientific evidence to support our long-held belief.

Through the research of Peter Salovey and John Mayer in the late 1980s, and popularized by Daniel Goleman today, it has been discovered that Emotional Intelligence is a much stronger determinant of success than IQ and expertise. The study of Emotional Intelligence has defined the qualities that are most needed for success in any endeavor and has shown that these qualities are not fixed genetically. In fact, unlike IQ, which changes little after our teen years, Emotional Intelligence seems to be a learned skill and can continue to be developed as we go through life. Our competence in it can keep growing.

Emotional Intelligence, often abbreviated as EQ, EI, or EIQ was originally defined by Salovey and Mayer as:

...the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions.

Goleman later expanded upon these ideas to develop a four-domain framework, which included the following areas:

• Self-Awareness

• Self-Management

• Social Awareness

• Relationship Management

In recent years, management theorists and practitioners have found that Emotional Intelligence is indeed the most critical predictor of successful leadership. Indeed, most of the efforts of today’s forward- thinking executives focus on developing their “EIQ” — in addition to learning better business management skills. Virtually everything we teach in this workshop can be mapped to the elements of Emotional Intelligence—proof that our unique approach to developing people is right on the mark.