Your level-headed friend you always go to for advice, the manager who leads by examples and with poise and not an iron fist and the complete stranger who goes out of their way to help you. What do all these people have in common? The answer is that they are emotionally intelligent. According to Psychology Today, Emotional Intelligence is defined as an aptitude for identifying and managing emotions, and the emotions of others. Here are three things that almost every emotionally intelligent people do.
1. They Move on And Don’t Dwell on the Past
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People who exist more in their past and future than their present, are extra susceptible to a number of stressors and difficulties in life such as regret, nostalgia and more. While it is not good to block out your past, you shouldn’t be overly concerned with it because it’s already happened and you can’t change it. It is important to learn from the past, and then move on with your life.
2. They Think Before They Act or Speak
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Another key about being emotionally intelligent is to think about what you do or say before you do it. People who are not emotionally intelligent will often blurt something out or do something before considering how that thing might affect others. Thinking before you “do” can really help you avoid potentially harmful situations and can prevent you from making yourself look stupid as well.
3. They Empathize With Others
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This is a huge indicator that someone is emotionally intelligent. Empathy is all about being able to understand and comprehend the emotions of another person, whether happiness, sadness or anything in between. In order to best react with different people, being able to understand and relate to them is huge, in almost any scenario. Knowing what someone might be feeling or going through (or at least making an effort to do so), will make you better suited to help them or at least give them someone to talk to.