Emotional Intelligence in Action

Some of my supervisors that work under my boss boast some of the highest evidences of emotional intelligence to date. These supervisors are child life specialists that work to improve the quality of life of pediatric cancer patients and so it is no surprise that they are incredible empathetic. This empathy and emotional intelligence is not only wonderful with their patients but it serves as great leadership skills as they manage us as interns.

According to Goleman the five majors determining factors in an emotionally intelligent person is self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skill. My supervisors are self-aware so for example in one instance they were called to an emergency during training. That meant that they left us without much direction. When they came back they apologized and acknowledged that we likely felt lost. This made us feel understood. They also self-regulate so for instance during future meetings they left a co-worker on call to answer any emergencies so that they could provide us with their full attention.

These child life specialists are incredibly motivated by their work because of how essential it is. They realize that pediatric patients need support and care and are empathetic of that. That maintains their motivation and keeps them working very hard. Finally, they are very socially adept and interact well with both patients and their parents or caregivers. They know when to talk to parents and when to give them space. They can also sense when kids are in distress or when they are not.

Ultimately, my bosses are emotionally intelligent and this helps them to maintain order as they supervise and as they interact with their patients.