The Power Of Emotional Intelligence

I recently came across an article that talks about the “Downsides of being very emotionally intelligent.” Although I respect and commend the author for his previous work, on this occasion, I strongly disagree.

But first, let’s define what is meant by “Emotional Intelligence.” According to the most reputable dictionaries, ‘Emotional Intelligence’ is “the ability to be aware of, manage, and express one’s emotions, as well as the emotions around us.”

Based on this definition, and common sense, stating that “being very emotionally intelligent can have downsides,” is analogous to stating that being “too healthy” can have negative effects.

Human behavior, despite our great advances in developing our reasoning, is still ruled by our emotions, more specifically, by our limbic system, composed of the hypothalamus, the amygdala, the thalamus, and the hippocampus.

Under calm situations — which is almost never within our increasingly turbulent and uncertain world — it is possible to exercise our ability to reason to a high degree. However, as soon as we encounter stressful situations (pleasant or unpleasant), our emotions begin to take over our reasoning. This is especially true under extremely positive situations (e.g., winning the lottery) and/or extremely negative situations (e.g., life-threatening), and in…