By: Caz Russell, Leadership Speaker, Trainer & Coach
I remember hearing the story of a father/daughter conversation. The young lady telling her father “I need $60.00 for a new bathing suit.” Her father immediately answered “you need $60.00 for a bathing suit? There is a difference between need and want.” The young girl quickly replied “I don’t understand the difference, please explain. Her father reached into his wallet, pulled out a ten and a twenty-dollar bill and handed it to his daughter. “Here is $30.00 towards the swimsuit! You want a new bathing suit, now you only need $30.00 to purchase the suit.”
Knowing the difference between need and want is important in helping us to make a decision. When we ask ourselves “do I need or do I want a new car, our emotional intelligence needs to differentiate between the two.
Regardless of your DISC personality, each of us responds differently to emotional events. There are four segments when it comes to understanding our EQ (emotional intelligence). In this month’s article, let’s focus on Quadrant 1 - Self Awareness. I remember going to a Hershey Bears hockey game a few years ago. Between the second and third periods the Zamboni entered the ice rink and began to refresh the icy surface. Soon as the ice machine left the ice rink, a local truck dealership proudly drove a brand new 4-wheel drive, dark cherry pickup onto the ice. It was trimmed in silver and the black spoke wheels were a magnificent contrast to the translucent frosty color of the ice.
I really wanted to waltz right down to the rink, hop in and take it for a spin. Did I want it or did I need it? My emotions kicked into saliva mode, like a pup smelling dogs on the grill, I too was drooling. Fortunately, the self-awareness of my emotions kicked in, as I realized this purchase was not going to and should not happen.
Having the self-awareness of our emotional feelings is a great leadership skill to develop. I have read that someone with a higher EQ than their IQ (Intelligence Quotient) will actually outperform someone with a higher IQ than their EQ. Our EQ (Emotional Intelligence) also plays a huge part in deciding between urgent and important. In today’s world, we often find ourselves with an assigned project to be completed by a certain date. Here is where the dilemma begins. Do I complete a project just to make sure it has met the deadline? Or, do I complete the project 100% correctly? I can recall fellow employees telling me “We don’t have time to do it right, but we have time to do it twice!” From sports to work to home life, being able to identify the difference between what is urgent and what is important, is much easier decided when we use our EQ (Emotional Intelligence)!
Self-awareness tools to learn:
- What matters most, know your core values and beliefs!
- Learn to be comfortable with the uncomfortable!
- Check your emotions at the door!
- Learn to ask and accept feedback!
Next month we will discuss Quadrant II: Self-Management – Good decisions require more than knowledge!
Caz Russell LLC
Author of “NUGGETS”
Human Behavior Consultant
Leadership speaker, teacher, trainer & coach!
DISC & Emotional Intelligence facilitator
www.cazrussell.com
caz@cazrussell.com
Author of “NUGGETS”
Human Behavior Consultant
Leadership speaker, teacher, trainer & coach!
DISC & Emotional Intelligence facilitator
www.cazrussell.com
caz@cazrussell.com
My first authored book entitled “NUGGETS”, What dog training has taught me about life and leadership! Release date 11/10/20. Go to CazRussell.com and contact me via email that you would like me to reserve you an autographed copy.
