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Building Emotional Intelligence

Ann W. Kummer, PhD, CCC-SLP

February 6, 2017

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Question

How can a person develop and improve his or her emotional intelligence?

Answer

As defined by Daniel Goleman, emotional intelligence is “the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships.” As a result of Goleman’s work in the 1990’s, we are now paying more attention to emotional intelligence. It's not just that you know how to do the job—it’s that you know how to do the job by working well with people. This is especially important when working in a leadership role. 
 
Self-awareness.  The first thing is that you need to have a great deal of self-awareness. That means recognizing your emotions and how they affect your thoughts and behavior, as well as how they affect other people. It is critical to be aware of how your behavior and emotions affect how you operate in any kind of a situation, and how you affect the emotions and behaviors of others. It's not only important to know your strengths, but also know your weaknesses. If you don't know what your weaknesses are, you should ask others for a candid assessment of areas where you could improve. Have self-confidence, but be realistic. You can have confidence in your ability to lead, but you don't want to have arrogance, and you want to make sure that your confidence is realistic.
 
Self-management. Controlling your emotions, impulses and feelings is critically important in a leadership role. You might be extremely angry in a situation, but take that anger home with you. Don't show it in a situation where you are expected to be the leader. It's important to maintain calm and not show impulsivity, anger, or any of those types of emotions. Follow through on commitments. If you promise something, make sure that you deliver. If you absolutely cannot deliver, apologize for that. Adapt to changing circumstances.  We have to adapt, accept the reasons why and try to be positive about it.
 
Social Awareness.  As a leader, it is important to understand the emotions, needs and concerns of the people with whom you work. You want to pick up on those subtle emotional cues. You want to feel comfortable dealing with other people when they are going through hard times, as well as good times. You want to recognize the dynamics in a group or an organization. If you are leading a meeting, you may have one person who is very positive about the discussion and a person who is very negative. You want to help manage that and control those dynamics within the group in a positive way.
 
Relationship Management.  It is extremely important to develop and maintain good relationships.  We all work better when we develop good relationships with other team members.
 
Please refer to the SpeechPathology.com course, Leadership and the Art of Influencing Others, presented in partnership with Cincinnati Children's for more in-depth information about strategies for communicating and interacting with others in order to be an effective leader. 


ann w kummer

Ann W. Kummer, PhD, CCC-SLP

Ann W. Kummer, PhD, CCC-SLP is Senior Director of the Division of Speech-Language Pathology at Cincinnati Children's and Professor of Clinical Pediatrics and Professor of Otolaryngology at the University of Cincinnati, College of Medicine. Under her direction, the speech-language pathology program at Cincinnati Children’s has become the largest pediatric program in the nation and one of the most respected. Dr. Kummer has written numerous articles and book chapters on business practices, and also on cleft palate and craniofacial anomalies. She contributed to the text entitled Business Practices: A Guide for Speech-Language Pathologists (ASHA, 2004). She is also the author of Cleft Palate and Craniofacial Anomalies: The Effects on Speech and Resonance, 3rd Edition (Cengage Learning, 2014). She has done numerous lectures and seminars nationally and internationally.

Dr. Kummer has received many honors, including: Honors of the Ohio Speech-Language-Hearing Association (OSLHA); the Outstanding Clinician Award from OSHLA; distinguished alumnus award from the College of Allied Health, University of Cincinnati; and she is a Fellow of ASHA. She was named one of the 10 Most Inspiring Women in Cincinnati in 2007.


Related Courses

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Presented by Ann W. Kummer, PhD, CCC-SLP
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Differentiating obligatory distortions from compensatory productions, sensory feedback techniques, and effective placement strategies for correction of speech sound errors (e.g., lateral lisp and distortion of /ɚ/ and /r/) are described in this course. Motor learning and motor memory principles are discussed as a framework for achieving carryover after sound acquisition has occurred.

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Ann W. Kummer, PhD, CCC-SLP
Course: #7915Level: Intermediate1.5 Hours
  'It was very informative on what to look for in our clientele'   Read Reviews
This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Children with resonance disorders (hypernasality, hyponasality and cul-de-sac resonance) or suspected velopharyngeal dysfunction present challenges for SLPs in all settings. This course is designed to provide information about the causes and characteristics of resonance disorders and velopharyngeal dysfunction so that these disorders can be recognized and appropriate treatment can be recommended.

Evaluation of Speech/Resonance Disorders Secondary to Velopharyngeal Dysfunction, presented in partnership with Cincinnati Children's
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Ann W. Kummer, PhD, CCC-SLP
Course: #7916Level: Intermediate1.5 Hours
  'This course was absolutely excellent with so much great clinical application- I am evaluating a child with hx of a submucous cleft in an outpatient clinic and this increased my confidence 10 fold with how to evaluate this child appropriately, what to evaluate, and appropriate recommendations'   Read Reviews
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20Q: Ankyloglossia - Myths and Evidence Regarding Its Effects on Function
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