MBA502 Emotional Intelligence, Cultural Intelligence and Diversity Essay 1 Sample

MBA502 Emotional Intelligence, Cultural Intelligence and Diversity. Ass 1

Management – Essay

Your Task

Using the first two of Daniel Goleman’s (2020) Emotional Intelligence (EI) domains of self- awareness and self-management, students are to write an EI Self-Reflective Essay. Students are to use a variety of EI development tools and strategies provided during classes (Weeks 1-4) to assist in their reflections.

Assessment Description

In Weeks 1-5, students studied Daniel Goleman’s (1985, 2020) four (4) components of Emotional Intelligence (EI): Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social-Awareness and Relationship Awareness. In this EI Self- Reflective Essay, students will demonstrate how, what they have learned in the first four weeks of the trimester, has improved their understanding of EI. In particular their levels of self-awareness and skills in self- management (Weeks 1-4). Students are to refer to the outcomes of the psychometric test (link below) and one other of the EI tools (you can choose from: mindfulness, journaling, gratitude, strength spotting or meditation app) to demonstrate their increased knowledge and understanding. Finally, students are to reflect on any implications of their increased EI in their future career as a professional.

The link to the psychometric test will be sent out in Week 2 via Announcements.

LO1: Analyse the key features of emotional intelligence and cultural intelligence, as well as one’s own strengths and weaknesses in relation to EI / CI.

LO2: Apply the concepts of emotional and cultural intelligence to the modern workplace, and the implications for leadership, teams and for transforming organisational cultures.

Assessment Instructions

Students should follow the essay format as identified below:

➢ Introduction (150 words)
➢ Evidence of the growth of Self-Awareness (400 words)
➢ Evidence of the growth of Self-Management (400 words)
➢ Implications for your future career (400 words)
➢ Conclusion (150 words)
➢ Reference List (using the Kaplan Harvard Referencing Style throughout your essay and   the reference list at the end)
➢ References:

• Your Goleman references

• 2 or more academic references

• 1 or more business references, such as business articles, news items, and/or comparison websites.

Solution

Introduction 

Emotional intelligence has become a key leadership skill essential for individuals intending to work in multinational companies having diverse workforces. It can be referred to as the ability to understand and manage one's own emotions alongside recognising and influencing the emotions of people around (Goleman, et al 2013, p.45). As per MBA Assignment Expert,  Individuals having high emotional intelligence can be more capable of remaining calm and composed under stressful environments, resolving conflicts and responding to co-workers and team members with empathy. Some basic competencies involved in emotional intelligence are self-awareness, empathy, social skills, self-regulation and motivation (Krén & Séllei 2021, p.2). Emotional intelligence can enable me to manage my own emotions and feelings for managing myself, others and my relationship with others. In this essay, I have undertaken the Global EI test that scored me on four dimensions as given by Goleman. These four dimensions are self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and relationship management. The results have been provided in the appendix, based on which I have analysed growth in self-awareness and self-management dimensions.

Growth of Self-Awareness 

Self-awareness is the first element under Goleman's model of emotional intelligence. It can be defined as the individual capability of comprehending own emotions, motivations, strengths, drivers, weaknesses and needs competencies (Hackston 2019, p.40). I have scored better in this dimension based on the test results shown in Appendix 1. This shows that I am somewhat aware of my positive and negative feelings when I encounter them alongside analysing the causes of having such feelings. In this regard, I have come across the knowledge of two types of self-awareness, both internal and external. My score enables me to understand that I possess adequate internal self-awareness as I can depict how my values, aspirations, reactions, passions and feelings influence my actions (Eurich 2018). This further enables me to have higher personal and social control, attain relationship satisfaction and experience less stress or anxiety. On the other hand, I have come to realise that I am lacking on external self-awareness. I often fail to realise how others see or view me (Eurich 2018). This makes it difficult for me to sometimes develop rapport and relationships with others or have any feelings of satisfaction with them. Thus, I have realised that I need to improve my external self-awareness to gain more emotional intelligence.

I have learnt from the learning modules that emotional self-awareness enables me to analyse my own emotions and their impact on my actions and work outcomes. I have been better able to contribute to group projects by understanding the links between my feelings and thoughts and my actions (Serrat & Serrat 2017, p.335). I have also come to identify my strengths such as the ability to undertake sound decisions, work for achievements and communicate effectively with others. However, I sometimes tend to shy away from social interactions or developing new work relations because of a lack of external self-awareness (Serrat & Serrat 2017, p.336). In addition, I also feel frustrated at times when I get stuck with my performance or relationships.

Journalling- I have been using this method of writing down my emotions at the end of the day to comprehend my thoughts, feelings and perceptions. This has proved to be beneficial as I now get to analyse those feelings after recording them, which further helps me to keep track of any negative emotions (Appendix 2). I have also become more aware of how others view or perceive me, which has been helping me to build relationships with others reducing my doubtfulness about them.

Growth of Self-Management 

Self-management is the second dimension under Goleman's model for developing emotional intelligence. It can be referred to as the ability to manage own emotions in stressful situations alongside having a positive attitude despite experiencing setbacks (Landry 2019). High self-management enables individuals to be more integrated with emotional intelligence and transition from giving reactions to responding towards situations. From Appendix 1, it is evident that I have scored very less on this self-management dimension. This implies that I cannot think before acting and I am not capable of regulating my own emotions and actions for redirecting any challenging thoughts or moods (Goleman & Boyatzis 2017, p.2). I have realised that I often fail to track and analyse my feelings and distinguish between various emotions or manage them because of a lack of adequate self-management skills. Unable to manage and regulate my own emotions shows that I am not in control of them (Lumpkin & Achen 2018, p.8). This also makes it difficult for me to build a trusting environment and reduces my integrity. It can also hamper my ability to become a more adaptable and flexible leader as I will not be able to handle stressful situations and make effective decisions. 

While participating in this course, I have analysed various implications that can arise from lacking adequate self-management skills. I am now more capable of understanding the consequences that I can face while failing to manage my own emotions. I am unable to use my awareness of personal and others' emotions to stay flexible and positively direct my behaviours or actions (Munir & Azam 2017, p.5). This can be problematic while working together with other members as I will neither be able to understand their emotions or respond to them nor manage my own to avoid conflicting situations. Thus, this can potentially harm team cohesion, which makes it essential to enhance this skill to gain more emotional intelligence.

Journalling- As displayed in the previous section, I have already started using the journalling method for writing down my thoughts, feelings and emotions. This has helped to enhance my self-awareness alongside made me better capable of identifying situations when I can feel stressed, fearful or anxious. This has been beneficial for better managing my own emotions.

Meditation- Apart from this, I have also been practising meditation to increase calmness, focus and relaxation. This has been helping me to manage the stresses that I encounter in my personal and professional lives with serenity. Thus, I have been able to improve my emotional intelligence which is evident from the new test results in Appendix 2.

Implications for Future Career 

I have come to realise that I require both self-awareness and self-management skills as they are the foundation bases for developing and enhancing emotional intelligence. From the test results, it is evident that I have adequate self-awareness but low self-management skills. Self-awareness can help me to become more aware of my own positive and negative emotions alongside how they can influence my decision-making abilities and relationship with others (Sutton 2016, p.646). This recognition of the impact of my emotions on my behaviours, thoughts and actions can further enable me to control them to respond better towards stressful situations. I can be more capable of developing relationships with others, identifying my own mistakes and becoming more accountable for them. This will help me to build rapport with subordinates and peers while emerging as an effective leader in my future professional career (Goleman, et al. 2018, p.120). However, a lack of self-management can prevent me from controlling my own emotions alongside failing to comprehend others' actions or feelings. This can also hamper my personal and professional relationships, which can be catastrophic as an organisational leader. It can also become difficult for me to remain calm and composed in critical situations and make decisions, which is one of the most important skills for becoming an effective leader (Gómez-Leal, et al. 2022, p.15). I will also face difficulties in motivating my subordinates, lack self-confidence and fail to manage time. Nevertheless, I have been using methods of journalling and meditation, which have helped enhance my emotional intelligence as presented in Appendix 2. This shows that I have improved my self-awareness and self-management capabilities, which can contribute towards my leadership development in the future. This will enable me to control and manage my own emotions alongside understanding others’ emotions and actions, thus, enhancing functioning and cohesiveness in the teams. Thus, I will also be able to become an efficient leader by practising transformational leadership to achieve organisational objectives by motivating subordinates.

Conclusion 

In this essay, I reflected on the test results from the EI psychometric test based on Goleman's model. Here, I primarily focused on the first two dimensions of the model, namely, self-awareness and self-management. The test results enabled me to analyse that I possessed moderate self-awareness but low self-management. Such self-awareness has been beneficial for me in developing relationships, communicating with others and working towards goal achievement. However, my lack of self-management has made it difficult for me to manage and understand my emotions and feelings, thereby forcing me to react in stressful situations. I started using two methods of journalling and meditation to enhance these skills. These methods proved to be beneficial in identifying and understanding my emotions and their effects on my behaviours and actions. I have also become more capable of controlling and managing such situations and remaining calm in stressful situations. In this way, I have been able to work on my emotional intelligence which has contributed towards my leadership development. 

Reference

Goleman, D & Boyatzis, RE 2017, ‘Emotional Intelligence Has 12 Elements. Which Do You Need to Work On?’, Harvard Business Review, February 6, p.2, retrieved 10 August 2023, < https://www.proveritas.com.au/downloads/Emotional-Intelligence-12-Elements.PDF > 

Goleman, D, Boyatzis, RE & McKee, A 2013, Primal leadership: Unleashing the power of emotional intelligence, Harvard Business Press. 

Goleman, D, Kaplan, RS, David, S & Eurich, T 2018, Self-Awareness (HBR Emotional Intelligence Series), Harvard Business Press.

Sutton, A 2016, ‘Measuring the effects of self-awareness: Construction of the self-awareness outcomes questionnaire’, Europe's journal of psychology, vol.12, no.4, pp. 645–658, doi: 10.5964/ejop.v12i4.1178

Hackston, J 2019, ‘Maybe You’re Aware… Self-Awareness Is in Short Supply, Workforce, vol.98, no.5, pp.40-43.
Gómez-Leal, R., Holzer, A.A., Bradley, C., Fernández-Berrocal, P. and Patti, J., 2022. The relationship between emotional intelligence and leadership in school leaders: A systematic review. Cambridge Journal of Education, 52(1), pp.1-21, DOI: 10.1080/0305764X.2021.1927987

Krén, H & Séllei, B 2021, ‘The role of emotional intelligence in organizational performance’, Periodica Polytechnica Social and Management Sciences, vol.29, no.1, pp.1-9, doi:10.3311/PPso.15879

Lumpkin, A & Achen, RM 2018, ‘Explicating the synergies of self‐determination theory, ethical leadership, servant leadership, and emotional intelligence’, Journal of Leadership Studies, vol.12, no.1, pp.6-20, doi: 10.1002/jls.21554

Munir, M & Azam, RI 2017, ‘Emotional intelligence and employee performance: An intervention based experimental study’, Journal of Business & Economics, vol.9, no.2, pp.1-19.

Serrat, O & Serrat, O 2017, Understanding and developing emotional intelligence, Knowledge solutions: Tools, methods, and approaches to drive organizational performance, pp.329-339.

Landry, L 2019, ‘Why Emotional Intelligence Is Important in Leadership’, Harvard Business School, April 3, retrieved 31 August 2023, < https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/emotional-intelligence-in-leadership >

Eurich, T 2018, ‘What Self-Awareness Really Is (and How to Cultivate It)’, Harvard Business Review, January 4, p.1, retrieved 31 August 2023, < https://hbr.org/2018/01/what-self-awareness-really-is-and-how-to-cultivate-it >