Emotionally intelligent leadership (EIL) theory combines relevant models, theories, and research in the areas of emotional intelligence (EI) and leadership. Click here to read more about EIL in our most recent article published in the Journal of Leadership Education.

The first leadership book I ever read was The Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner. It changed my life.  I had just graduated from college and my supervisor hosted a weekly book club discussion – 7:00 a.m. on Thursday mornings. Reading The Leadership Challenge  and having the opportunity to discuss what I was learning with others was a transformational experience. In college, I was involved in a fraternity which proved to be a wonderful practice field for doing leadership. Although I was “doing” a lot, I was limited because I did not have the concrete knowledge of what effective leaders do. I was simply doing my best (which was not always that great). A couple years ago, I was excited to learn that Kouzes and Posner were developing the Student Leadership Challenge because I know that thousands of yound men and women now have the opportunity to not only learn from their wisdom, but practice what they are learning in their student organizations. If you would like to learn more about their groundbreaking model, take advanatage of this opportunity.

Marcy Shankman and Scott Allen would like to personally invite you to learn more about this valuable student leadership model in a live interactive online session on Thursday, June 9th, as part of The Jossey-Bass Student Leadership Development 101 Online Series.

The festivities begin on May 26th – feel free to join us for the entire series or for a selection of sessions at your own choosing, depending on your unique interests and needs.  In the kick-off session, you will hear from the authors and editors of the new Handbook for Student Leadership Development, Second Edition (including Susan Komives) about how foundations of leadership theory and research can lead to a process of effective program design and delivery.   The remaining sessions will cover the other major student leadership development models offered by Jossey-Bass.

I close with two questions that are common sense, but not necessarily common practice…

1) Is your life filled with authentic relationships and are you known as an individual who is caring, empathetic and interested in others?

2) Are you known as someone open to feedback?

Rather than debate the merits of the argument, the article raised a series of questions for me – how can we make the  most of one another’s ideas?  When you come together in a group, consider the assumptions you walk in with.  Do you enter the conversation having a specific direction you want the conversation to head?  Are you interested in learning from others in the group more so than getting your own position heard?  We talk about the capacity of group savvy – the focus of group savvy is on how well you diagnose and navigate the dynamics of the group.  Regardless of the purpose of your gathering (brainstorming, decision-making, evaluating), ask yourself whether you’re conscious of what’s going on around you or are you primarily focused on yourself.  What happens when you intentionally focus on others rather than yourself?  Boosting our appreciation and recognition of others inevitably enhances our ability to be effective in an interpersonal dynamic.

There is some confusion about just what exactly EI is. Is it an actual intelligence (Mayer, Salovey & Caruso)? A set or cluster of personality traits (Bar-On/Petrides)? Or perhaps even simply a list of competencies (Goleman/Boyatzis)? The short answer is that we do not know.  Each theorist, depending on his or her point of view will suggest a different answer to this question. Robert McCrea says it well in the following passage:

The distinction between these abilities and personality traits is sometimes subtle, but it can be drawn. For example, one can be optimistic simply because one has a cheerful disposition (which requires no intelligence of any kind); or one may understand that one can create an optimistic assessment by deliberately calling to mind the chances of success or by summoning social support from others. This process of manipulating one’s own emotional state requires a certain degree of psychological mindedness that Mayer and his colleagues deem a form of intelligence. (Handbook of Emotional Intelligence, p. 276)

Ultimately, our approach with EIL has been integrative by nature. We have found great use in the work of Ernest Boyer and would guess that it’s likely all of the above. That in fact, EI, on some level, is all three vs. one or another. What do you think?

In today’s workplaces, in all sectors of society, many are concerned that there will be a leadership vacuum in the not too distant future.  Baby boomers are reaching the age of retirement, and many have already postponed their plans for retirement.  When the economy turns around, most forecasts include a massive wave of organization and corporate leaders stepping down.  Will there be a dearth of leadership?

None of us can look in the crystal ball to answer that question, but we can turn to each other.  What are you doing to help the next generation of leaders?  Are you one of those rising leaders who seeks advancement and find yourself frustrated with the wait?  Working together, those nearing retirement and those anxious to move up can develop strategies and plans to ease the organization and members of the organization through this process. Succession planning needn’t be a fear-inducing process. Instead, look at succession planning as a learning opportunity, a leadership development opportunity, and a way to learn from each other to meet the needs of tomorrow while enhancing skils and relationships today.

Whether its Emotionally Intelligent Leadership or Transformational Leadership, one’s mind naturally moves from the “what” of the theory to the “how” of development. I am a big fan of K. Anders Ericsson and enjoy thinking about how his work applies to the previous statement. I came across the following quote in his edited book, The Road to Excellence: The Aquisition of Expert Performance in the Arts and Sciences, Sports and Games.

“Based on a review of a century of laboratory studies of learning and skills acquisition, Ericsson, Krampe and Tesch-Romer (1993) concluded that the most effective learning requires a well defined task with an appropriate difficulty level for the particular individual, informative feedback, and opportunities for repetition and corrections of errors. When all these elements are present they used the term deliberate practice to characterize training activities” (p. 21).

Deliberate practice. I guess I am struck by the lack of deliberate practice built into most leadership development training. Do you agree?Can you think of a program that incorporates long-term, consistent and well-conceived deliberate practice with each of the above mentioned ingredients?

After all, it seems one could secure opportunities for deliberate practice in numerous venues – gymnastics, cooking, counseling psychology…Where does this exist for leadership development? Who is doing it right? I would love to hear your thoughts…SJA

As always, I have been experimenting this semester with ways to better develop leadership in the context of the classroom. As many of you know, this is a difficult task. The chasm between someone’s intellectual understanding of leadership concepts and their ability to “do” leadership is deep and wide. Why would we be surprised though? You will not create an expert soccer player by sitting them in a classroom and discussing the theory of soccer for a semester. That may be one part of the learning.

So I have been exploring ways to create a “practice-field” in the classroom and one of the best approaches is case-in-point methodology. However, this approach really does take a lot out of me. It’s unpredictable, intense, filled with ups and downs and in the end, high-risk (sounds just like leadership, right?). I know that the students feel the same. However, some of the greatest challenges associated with this approach are also its great strengths. Students are engaged, active, challenged and perhaps most important, practicing what they have learned.

The Kansas Leadership Center has developed a great resource on case-in-point that I feel warrants review. Take a look and run some experiments. See what works and what does not. We would love to hear your thoughts…SJA

It’s the holiday season, and now is as good a time as any to think back on the year and reflect on what has happened.  New Year’s resolutions, sitting just around the corner, may fill you with enthusiasm (or is it dread?).   Consider tackling a challenge that you know will make a difference in your life.  Whether you are feeling inspired to set new goals, or are realizing that now is the time to make a change, thinking positively about your potential will help immeasurably in being successful.  The power of positive thinking is a known ingredient in achieving success.

Reality, however, has a way of invading our consciousness and often brings us down.  Margarety Wheatley, author of Perseverance, shares that resilience comes from a sense of meaning and purpose.  When we are grounded in our values and convictions, we can remain hopeful and handle setbacks more effectively.  In a recent article in Psychology Today, Robert Biswas-Diener, reminds us to learn from our mistakes – “Indeed, mistakes are an inevitable and unavoidable part of work.”

Time with family and friends, taking a little time off, and a new year provides ample opportunity for celebration, relaxation, and contemplation.  Enjoy it, and keep thinking on the bright side.