A HIGH EQ

Intelligence quotient, briefly IQ, has always been a widespread subject scientists, particularly neuroscientists, have focused on. Most people must have tried to solve IQ tests which are so popular on the Internet, to measure and learn their capacity and skills. By the 20th century, it was known as the most important factor which enabled people to be successful and innovative. However, the latest studies show that the overall effects of IQ are less than 10% throughout  life and there is a much more vital criterion than IQ, which is emotional intelligence. EQ is defined as the capacity to recognize, understand, and manage one’s emotions. This term was put forward in 1990s by Johnnie and his colleagues and is now accepted as the main determinant of how capable a person is. EQ  contrary to/in contrast to IQ, can be developed on its own throughout life by experiencing various moments and scrutinizing any topic. However, having high emotional skills is not useful the whole time because it can be exploited by malicious people. Thus, there are both pros and cons of possessing high EQ and let us consider and examine these two aspects.

As for the advantageous side, high emotional intelligence enables people to recognize themselves, realize the facts, set feasible goals and work hard on reaching their dreams. People with high emotional skills can control their eagerness and momentary pleasure, and may delay gratification to another time, for instance until after reaching their targets. They know how to regulate and read emotions. These people are more probably aware of what they want from life and what they should do to realize their dreams. Thus, the vast majority of people who are now successful in the business world or academia have high EQ and vice versa. In addition to this, it also enables them to read people. They can know how they feel and think from facial expression, body language or vocal tones by analyzing their gestures and images. Thus, these people can be more successful in identifying people and can help others by giving advice. A counselor, for example, detects people’s emotions from any clue and knows how to  react. Not only a counselor, but also a salesperson, leader and doctor should know how to treat a customer or patient. Thus, in some countries it is taught widely in business and medicine.

With respect to the drawbacks of a high EQ, it can be abused as a tool to make a powerful and pervasive impression on people. People may exploit it to attract and draw people into their view in a hidden way. Adolf Hitler, as one of the simplest examples, was conscious of how appealing non-verbal language and tones of voices are. He used his capacity to influence and deceive people. Furthermore, people can disguise their true feelings. To illustrate, a beggar may assert wrong claims and deceive people about who he really is. Crying constantly, the person requests money from people as if s/he has a illness or doesn’t have money. What is more, having high EQ is not always good for people. A scientist, for instance, may not pay attention to his work due to high EQ, which may result in failure.

All in all, there are two major classifications: people who benefit from high EQ to make the world a better place and others who abuse it for self-serving motives and personal gains. I personally believe that the benefits of EQ outweigh the harms. Thanks to technology and its benefits, people are now aware of the facts and traps. Further, parents must be careful about how they raise their children because of the powerful effects of growth patterns on EQ. Besides this, the countries which want to raise EQ should also teach people how to use it for the good of humanity. There is no doubt that the reality of another Hitler will be just a catastrophe.