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Book Review: Emotional Intelligence 2.0 posted on August 10, 2009

The challenges at the office aren’t all that different from a predator’s jaws coming at you, where swift, rational thinking and action is most needed, according to emotional intelligence expert Travis Bradberry.

Authors: Travis Bradberry and Jean Greaves
Reviewed by Paul Diamond, Vistage Web Editor

Bradberry’s Dalai-Lama-endorsed book Emotional Intelligence 2.0 begins with the story of Butch Conner, who was attacked by a white shark while surfing off the coast of northern California. Conner’s story details his thoughts and his reactions to the 14-foot shark that swam tightly around him, knocked him off his surfboard and made an open-jaw attempt on his life. Bradberry notes that Conner broke through his fear, which temporarily froze him, and used rational thinking to defend himself by stabbing the shark with the nose of his surfboard. He survived without a scratch.

How many business books begin with a detailed account of shark attack? Probably, only one, this one. (Full disclosure: Conner’s shark attack story was first published in Surfing’s Greatest Misadventures, which I edited. The misadventures book is required reading for surfers, and now, I suppose, it also makes for good reading for CEOs.)Having spent many years studying behaviors and interactions that produce success in the workplace, Bradberry, who holds dual Ph.Ds in clinical and industrial psychology, has found that those who understand and manage their emotions tend to succeed more than those who don’t manage their emotions well.

“Emotional intelligence,” says Bradberry, “is the other kind of smart. It’s having an awareness of your emotions, tendencies and the experience of others and then using that awareness to proactively manage your response to situations and people to avoid pitfalls and create better opportunities.”

How the book works
Emotional Intelligence 2.0 is an instruction manual of sorts, with step-by-step plans that teach you to observe your actions and reactions to various situations and, when needed, choose a better course of action.

The book includes a pass code to a proprietary emotional intelligence test—used by many Fortune 500 companies to evaluate their employees—which otherwise costs $39.95. The test measures your EQ on a scale of 1 to 100 in four key competencies: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management.

Bradberry suggests that readers take the test and then practice three skills to help them improve in the one competency area where they scored lowest. The book presents a menu of 66 skills, all derived from extensive research conducted on how people actually increase their EQ.

I scored lowest in social awareness. After taking the test, I turned to the Social Awareness Strategies chapter that offers 16 improvement ideas. The three that I picked were 1) greet people by name, 2) plan ahead for social situations and 3) develop a back-pocket question—here are two that I came up with: “What’s your favorite Web site?” and “What's the longest you've gone without sleep?” These conversation starters can get you out of an awkward moment.

The techniques are pretty simple, and they work to make for more successful interactions. The catch is that you have to keep up the new way of doing things for three to six months before they become habitual. And, as we all know, old habits die hard.