May means not only a new EQ strategy, but it’s a whole new area to work in! This next quarter, I will be working on Self Management. From Emotional Intelligence 2.0, by Bradberry & Greaves, “Self-Management is your ability to use awareness of your emotions to actively choose what you say and do.” (p. 97) My strategy for this month is “Create and Emotion vs. Reason List.”

For a current “sticky issue,” grab some paper and, on one side, list what your emotions are telling you to do. On the other, list what your reason is saying. Let the lists help you decide.”

Taking some quiet time to make a list and organize my thoughts will help me from jumping the gun and making a rash decision. Being a list person, this strategy really does call to me. If you are visual, seeing which side of the paper (emotion or reason) has more written down can really let you know what is guiding you at the moment. I’ve often done pro-con lists to help with decision making; this is just an extension of those lists. I can see how this will help me going forward. I prefer to make decisions based on facts and logic, instead of emotion, but I do know that my emotions can sometimes sway those facts. I’m looking forward to using this strategy this month, and seeing how it affect my decision making!