THE integration of modern technologies in the workplace, particularly generative artificial intelligence (AI), is now happening worldwide as we straddle between Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0. Despite the hype of being tech-savvy, recent surveys reported that technological and social skills are two major skill sets needed for business and career success now and in the future.
Technological skills are abilities that help you interact with the digital world. These include advanced computer skills, artificial intelligence, coding and programming, big data science and analytics, user experience (UX) and user interface (UI), and digital marketing.
Social intelligence
On the other hand, social intelligence is the ability to communicate and form and sustain relationships with empathy, self-knowledge, listening, reading emotions, and assertiveness. It is also the ability to read and react to social signals, manage one's emotions, and fit into different social contexts. This springs from knowing oneself and exercising proper emotional management. It is linked to one's emotional intelligence, but it is not exactly the same thing.
It was the renowned psychologist Edward Thorndike who first developed the social intelligence theory in 1920. This form of intelligence is neither innate nor transmitted through genes. Anybody can learn it. Everybody seems to have a broad idea of what it means to adapt socially, but we differ in our ability to navigate the intricacies of social life. At 18 months of age, a child can begin to comprehend social clues and understand others' intentions. As people grow older, their social environment becomes more complex and demanding, which requires a higher set of social skills and abilities.
Social intelligence can benefit your social, emotional, and physical well-being. If you are in business, SI can help improve your financial progress. According to Vicky Wallis, head of HR at Santander company, "Qualities that have to do with social intelligence — such as teamwork, communication, and social skills — are the most valuable asset a person can bring to a new workplace."
Signs of social intelligence
According to an article in Intelligent Change, people with highly developed social intelligence can "analyze complex social situations, predict other people's feelings or reactions, have an intuitive feeling on what to say in certain situations, and are self-confident."
Here are some signs of SI, according to "Intelligent Change," with my annotations:
1. Active listening means carefully listening during conversations, asking for clarification, or paraphrasing.
2. Verbal fluency and conversational skills are a sign of one's ability to carry a conversation with anyone, regardless of age, culture, or educational level. This also involves remembering details about people.
3. Understanding other people's emotional states requires the ability to put ourselves in another person's shoes. We need to empathize with others, listen to them carefully, and visualize ourselves in their position.
4. Understanding social roles and rules. Despite the fact that we have our own ways of conducting and reacting, social intelligence dictates that we must understand how to channel that, as we must be constantly aware of societal norms in specific situations.
5. Role-playing is particularly important in a work setting. Besides understanding a variety of social roles, it is also important to be able to undertake different roles. At other times, one has to be able to play the role of the mentor and the mentee, the superior and the subordinate. One can be an easy-going friend in one context and a serious business leader in another.
6. Self-efficacy and initiative are needed to motivate yourself, be proper in interpersonal relationships, and manage/regulate your emotional states. Work hard at getting better in interpersonal relationships.
7. Impression management refers to the ability to manage the impression that you leave on other people after the interaction.
Developing social intelligence
As people grow, they tend to develop social intelligence in their own ways, sometimes without really trying. Fortunately, people today can be guided to build social intelligence. Amy Morin, a psychotherapist and international best-selling author of "13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do," has offered the following prescriptions for developing social intelligence with my additional annotations:
– Pay attention to what (and who) are around you. Socially intelligent people are observant. They pay attention to subtle cues from around them. You, too, can observe how people with strong social skills interact with others and learn from them.
– Work on increasing your emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is closely related to social intelligence. Emotional intelligence (EQ) is more about how you control your emotions and empathize with others. You need to recognize the emotion/s you are experiencing when you are interacting with others. Manage your emotions appropriately, including negative feelings like anger or frustration, whenever you are in a social setting. (Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman, 1995)
– Respect cultural differences. This is great advice, especially as many of you work in multicultural or multigenerational settings. A socially intelligent person understands that others might have differing responses, customs, traditions, or habits based on their upbringing. Try to learn about cultural differences so that you can understand others from different cultures.
– Practice active listening. Work on your communication skills — half of which have to do with listening. When in a conversation, listen first and do not interrupt others. Understand clearly what is being said before you craft your response. Often, the inflections and the manner in which a message is being delivered could be as important, if not more important, than the message itself.
– Appreciate important people in your life. Develop close and deep relationships with people who mean more to you than others. Pay attention to their emotions. If they tell you that you are missing the cues on how they connect with you, it is possible that your connection with others could even be worse, and that signals that you need to improve.
Before the Covid-19 virus caused a global pandemic in 2020, things were a bit more normal. There was real social (not just physical) distancing. The people who survived are those armed with the right information, skills and abilities to adapt to the changing environment. In the future, survival and success will largely depend on how you manage to develop your social intelligence and become more skillful at managing the increasingly complex and changing social environment.
In the distant past, Intelligence Quotient or IQ was perhaps the most important hiring criterion that employers used. Today, more and more employers think that social intelligence is more valuable than IQ.
Foremost EQ proponent Daniel Goleman said, "If your emotional abilities aren't in hand if you don't have self-awareness, if you are not able to manage your distressing emotions, if you can't have empathy and have effective relationships, then no matter how smart you are, you are not going to get very far."
Ernie Cecilia is the chairman of the Human Capital Committee and the Publication Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (AmCham); chairman of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines' (ECOP's) TWG on Labor and Social Policy Issues; and past president of the People Management Association of the Philippines (PMAP). He can be reached at erniececilia@gmail.com.
Read The Rest at :
