Emotions define who we are and mastering them makes us more successful. A study from UC Berkeley found that Emotional intelligence is 400% more powerful than IQ.
Another study reveals the success and failure of the 11 American presidents lie one quality—Emotional Intelligence. So master your emotions and you will be the American president. 😄
So here is the best emotional intelligence book you only have to read.
One Emotional Intelligence Book to start
If you want to start reading now and you are confused about what should you read then you should start with a book by the father of Emotional intelligence (EQ), Daniel Goleman.
Daniel Goleman is a psychologist and author of the book “Emotional Intelligence” published in 1995.
Goleman first introduced the term EQ in his book which defines the ability to understand and recognize own emotions and manage someone’s emotions and argued that EQ is more needed for success than IQ.
If you want to start with a book about EQ, then it is Emotional Intelligence By Daniel Goleman
Emotional Intelligence Books—In short
Here are the short details about the book, for those who are in a hurry or want to have a bird-eye-view before dipping dive into this article.
- Emotional Intelligence By Daniel Goleman: Coined term in this book, a classic book about EQ.
- Primal Intelligence By Daniel Goleman: EQ in leadership
- Go Suck a Lemon By Michael Cornwall: Practical Guide On EQ.
- How To Win Friends and Influence People By Dale Carnegie: Improve communication for EQ.
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People By Steven R. Covey: Talks about human behavior
- Emotional Alchemy By Tara Bennett Goleman: Explores the connection between emotions and mindfulness
- Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Travis Bradberry: Practical guide on developing EQ.
- Thinking Fast and slow By Daniel Kahneman: How to think better and Make Decisions
Emotional Intelligence By Daniel Goleman
Emotional intelligence is a book about the concept introduced in this book with the same name and it means understanding own and someone else’s emotions. After releasing the book, it was a record-breaking success and became a classic in the field of personal development and psychology.
The book talks about research from different fields like neuroscience, psychology, and other fields to know the nature of emotions and how they play an important role in our thoughts and human behavior.
The book also provides information about how you can manage your emotions, build strong relationships, and become a master of them.
Lessons From the Book:
- Emotional Intelligence is the key factor for any kind of success in life, according to the author Daniel Goleman.
- Emotions are not feelings — they play an important role in someone’s thoughts and behaviors.
- Emotional intelligence can be learned and practiced.
Quotes from the Book:
- Emotional intelligence is the sine qua non of leadership.
- Emotional intelligence is not the opposite of intelligence, it is not the triumph of heart over head – it is the unique intersection of both.
- Self-awareness is the first component of emotional intelligence – it allows us to recognize our own emotions and how they impact our thoughts and behavior.
Primal Leadership: Unleashing the Power of Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman
“Primal Leadership” is a leadership book that explores the concept “Emotional Intelligence”. This book is also written by Daniel Goleman and talks about how to be an effective leader with the help of EQ.
The book talks about how an effective leader with his EQ can build trust, inspire people, and force people to drive performance.
Lessons From the Book:
- EQ is needed to become an effective leader.
- Difference leadership depends on the different emotional intelligence traits.
- EQ can be learned and practiced.
Quotes from the Book:
- The most effective leaders are those who are able to harness the power of emotional intelligence.
- Leadership is not about being in charge. It is about taking care of those in your charge.
- Effective leaders must be able to connect with their teams on an emotional level in order to inspire and motivate them.
Go Suck a Lemon: Strategies for Improving Your Emotional Intelligence by Michael Cornwall
This book gives practical advice for improving your emotional intelligence and takes a unique approach to harnessing emotions and learning from them instead of suppressing or avoiding them.
Lessons From the Book:
- Engage with EQ to be better at it in a healthy way.
- Effective communication is necessary to build a trait of EQ.
- EQ can be learned through practice.
Quotes from the Book:
- Emotional intelligence is not a fixed trait, but rather a skill that can be developed and improved over time.
- The more we are able to understand and regulate our emotions, the more effective we will be in our personal and professional relationships.
- Building emotional intelligence requires a commitment to self-awareness, self-reflection, and intentional practice.
How To Win Friends and Influence People By Dale Carnegie
Effective communication is needed in order to be able to learn EQ. “How to Win Friends and Influence People” By Dale Carnegie will give practical guidance on improving your communication with people and building a better relationship with them.
The book was originally published in 1936 and is considered a classic in self-help.
Lessons From the Book:
- Make others feel more important than you.
- Become more genuinely interested in other people.
- Never criticize or complain to others.
Quotes from the Book:
- The only way to get the best out of an argument is to avoid it.
- A person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.
- You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People By Steven R. Covey
This self-help book provides a framework for personal development and the principle of human behavior. The first three focused on personal development, the next three talked about personal relationships and the final habit talks about the improvement in your life. This book is classic in leadership and self-help.
Lessons From the Book:
- Know your goals and plan activities accordingly.
- Seek mutual benefits for your growth and others.
- Achieve more by collaborating with others.
Quotes from the Book:
- The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule but to schedule your priorities.
- Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.
- To change ourselves effectively, we first had to change our perceptions.
Emotional Alchemy: How the Mind Can Heal the Heart Tara Bennett Goleman
Emotional Alchemy is a self-help book that talks about the connection between emotions and mindfulness and how you can turn your negative thoughts into positive ones using mindfulness techniques.
This book mentions Buddhism, cognitive psychology, and a guide to emotional healing. You can read to understand your connection between emotions and mindfulness.
Lessons From the Book:
- Develop EQ in yourself.
- Practice mindfulness to become aware of your emotions.
Quotes from the Book:
- Emotional alchemy involves transforming the lead of our difficult emotions into the gold of growth and healing.
- The mind can be a powerful agent of transformation when we learn to use it skillfully.
- We don’t have to be prisoners of our emotions. With emotional alchemy, we can learn to transform them into sources of healing and growth.
Emotional Intelligence 2.0
Emotional Intelligence 2.0 is a self-help book that gives practical knowledge on developing emotional intelligence skills and enables you to manage your emotions and someone else’s emotions.
Lessons From the Book:
- EQ is a skill for success.
- The four skills of EQ are self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management.
- EQ can be practiced through self-reflection, practice, and feedback.
Quotes from the Book:
- Emotional intelligence is the single biggest predictor of performance in the workplace and the strongest driver of leadership and personal excellence
- The more you know yourself, the more you are able to manage yourself and your interactions with others.
- Emotional intelligence isn’t a luxury you can dispense with in tough times. It’s a basic tool that, when deployed with finesse, is key to professional success.
Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Thinking Fast and Slow is a book that tells us about the ways human thinks, behaves, and make decisions. This book can be helpful in improving your EQ.
This book explores two types of thinking, one is slow and deliberate, and another one is fast and intuitive. This book shows how you can use them effectively.
Lessons From the Book:
- Our thinking is based on cognitive biases which make irrational decisions.
- Intuitive thinking can be powerful.
- Slow thinking can be helpful for better decisions.
Quotes from the Book:
- Nothing in life is as important as you think it is, while you are thinking about it.
- We can be blind to the obvious, and we are also blind to our blindness.
- The confidence that individuals have in their beliefs depends mostly on the quality of the story they can tell about what they see, even if they see little.
Conclusion
Learn more about EQ to become more successful. You should start reading the classic book by Daniel Goleman called “Emotion Intelligence”, then you can choose another book to read on EQ.
Some books are not exactly related to EQ but they are co-related with the journey of mastering your EQ.
If you have any questions tell them in the comments and here are other best books listed if you are interested.
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