February 26, 2008, San Francisco:  While stress is a challenge to almost everyone, the way doctors and nurses cope with stress can be a matter of life and death.  Fortunately new research reveals one key for dealing with the pressure: emotional intelligence.

In a study conducted with the obstetrics department of a major urban hospital in Bologna, Italy, the healthcare professionals high in emotional intelligence scored far better in an assessment of job performance and life success.  The highest performers scored an average of over 30% better on the “Six Seconds Emotional Intelligence Assessment,” a powerful measure of essential competencies for being smart with feelings.

Study coauthor Lorenzo Fariselli, manager of research for Six Seconds Italy, explained the importance of the finding:  “Stress is increasingly challenging for organizations and professionals worldwide, but it’s been unclear how to most effectively manage this problem.  Now we know that emotional intelligence is one of the most important ingredients for professionals to effectively cope and thrive in a challenging work environment.”  A White Paper explaining the study is online at www.6seconds.org/sei/wp-stress.php .

The study also found that the power of EQ, or emotional intelligence, was even greater for the most senior team members.  While on average EQ explains over 66% of the variation in performance scores, for the most senior team members that increases to nearly 80%.   In other words, the more senior you are, the more important it is to be an expert with emotions.

Joshua Freedman is Chief Operating Officer of Six Seconds and one of the world’s leading authorities on the development of emotional intelligence.  “Around the globe we’ve seen that emotional intelligence is the difference that makes the difference.  Leaders who choose to be emotionally intelligent create mission success and drive value,” Freedman says.

Freedman says many organizations view EQ as an investment they might make when they have the resources, but he offers a different suggestion: “EQ is most essential in times of stress and challenge; training in this area is a ‘life ring,’ not an ‘investment.’” He is quick to point out that developing these skills isn’t a major expense in time and resource – “We’re not talking about implementing some expensive or complex new system. EQ is something to be – a little more each week.”

Emotional intelligence (abbreviated “EQ” for “emotional quotient”) continues to gain attention around the world as an essential asset for success in work and life.  The science grows from research by Peter Salovey (Yale University) and John Mayer (University of New Hampshire) who published their first papers in 1990 showing how we have intelligence with emotions.  EQ was popularized in the mid 1990s by New York Times science writer Daniel Goleman.  To help people understand how to develop and apply this breakthrough concept, Six Seconds was established in 1997.

Six Seconds, The Emotional Intelligence Network, is the world-leading resource for emotional intelligence development with offices in six countries and over 1500 certified practitioners world-wide.  A not-for-profit organization, Six Seconds advocates for the importance of EQ and supports change agents making a positive difference in every sector of society (see www.6seconds.org for more).

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For Immediate Release

Contact Yoshimi Miyazaki (831) 763-0366

Links:

White Paper: 6seconds.org/sei/wp-stress.php

Powerpoint, key points from this paper: 6seconds.org/sei/media/Stress_EQ.ppt

SEI Assessment: 6seconds.org/sei/

Two excerpts:

A decade ago any talk of emotional intelligence would draw strange looks. Now many organizations include it among core competencies required for high performers.

Where emotions were once dismissed as raw and inappropriate in the office, they are now utilized as data by savvy leaders, according to Joshua Freedman, chief operating officer of Six Seconds Consulting in San Francisco.

“Leaders don’t care about emotional intelligence,” Freedman says. “They care about a business problem they have. Emotional intelligence is a tool they can use in the service of solving the problem.”

Instead of encouraging individuals to act differently, training in emotional intelligence teaches participants to observe and analyze their own behavior while also taking note of peer reactions.

“Most corporate training focuses on behavior such as shaking hands and making direct eye contact,” Freedman says. “Emotional intelligence teaches you to pay attention to what drives the behavior of others. Emotions are data. They are real. The training takes a logical approach to emotions.”

Two excerpts:

“The shift in thinking by researchers like Dweck and Baumeister dovetails with a revolutionary educational philosophy called social and emotional learning, or SEL, which takes the eminently sensible position that if students are going to be intellectual risk takers, they need to feel safe, and teaches a wide range of skills to help them navigate the world. “

“The value of self-mastery skills is already taking hold in the workplace, with organizations ranging from American Express to the United States Marine Corps integrating SEL into their leadership training. At Fed-Ex many senior managers now complete a course named Legacy, developed with a California-based international nonprofit named Six Seconds. One of the exercises is called Sneetch Marbles, inspired by a Dr. Seuss book. The group is divided arbitrarily into Star-Bellied Sneetches and Plain-Bellied Sneetches, working together with an equally arbitrary set of rules as an assembly line rolling marbles through pipes. But the Star Bellies have all the information and power; the Plain Bellies can’t speak unless they’re called on, and they don’t get any treats. Some of them mutiny, some want to please the boss-like Star Bellies, some undermine the process, some start cheating, some check out.

Then everyone is asked questions: What helped them be engaged or disengaged? Were they optimistic or pessimistic? Did they notice anybody else’s feelings? Did they find any purpose in the exercise? “It creates an opportunity for all kinds of interesting discussions,” says Joshua Freedman, chief operating officer of Six Seconds. “This work tells you your patterns: When I think the rules are unfair, I cheat. Or When I think it’s not going well, I blame others. Or When I think the senior manager is a jerk, I rebel. Even at very high levels of corporations, we’re all still in the schoolyard. We feel vulnerable and we’re protecting ourselves. But once people become aware of a pattern, they’re asked if it’s getting them what they really want.” Then they can change it.

Are You Smart About Your Feelings?

Five ways to boost your emotional intelligence.
By Tara Rummell Berson

Excerpt:

Cultivate your curiosity.

We frequently ask questions out of habit without really caring about the answer (for example, asking someone, “How’s it going?” as you speed by her in the hallway). “Try honing your empathic skills by asking a question you want to know the answer to,” Freedman suggests. It could be as simple as, “How is it going with that new babysitter?” When you ask, look the other person in the eyes and wait for her answer. She’ll see that you’re truly interested, so she’ll answer thoughtfully — and likely ask how you’re doing. Creating these moments for emotional understanding has its perks, Freedman adds: Your blood pressure drops when you’re fully attentive to what someone else is saying — plus, you’ll develop more satisfying relationships.

]]> http://6seconds.org/press/2008/01/25/redbook-smart-about-feelings/feed/ http://6seconds.org/press/2007/12/14/leaders-report-on-key-workplace-issues-in-new-survey-people-and-feelings-beat-finance-by-300-percent/ http://6seconds.org/press/2007/12/14/leaders-report-on-key-workplace-issues-in-new-survey-people-and-feelings-beat-finance-by-300-percent/#comments Fri, 14 Dec 2007 17:27:20 +0000 fahd http://www.6seconds.org/press/2007/12/14/leaders-report-on-key-workplace-issues-in-new-survey-people-and-feelings-beat-finance-by-300-percent/ A survey of 135 employees and leaders identifies the most critical challenges facing organizations today are 70 percent about people — finding the right ones, getting them doing the right work and setting the right conditions for performance. Responses show increasing concern with employee and customer feelings and urgent need to become better at the “soft” side.

San Francisco, CA December 14, 2007 — In a changing business climate, what are the key challenges to organizational success? According to a new international survey, it’s almost entirely a question of leading people and managing feelings.

Six Seconds, The Emotional Intelligence Network, invited leaders to identify the key challenges in the workplace today — and particularly the “people side” of the equation. The survey explores top issues as well as employee attitudes and the role of emotional intelligence in solving those key issues.

The 2007 Workplace Issues Report finds that this year …

• “Soft” issues such as finding and keeping talent are over 3 times as prevalent as “hard” issues such as finance.
• Leaders are twice as concerned about leadership than all other issues combined.
• Emotional intelligence and feelings of team- and non-team-members are among the most important resources an organization has in addressing challenges and reaching goals. Almost 90 percent of respondents identify EQ as highly important or essential to meeting their organization’s top challenges

Responses come from team leaders to executives in a broad range of industries and organizations ranging from under 20 to over 10,000 people. 135 responses were tabulated, primarily from North America but also from every other continent.Six Seconds is an international not-for-profit that supports the development of emotional intelligence. It is the first and largest organization dedicated to EQ. Through the Six Seconds Consulting Group the organization brings the world’s top EQ experts to works with Fortune 500 companies such as FedEx and Lockheed Martin; these projects allow Six Seconds to serve community organizations and schools, developing the key human skills to ensure future generations thrive.

The full The 2007 Workplace Issues Report is available online at www.6seconds.org.

The holidays are upon us. Yikes. I’ve barely just taken off my Halloween costume. As I was thinking about what I might write about for this weeks article, I ran across an article written by a colleague and friend, Josh Freedman. Josh is the founder and COO of 6Seconds Emotional Intelligence.

A few months ago, I wrote about the role of emotional intelligence (EQ) in helping all of us meet our goals for fitness, weight loss and overall health. Well, if there was ever a time of year where our emotional intelligence is put to a test, it’s now! Whether it’s to stay on track with your wellness objectives during the next couple of months or to just “feel better” during this stressful time of year, you will find some great wisdom and practical advice in Josh’s article. He has kindly given me permission to reprint it here. I’ve also included information on how learn more information on 6Seconds Emotional Intelligence and how to reach me if you’d like your own individualized, EQ assessment.

Here is Tips for an EQ Holiday as it first appeared on 6seconds.org

Today’s guest is Joshua Freedman the author of At the Heart of Leadership, and an expert in Emotional Intelligence and Organizational Change. He is the COO and one of the founders of Six Seconds, one of the oldest and leading EI programs in the world. Joshua is a master EI trainer having trained over 10,000 people in 10 nations.

Listen to the interview online

Josh Freedman has finally written THE book. After over a decade of teaching hundreds of professionals in education and business how to practically develop their emotional intelligence Josh has written a guide that is now available to everyone.

http://thrivingitsallgood.blogspot.com/2007/08/at-heart-of-everything.html

Thank you Thriving!!

San Francisco — July 16, 2007: “It’s common sense that you have to leave emotions behind if you want to make good decisions. There’s only one problem: it doesn’t work,” says Joshua Freedman, author of a new book for leaders. At the Heart of Leadership: How to Get Results with Emotional Intelligence (www.EQleadership.com) shows why emotions are critical to top performance, and how leading organizations such as the US Marine Corps and FedEx are using this science to gain an edge.

Freedman contends that in a new business climate, leaders need new skills. For example, the recent Booz Allen Hamilton study on CEO succession starts, “Welcome to the era of the inclusive chief executive officer” presenting the case that successful leaders build and maintain complex relationships, those who don’t have those skills are out. One in six CEOs will be out of a job within a year, half of those before their expected end of service (http://tinyurl.com/36eegt).

“In today’s climate, leaders excel if they are authentic, trustworthy, and great with people,” Freedman concludes, “and all these will grow from developing emotional intelligence.”

The book makes the case that being smart about feelings is the key to leadership. Business leaders agree — for example, Arlene Pfeiff, a VP at American Express calls the book “…an important read for any leader looking to take it higher.”

Arguably the world’s top authority on how to leverage emotional intelligence for organizational performance, Freedman blends science with stories from a decade of work with leaders. The book has a solid scientific basis — including an introduction by Dr. Peter Salovey (Yale University), one of the inventors of the science of emotional intelligence.

But it’s not a book about theory: It’s a how-to guide. In the words of US Navy Captain Tierian Cash, CHC, “The concepts in this book give leaders the tactical edge they need to handle the complexities of change. This is a practical approach to leading with emotional intelligence that can help leaders stay on course to accomplish their mission.”

Free excerpt and media kit online: www.EQleadership.com
Contact Yoshimi Miyazaki yoshimi [at] 6seconds.org (831) 763-0366
Source: Six Seconds

San Francisco, June 20, 2007:  Emotions are everywhere, yet people have a tendency to ignore them.  According to Six Seconds, the world leaders in emotional intelligence development, this leads to horrendous consequences as people make decisions that disrespect themselves and others.
“Most of us have been taught to put feelings aside and struggle to do so,” explains Six Seconds’ President Anabel Jensen, Ph.D. “Looking at the headlines of any paper you can see how poorly this approach works.”  Instead Jensen and her team teach people to pay attention to emotions and use them as a valuable source of insight for problem-solving and decision-making.
The new logo shows a stylized number “6” hidden in plain sight on a field of blue.  Six Seconds’ COO Joshua Freedman explains the icon: “When we teach people about emotions and the power of six seconds of attention, their whole vision of the world begins to change.  Likewise, once you see the hidden 6 in the logo, you can’t not see it.”
At the same time, the organization has changed the name of the division focused on work with corporations.  The “Institute for Organizational Performance” has been renamed “Six Seconds Consulting Group” (www.sixseconds.com).  The new name is intended to create more coherence in the organization’s branding and convey Six Seconds’ commitment to form long-term consulting partnerships with corporations.
The new logo will appear in Six Seconds’ offices worldwide (Beijing, Bologna, Brisbane, Lisbon, London, San Francisco, and Singapore) this month and kicks off a year-long celebration of the organization’s 10 years teaching emotional intelligence.
In their first decade, Six Seconds has published the pre-eminent emotional intelligence curriculum for k-12 schools, numerous corporate training programs (including a course on organization change in use by the US Navy), three psychometric assessments, six activity calendars, an activity book, two journal workbooks, and a new book about emotional intelligence for leaders (see www.EQleadership.com).  In addition, they have trained over 100,000 educators and consultants, hosted five international conferences, and delivered over 14 million web pages of quality information to the public.
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Press Kit is online: www.6seconds.org/press

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Yoshimi Miyazaki yoshimi [at] 6seconds [dot] org  (831) 763-0366

Download PDF:  Press Release: New Logo