The Disadvantages of Emotional Intelligence

Being able to identify and recognise emotions, consciously think about them and use them in a logical manner are the main components of emotional intelligence. The idea of emotional intelligence has found some resonance on the business front because people realise they can use their emotions and the emotions of others in a logical manner for business and workplace success. Although emotional intelligence can be used in a positive manner, it has some disadvantages.

It takes time to develop the skills necessary to fully harness emotional intelligence. Unfortunately, this cannot be learnt overnight. Our own personal history, habits, fears, self-esteem and beliefs all influence our ability to learn and harness this skill. Learning how to manage your emotions, motivate yourself, recognise the emotions of others, handling your personal relationships and learning how to apply your knowledge of emotional intelligence all takes time and dedication to be successful.

It's difficult to test for emotional intelligence. One of the main concerns with testing methods is the debate on whether emotional intelligence is based on a person's temperament and personality or whether it is a learnt response developed through interpersonal skills and experiences. In other words, it falls into the nature versus nurture debate and how to handle it. Testing based on the nature aspect will look at personality, emotional stability and conscientiousness of the person to determine emotional intelligence. The nurture advocates will look at look at socially accepted aspects in the immediate area, leadership skills, teamwork and learnt interpersonal skills.

People might not take the importance of emotional intelligence seriously. As with many aspects of life, this topic is open to personal opinions and ridicule. Some people in the business world believe the workplace or business world is no place for emotional reactions. These individuals think logic should rule and emotions should stay at home.

With the knowledge learnt with emotional intelligence, you can make choices that best serves you and affects others. However, some people could use this knowledge to manipulate other. A person who would use this negatively could also purposely prey on unsuspecting individuals. Because emotional intelligence is often used in the workplace and in business settings, people could use this for their target audience to purchase an item or buy a service. It could also be used to make a person feel inferior or to illicit certain information.