Harnessing the Power of Emotional Intelligence

Making initiatives more effective is a common concern among those working in wellness. Perhaps the missing piece is not another walking desk or lunch-and-learn, but rather a concentrated focus on building the key skill of emotional intelligence.

Dr. Jarik Conrad emphasized the importance of emotional intelligence and how it can impact the effectiveness of wellness initiatives during a recent Annual Wellness Summit preview webcast, entitled Putting Your Mask on First: Harnessing Emotional Intelligence and Lifestyle Medicine.

The Missing Piece of Making Change

Maya Angelou famously said, “When you know better, do better.” This has become a mantra for many, but unfortunately, there is a missing piece between “knowing” and “doing.” Emotional intelligence is that missing piece, ready to bridge the gap many encounter when pursuing their well-being goals. If you don’t have emotional intelligence in your arsenal, it is even harder to make a long-term behavior change. Emotional intelligence works closely alongside one’s sense of purpose (also known as self-actualization), asking those difficult questions of “What is my purpose?” and “To what degree is my life aligned with that purpose?” Of course, not everyone has time to sit down and think about these existential questions, which is where wellness professionals can help lead the way.

How It Works

While we may recognize that emotional intelligence is important, that doesn’t guarantee we know exactly what it is or how to harness it. There are a variety of definitions and models of emotional intelligence out there, but each centers around a few simple concepts:

• I understand what is going on with myself at an emotional level.
  • I can manage those emotions.
• I have a sense of what is going on with those around me at an emotional level.
  • I can use that knowledge to interact with others effectively.

For example, you may find it challenging to control your impulses. When using emotional intelligence skills, that impulse does not go away, but you know how to redirect it. Emotional intelligence is a skill and a muscle that needs to be trained, and practice makes perfect.

The Role of Emotional Intelligence in Wellness

It is true that a certain degree of emotional intelligence comes with age and experience, but its power can be supercharged by being intentional about it. Exploring and developing emotional intelligence skills should be the first step of any wellness initiative, starting with the foundational building block of emotional intelligence: self-awareness. This will help participants understand what is at the root cause of any health or wellness challenges. Begin to ease individuals into wellness concepts by focusing on broader issues like adaptability, self-regard, emotional awareness, and stress management, slowly building towards health and wellness habit formation and behavior change concepts.

Wellness practitioners and those leading wellness initiatives should not just tell participants what to do for their health—Instead, help them explore the reasons why they aren’t making healthier choices in the first place. If individuals are not emotionally ready to hear solutions, they will not be effective. The role of wellness professionals is to help unlock a sense of agency for those pursuing their best, healthiest selves.

Resources

Jarik Conrad, Ed.D., SPHR, SHRM-SCP, NACD.DC, is the managing director of Human Like Me as well as a keynote speaker for the 2025 Annual Wellness Summit! Be sure to attend his session, “Putting Your Mask on First: Harnessing Emotional Intelligence and Lifestyle Medicine.” Learn more at www.annual-wellness-summit.org.

The Wellness Alliance is hosting the 2025 Annual Wellness Summit August 19-21 in Austin, Texas.

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  Rebecca Plier

  PR/Communications Specialist

  IFEBP

  Favorite Foundation Product: The Talking Benefits podcast! What an engaging way to get timely benefits insights.

  Benefits-related Topics that Interest Her Most: Mental health, diversity, equity and inclusion, and workplace wellness.

  Personal Insight: When Rebecca isn’t diving headfirst into the world of benefits, she enjoys organizing her monthly book club and expanding her vinyl record collection.