Why EQ and perspectives are more important than IQ

Jeff Bezos famously said, “Perspective is more important than 50 points.” He also believes it is more important than IQ. Many leaders in the business world also share that EQ or emotional intelligence is important in real world scenarios. This debate to increase the importance of building EQ and perspectives have started in recent years. It is particularly essential for youths because during their formative years they need to know where to focus and what to value.
Young people may find many tests to understand our IQ with different logic, mathematics and pattern recognition tests. Although these definitely show wit, what works in the real world in determining success is emotional intelligence and having broad and diverse viewpoints.
So what's EQ? It is the ability to understand and manage emotional attributes of oneself and others. This helps in building relationships as well as effectiveness in professional settings.
And having perspective means being able to see different viewpoints. This, in turn, enables a young person to make better decisions by taking different cultures, experiences, and ways of believing things into account. Both of these contribute to future success in personal and professional lives of a person. Hence, youths need to understand its implications in different segments.
For instance, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz transformed his company with EQ by treating customers and employees with respect and warmth. This also helped the company to sail through the storms of the 2008 global financial crisis. Inspired by how Italian coffee bars have a welcoming atmosphere, Starbucks have ushered in a warm atmosphere in cafes all over the world.
Young people who are just starting universities or work will face many hurdles in the coming years. Life after that rarely gets easy. This is where EQ and perspective provide the strength and wisdom that technical abilities and IQ can not provide. Understanding one's emotions and having a broad perspective will be useful in reframing problems in real life and finding realistic solutions.
Now coming to group works and professional work where negotiations, conflict resolutions etc. matter a lot. High EQ is the key here, because smartness might backfire in sensitive situations. Perspectives play a crucial role in putting oneself in someone else's shoes. So, when it comes to conflict resolution EQ performs by understanding the emotional states of all parties involved. It helps in finding common grounds and resolving issues. However, when it comes to quick decision making IQ might get one to their goals faster but when extensive people management and different stakeholders are involved both IQ and EQ have to be sharpened to get the best decision out.
In fact, having a good EQ and perspective also allows one to play out their own logic and emotions that helps a person to have better mental health and overall well-being. High EQ people are more self-aware, better at managing stress and can efficiently form social ties.
Professional world is often cut-through and brutal. Hence, a young person continues to be mindful in growing their EQ and building perspective, this will ultimately help them form better work relationships. It will also allow someone to be a better team player. For instance, a classic example is Sheldon from ‘The Big Bang Theory’ had the one of the highest IQ but he failed again in winning the hearts of his colleagues, peers and managing professional relationships well.
The best part of EQ and perspective is that all it takes to build is effort. It can be built and harnessed in a person. If a young person is mindful about his or her experiences as well as tries to put effort in reflection and learning from others, his or her emotional intelligence will increase too.
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