EQ Training: Buyers Guide

Your first step will be to narrow down the field of potential programs and an important criteria to achieve this is to limit your choices to programs with solid base of research. This is critical; otherwise you are likely to choose an inferior EQ training program. There’s an appropriate metaphor from computer coding that applies to training programs without research evidence—“garbage in, garbage out.” If you don’t know what went into the program’s development, you can’t have any faith that it will result in meaningful change for participants.

You want your EQ training to result in better performance. Watch this video on Why Observable Behaviors Matter to Performance. Therefore, the program should teach skills that clearly predict job performance and success. Also, these skills need to be things that can be learned and developed, as opposed to traits that are hard to influence. You can judge this criterion from the research evidence in the provider’s technical report, but also from the training materials and exercises. Further, the program should align with your organization’s talent needs and an identification of the skills that will be needed in the future.

All personal development requires self-awareness, and this is especially true when trying to develop better Emotional Intelligence. In order to understand ourselves and the effect we have on co-workers, we need to recognize how other people perceive our behavior, and human beings are notoriously ill- equipped at this. In fact, there is much evidence that we’re moderately delusional, often holding inflated views of our own abilities and performance. For instance, one famous study found that 94% of college professors considered their work “above average,” which is statistically impossible. Multiple research studies over the years have found consistent results.

When it comes to performance improvement, what matters is behavior – what people say and do, and how they say and do those things. Oftentimes when people hear the phrase “Emotional Intelligence” they assume that the program is about showing emotion at work and being “touchy-feely.” This is far from the goals of reputable EQ training programs, whose objectives are to teach people about behavior and its effects on others. The lessons and strategies that are taught in a program should reflect this principle.

By considering the criteria discussed so far, you are well on your way to choosing a high quality EQ training program. The last consideration is to look at the materials themselves and judge the quality of the presentation. This is important not only because it’s a good indicator of a professionally developed program, but also because it will affect participants’ perceptions of the program, and this can affect their attitudes and openness to learning about EQ. You want the program to be beyond reproach.