How Leaders Can Use Moods and Emotions Effectively
It is no secret that we are living in perilous times. Many of us are having more difficulty than ever managing our moods and emotions in everyday life. Frustrations grow and resentments deepen. What happens when this spills over to the workplace? If you sometimes feel moody or emotional when you are making a decision or attempting to influence a person or decision, you do have choices.
Moods and emotions determine what we are capable of believing or doing. They are also a critical factor in our ability to have influence and be credible.
The first step to become a more effective influencer is to develop awareness of your emotion or mood.
Ask yourself, “Can I get the results I want (where I want to go) from the mood or emotion I am currently feeling?”
If the answer is “no,” you have an opportunity to consider another mood or emotion that will serve you. That may seem challenging at first. The difficulty in choosing a mood lies in our emotional habits. We tend to have emotional habits, the ones we jump to automatically. However, the ones we need most to access may be challenging, at least in the beginning.
The second step is learning how to CHANGE your emotion or mood.
When faced with a challenge or “trigger”, you have a moment of “choice.” In order to by-pass the brain’s habitual response, check-in with your moods, emotions and your body’s sensations.
The third step is to MOVE!
Anything that disrupts the way your emotional habits are held in your body will work: walking, running, swinging, stretching, or dancing will help with the shift.
This is called developing your Emotional Agility Muscle. My clients find the following formula, ASAOR, useful while working to develop that muscle:
- Aware
- Shift
- Action
- Observe
- Repeat
If this intrigues you and you would like to learn how to integrate these tools into an individualized approach to increase your ability to influence and lead, visit our website for more information.
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If you enjoyed this article, I have others on my blog at susansfreeman.com.
Susan Freeman is an Executive Success Strategist, Leadership Coach, Speaker, Founder and Author of “Step Up Now: 21 Powerful Principles for People Who Influence Others”. She writes on the topic of leadership and influence using her unique innovative system that blends Western strategy and Eastern wisdom to activate the Guru Leader Within.
