After kicking off his visit to Kenya on the 14th, Yale university President peter Salovey sat down for a conversation with Kenyan renown business executive and entrepreneur Vishal Agarwal at Capital Club East Africa for a members club breakfast meeting.
The discussion centered on emotional intelligence and how it affects leadership. Peter Salovey started off by saying, “emotional intelligence is about getting the best out of our emotions.” He stated that one of the most important skills in business is managing our emotions.
People with a high degree of emotional intelligence know what they’re feeling, the meaning behind their emotions, and how those emotions can impact their work and those around them. Emotional intelligence allows leaders to be self aware and motivated.
Drawing from the chapter” The lion and the goat” from the book ‘Give to Get’ authored by Vishal Agarwal , peter salovey detailed that leaders need to think of themselves as a lion displaying pride, dignity and confidence even in the face of fear of failure rather than the skittish goat.
Peter Salovey then addressed a common phrase in the corporate environment, “leave your emotional baggage at home” saying that the phrase though widely used is not about suppressing one’s emotions but learning how to manage them which involves choosing a time and place to revisit them.”
With some of Nairobi top entrepreneurs and business executives sitting in the room Peter Salovey emphasized that the most important skill entrepreneurs can master is resilience in the face of failure.
Summing up the spirited conversation Mr.Salovey quoted Aristotle, saying, “ To be angry is cosy. To choose when, where and how to display it is the hard part”
