Emotional agility

by Julia Bunyatov

March 2024

In today's high-stakes environment, where resilience is more important than ever, leaders are distinguished not only by their strategic insights but also by their excellence in managing their own and others' emotions while achieving results. 

Emotional agility is a critical skill set that empowers leaders to handle complex situations gracefully and innovatively while ensuring that their actions align with their and the organization's core values and purpose. 

Recent neuroscience research supports the understanding that emotions are neurobiological processes that guide the allocation of our brain-body energy to keep us alive and thrive.

Knowing this, leaders can approach their emotional landscape with curiosity and openness, proactively processing emotions,treating them as an important data point, and viewing them as dynamic tools that optimize energy and enhance the capacity to focus and achieve goals. 

My first-hand experience and professional practice with clients demonstrate the powerful outcomes of harnessing emotions as sources of strength and insight. Below are some effective strategies for success.

Five Tips for Cultivating Emotional Agility:

1. Learn the Language: Develop your vocabulary and label your emotions, treat them as data and information. Identify your top 3-5 patterns of emotions, to achieve a nuanced understanding of your internal states and enhance self-awareness and communication.

2. Practice Mindfulness: Learn to acknowledge your emotions without immediately reacting to them. Be curious instead of judgmental to give yourself space to choose how to respond. Tools may include taking a deep breath, changing your posture, or journaling.

3. Prioritize Self-Care: Focus on foundational self-care, such as adequate sleep, exercise, and nutrition, to support neurobiological health and emotional agility. Yoga and brief walks in nature have been essential for me.

4. Employ Self-Compassion: Normalize and validate your emotional experiences with self-acceptance and compassion. This helps with the development of empathy for others and fostering a culture of psychological safety and trust within your team.

5. Expand Your Leadership: What are your internal responses informing you about the congruence/lack of external stimuli and your value and belief systems? Interpret your emotional responses as valuable information and leverage this insight to guide innovative and resilient decision-making aligned with your values and leadership goals. 

By harnessing emotional agility as a skill, leaders tap into the power of their emotions as a source of energy, information, and motivation.

This comprehensive approach boosts growth, inspiring to strive for more, enriching relationships and contributing to thriving and success in life and at work.  

References:

Barrett, L. F. (2017). How Emotions are Made. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.