Emotional Intelligence | Artificial Intelligence

Blending Technological Advances with Emotional Connectivity

In the world of AI, the way to thrive as humans will be to strengthen EI skills, combining technology with humility and interpersonal skills

Defining Success

How do you define success? Perhaps I could ask the same question another way — such as what is your greatest desire? For some, it may be loads of money, an expensive car, lavish vacations, early retirement…. In the end, we all desire different things and define success a little differently, however, I believe we agree that there are certain ingredients that are present in every case of success such as freedom, contentment, and ease of living.

“Develop success from failure. Discouragement and failure are the surest stepping stones to success.” ~ Dale Carnegie

In my personal experience of life coaching, watching friends and family, or even closing my own yoga studio, I have faced hard scenarios and had to face the difference between failure and surrender. When I closed the door to my yoga studio in 2018, I realized I had not experienced failure, but instead I accepted the power of surrender. It takes great strength and courage to surrender and to realize when a business drains your strength and resources and then to regroup and come up with a better plan for growth. I had not given up but instead restructured and reprioritized for continued growth and sustainability.

In my personal life, success means raising responsible children to become accountable, independent adults, to be healthy and content myself in a happy interdependent relationship, and live a long prosperous life where I have the ability and freedom to travel and enjoy life and my family. I am not there yet, but I am getting there.

Overcoming the Obstacle of Subconscious Thoughts

What holds us back from achieving all that we desire? If achieving that came easy, we would all be living the good life on “Easy Street,” and it is fairly apparent that is not the case. Rates of depression and suicide are up, unemployment rates are up, and homelessness continues to spiral upward.

I believe the biggest obstacles that hold us back are our subconscious self-limiting beliefs mainly affecting our confidence levels.

By boosting emotional intelligence, we uncover subconscious thoughts by raising personal awareness and practicing self-exploration. We build confidence through a variety of exercises. I personally say words of affirmations and personal mantras, especially before events where I am nervous. This pumps me up and feeds me the positive energy I need to reprogram my subconscious mind. I also journal all of my good qualities to remind myself of my ability to succeed. Last of all when my inner critic starts with negative self-talk, I question if it is true and if my best friend would agree with those thoughts.

“Emotional Intelligence is a way of recognizing, understanding, and choosing how we think, feel, and act. It shapes our understanding of ourselves. It defines how and what we learn; it allows us to set priorities; it determines the majority of our daily actions. Research suggests it is responsible for as much as 80% of the “success” in our lives” ~ J. Freedman

As I increase my emotional intelligence and build my personal awareness, I also build my empathy which brings awareness to verbal and non-verbal body language and helps me better communicate as well as listen better. This allows me to build and sharpen my relationships with others.

Using strong and positive body language allows me to look and feel confident which gives me a boost and competitive advantage when I present to a group. It gives me a professional edge and allows me to take command of the room. It sets me up for success. People are far more likely to buy a pitch from someone who looks and sounds confident than someone who looks and sounds shy and meager.

I used to want to back out of opportunities at the last minute because I was so nervous which was incredibly self-sabotaging behavior. I used to be terrified of public speaking. Now I am only mildly uncomfortable. Now that I have the awareness and poise, I am able to speak in front of groups whether it is a few or three hundred people because I am confident, I know what I am talking about and they can take it or leave it — my self-image no longer relies on what they think of me personally.

I can now focus on learning the skills and competencies needed to succeed and excel in whatever areas I desire which allows me to feel even more confident. Being prepared and knowing my skill also allows me to be fully competent and successful.

Integrating EI and AI

We are headed into a new era, one with much more advanced technology than ever seen before. In this world of Artificial Intelligence, to succeed as humans will require us to strengthen our Emotional Intelligence. We will need better communication and interpersonal skills in order to compete for what jobs are left for humans, to have the patience to communicate with the robotic world and to continue to thrive in this new age. This presents a great opportunity, but we need to use it to our advantage and do our part to keep up with the advancements. In order to thrive, we need to educate ourselves and continue to evolve. The one advantage we most certainly have as humans over AI technology is our emotional capacity and capability, however that is only an advantage if we have fine tuned those skills for and in ourselves

There are many wonderful things that AI can accomplish that humans cannot, such as working 24/7 and working free from technical performance errors and careless human mistakes. However, having said that, there are many things that robots cannot replace such as human feelings and touch, bedside manner (whether in the hospital or the bedroom, but apparently digisexuality is real — who would’ve thought!?). Dr Mehmet Yildiz is an expert in the field of artificial intelligence and has written several books, including On the Cusp of the Artificial Intelligence Revolution.

“The central premise of AI is making our lives easier, simpler, safer, and more fun in a variety of ways. So far, one of the most significant benefits of AI is the value of freedom. AI tools free up busy people to work on creative and important tasks rather than monotonous, and time-consuming activities.” ~ Dr Mehmet Yildiz, On the Cusp of the Artificial Intelligence Revolution

It is time to level up. Are you ready? Playing it safe and staying where we are does not seem to be working. We need to grow our emotional intelligence. We need to learn to connect with one another and be more compassionate human beings. Blending technological advances with humility and emotional connectivity and understanding is the best of both worlds.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this. I would appreciate you commenting and following my email to stay in touch!

I am a personal development and relationship coach specializing in emotional intelligence. I also teach yoga and yoga teacher training and enjoy public and motivational speaking. I lead yoga and meditation retreats worldwide. I am attaching a few of my other stories if you are interested in reading them.