up one level
---
2016-12-13
A High Performing Web Developer Properly Reads and Reacts to the Emotions of Others
By w̶i̶e̶l̶d̶l̶i̶n̶u̶x̶.̶c̶o̶m̶ author Morgan Jassen
I read somewhere that a trait of high performing teams is reading and reacting properly to emotions of others, and that this is referred to as having high emotional intelligence.
Furthermore, I believe that *reading these cues is learnable* (Learning emotional intelligence is possible)
Going forward I want to apply this to make me a better Web Developer.
I'll need to put aside any stigma that reading emotions of others (through body language, sounds/tones, and other nonverbal cues) isn't ethical or isn't desirable.
I think I picked that stigma up at some point, and to a large extent developed a habit of avoiding reading emotional cues, not reading them. In hindsight I realize this has prevented me from understanding what others are trying to communicate to me in work conversations.
Moving on.
With the power of this realization, going forward I'll meditate how reading nonverbal / emotional cues, and acting on the findings of the readings is, in and of itself, ethical and acceptable. I'll think that to be a part of a high performing team, I and others should make effort to practice the emotion-reading skill.
Additionally, whenever possible I'll take the skill one step further, and to whenever possible translate the nonverbal communications that I'm seeing into verbal communcations, for the benefit of clear communication and learning of all parties.
In conclusion, to become a better Web Developer going forward, when communicating with others, I'll learn how to read people's emotions, learn how to treat those as part of the whole conversation, read them, and do it.
Tags: #mingling, #working
[2017-01-31 Update: I have since found an excellent reference, to an example of a character performing an act of translating nonverbal communications that they are seeing into verbal communcations, for the benefit of clear communication. In this case it is in "The Good Wife" TV Show ( http://www.cbs.com/shows/the_good_wife/ ), Season 1 Episode 2, when the courtroom judge character asks the courtroom lawyers to agree to what he has said, and waits for a verbal response. One of the lawyers (Mr. Ericcson) knows that he must agree, but is reluctant to do so, and so instead of verbally agreeing, the lawyer makes a gesture with his body and hand that indicates that he reluctantly agrees. Thereupon the judge clarifies to the room (and indeed probably to the court stenographer) that the lawyer made a gesture and that this gesture means that he agrees with the judge. The judge says this: "...Mr., uh... Ericcson? ...[Mr. Ericcson makes gesture]... Ah. I interpret
from Mr. Ericcson's, uh, gesture that he acquiesces. ..." (Thanks to "The Good Wife Transcript" > "01x02 - Stripped" (http://transcripts.foreverdreaming.org/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=13297) for its transcript that helped me find this reference)]
[2019 edit: Moved to: https://i̶n̶v̶e̶s̶t̶o̶r̶w̶o̶r̶k̶e̶r̶.̶c̶o̶m̶/2016/... .html.]