Even if you spend all of your free time cramming, being book smart isn’t the only cog in the complex machine of academic success. It turns out, emotional intelligence is crucial for student success. Emotionally intelligent individuals are those capable of understanding and expressing their own emotions, as well as the emotions of the people they interact with.
School is challenging in more ways than just having to memorize information for an exam. For most students, the classroom is the first place they learn to interact with peers and build interpersonal relationships. These things come naturally to some, but take a lot of effort for others.
I’m an introvert and battle social anxiety, and those things have been true my entire life. Despite academics coming easily to me when I was doing homework in the comfort of my bedroom, I oftentimes struggled when taking tests in the classroom, and especially when working on group projects. My inability to understand my anxious emotions and relate to the carefree attitudes of my elementary school peers left me emotionally distressed, which in turn affected my grades.
It wasn’t until late middle school when I began dealing with my mental health struggles and resultantly improved my emotional intelligence that my teachers were able to identify my academic promise, and move me into advanced classes.
If you’re like me and feel held back because you lack emotional intelligence, don’t give up hope. This graphic shares emotional intelligence tips that can lead you to scholastic achievement.