Understand that if a person’s IQ isn’t a certain level (estimated to be around 90) then high EQ wouldn’t even matter because it’s highly unlikely that a person would have the wherewithal to use it effectively. Think about that.
As you advance in an organization, EQ plays an increasingly important in factor. But in most cases you would also need an MBA or higher, right? According to statistics you need an IQ of 100-120 to earn an advanced degree.
In relationships, EQ has a huge impact on whether or not the relationship will be a mutually beneficial one. But who wants to marry someone with the intellect of a gnat?
In a high school student’s AP physics class one would think that IQ would be more important. But research overwhelmingly proves the opposite to be true. You probably already know, that test anxiety is the cause of many poor performances on exam day.
Students with the ability to manage the emotions that accompany the extreme pressure and stressfulness of a final exam fare far better than students with equal or slightly better IQ’s who lack the ability to govern test-time emotions.
The key phrase here is “with equal or slightly better IQ’s”. A student with a significantly lower IQ might not even make it into AP physics.
Whether they are aware of it or not, for the vast majority of people the level of their emotional mastery will have an equal or even greater impact than IQ on their level of achievement and sense of fulfillment in life. However…
This does not diminish the importance of IQ in any shape, form, or fashion; it simply augments the importance of emotional intelligence and all of the other soft skills.