Emotional Intelligence in Small Businesses
Bin Chen
We used to be a lot better about sharing our internal workings. When we had a column on GOOD, the self-imposed deadlines forced us to share anything and everything about our business practices. As we’re gearing up to open our second official location in Union Square, we wanted to share an email we sent to all our Team Leads (shift leads, catering leads, etc) from a while back. It gives you a glimpse into how we manage our teams and strive for excellence.
We’ve been getting a lot of emails about entrepreneurship and marketing strategy lately. We want to apologize in advance for our super slow response. We’re about bringing people together and being transparent, so we hope to answer all your questions one day. In the meantime, you might come across this post because we directed you to it. We don’t mean to be so impersonal, but captures our sentiment about leading small teams better than any email I write in haste.
Cheers!
Andrew
_______________________________________
Leads,
Bin and I have been talking with most of you about Emotional Intelligence in our 1:1s. It’s something that’s hard to convey in person, much less in a document. However, for many of us, we need multiple sources of stimuli to converge in order to hit home. I’m just passing this stimuli. =)
Article: What Makes a Leader?
The first article (attached) is the hot lens in modern management. As Bin and I have said to each one of you, our servant leadership values is just an extension of having strong character and solid EQ (Emotional Intelligence). I read this as an undergrad (20 y.o.) and I went through it again in grad school (27 y.o.). I then came across this a third time as I’ve been meeting CEOs and government leaders (32 y.o.). My point is this thing has been passed around like a hot letter in high school! It’s timeless!
The biggest takeaway is this chart captures the EQ-level that all Shift Leads, Managers, and Committee Leads (e.g. Tea People, R&D) should have one day. As we hire more people, the bar only gets higher, so we want to make sure our current team, you, is prepared for our growth.
Article: Can You Really Improve Your EQ?
http://blogs.hbr.org/2013/05/can-you-really-improve-your-em/
I know not everyone wants to be a “leader” and manage a team. That being said, I think everyone does want to improve their situation, both professionally and personally. Also, leadership manifests itself in every social situation, from friendships to your family. This is a good way blueprint on improving EQ. I know it sounds self-help, but almost every C-level executive in the Fortune 500 and government leader reads Harvard Business Review, so please read it with an open mind.
Here are the highlights from this article:
- Your level of EQ is firm, but not rigid.
- Good coaching programs do work.
- But you can only improve if you get accurate feedback.
- Some techniques (and coaches) are more competent than others.
- Some people are more coachable than others.
Interview: The Truth about Great Leaders
I was given this article by one of my mentors. It’s a quick read that covers all the holes that are missing in the first two resources. My favorite points:
“Studies conducted by companies evaluating their own executives have proven that the top 10% of performers displayed superior competencies in emotional intelligence, rather than in purely cognitive thinking.”
“The smart leader can get results in the short-term, the wise leader can net results in both the short and the long-term.”
Sorry to blast you with two self-helpish emails. I send this to our Leads because you guys are the driving force of Boba Guys. With all the great press this week, Bin and I count on you to fulfill the promise we make to the public. We are a team– no one part is better or more important than the other. That’s why we need everyone well-greased and working properly. (Sorry, I just had to watch the latest Cars movie for work.)
Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks,
Andrew
[link to this article]