Book excerpt: Become Emotionally Smarter with a Practical Approach! Emotional intelligence has been a buzzword in the personal growth industry and in high-level corporate recruitment strategies since 1995, when Daniel Goleman used the term for his book title and topic. As we would say today, his use of it "went viral" immediately, in the world of business and mental health in particular. Often abbreviated as "EQ", emotional intelligence is the personal ability you have to recognize and label your own emotions and feelings, and to use this information to steer your thinking and behavior in the desired direction. Whether you are looking to climb the career ladder with ease, thrive during social events or simply feel more at peace with yourself, a well-developed EQ is absolutely critical. During the course of this book, we will take a look at the current knowledge surrounding the subject, as well as how you can vastly improve your own emotional intelligence with a series of simple, practical exercises. You will learn about: - How to observe and analyze your emotions at any given moment. - How to connect more easily with people and build strong and lasting relationships. - How your body reacts to your various emotional states. - How to release unwanted and potentially destructive emotions. - "Thought traps" and how to deal with them. - Mindfulness and its role in developing EQ. - How to improve your EQ in everyday environments. - How having a higher emotional intelligence will benefit your life. And more!