THE five minute EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE (EI) NEWSLETTER - by Johanna Vanderpol
www.johannavanderpol.com - the website for emotional intelligence, authentic happiness and coaching
Because of the masses of information we are subject to each day, I have purposely kept this newsletter brief. However, if you remain a regular subscriber, this is a good way to increase your emotional intelligence little by little, day by day. Each issue will have an action step or exercise designed to increase your EI. This is my gift to you. Enjoy.
 
Announcement - FREE Introductory Teleclass - The Top Ten Ways to Honour Your Emotions - Monday, August 16, 2004, 8-8:55 PM
Do emotions get the better of you? Did you know that emotions that are suppressed cause chronic illnesses? Do you feel like your emotions can be a rollercoaster. Then take this class. It is an introduction to the positive power and true meaning of emotion. You will take away some practical steps to start you on the journey to making emotions work for you instead of against you.
A teleclass is a class conducted by phone. All participants dial a specific phone number given to them and can all hear each other. A virtual classroom!
Are you interested? Then on Monday, August 16 at 8 PM EST phone 1-831-600-1000 and enter password 13883 when prompted. The only cost to you is a long distance phone call.
Note: Stay tuned for a series of future interactive coaching classes that will keep you focused on honouring your emotions and make them a pleasant and manageable part of your everyday life.
 
ISSUE TWO, AUGUST, 2004
Some comments about the Prior Issue of this Newsletter
1. What's available in the world of EI?
2. Did you know? From the research
3. Quote
4. Action step for you
______________________________________________________
Some comments about the Prior Issue of this Newsletter
On the launch of the Premier Issue of The five minute Emotional Intelligence (EI) Newsletter most of you are aware that I had neglected to blind carbon copy the newsletter. Please accept my sincere apologies for this oversight. I will get it right this time. Secondly, I had published a quote as follows: "As much as 80% of adult "success" comes from EQ (emotional quotient) - Daniel Goleman, Emotional Intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ. 1995." I had received extensive criticism about the truth of this quote from one person. And, he sent this criticism out to everyone on my list! I had taken this quote from a reputable website called www.6seconds.org .  I have read some of the reasons why this is not supposed to be true. You, the reader, can judge for yourself as you received all the information required since then to decided for yourselves. Meanwhile, the general point that I am sure we can all agree on is that Emotional Intelligence is just as important as IQ. The research bears out this general statement. The percentage of 80% is definitely in question.
Now that we got that out of the way, here is the remainder of the newsletter.
1. SELF-SCIENCE: The Emotional Intelligence Curriculum
This is a curriculum that has been designed for Grades K-8 to provide children with options of what to do in emotionally challenging situations instead of our constant telling of what not to do. It helps children become more aware of themselves and make more conscious decisions about the ways they think, feel and act. Parents and teachers are increasingly concerned about emotional intelligence competencies. This book has information on starting a class, giving a lesson and other tools. Great for parents and teachers alike. I think this is an exciting contribution and tool for our children. It will help them develop foundational skills that will benefit themselves for all of their lives. It could be implemented in any school (grass roots) or at the Board of Education level. Go to www.6seconds.org for more information on this wonderful resource.
2. Did you know? From the research
There is convincing evidence that psychological states do affect health. Depression, grieving, pessimism all seem to worsen health in both the short run and long term
Martin Seligman Learned Optimism, 1998, p. 181
3. Quote
In this world we are influenced by two sentiments, Joy and Pain.
Joy gives us wings! In times of joy our strength is more vital, our intellect keener, and our understanding less clouded. We seem better able to cope with the world and to find our sphere of usefulness. But when sadness visits us we become weak, our strength leaves us, our comprehension is dim and our intelligence veiled. The actualities of life seem to elude our grasp, the eyes of our spirits fail to discover the sacred mysteries, and we become even as dead beings.
There is no human being untouched by these two influences; but all the sorrow and the grief that exist come from the world of matter -- the spiritual world bestows only the joy!
Abdu'l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 109
- see www.bahai.org
4. Action step for you
Honouring your emotions is the key to a sense of well-being and less health problems such as headaches, digestive problems and illness. For me, it was the end of thirty years of chronic depression. I can now teach teleclasses and other programs on how to do this. It is a significant factor in the well-being of all humankind.
Today we will look at and implement the main way to honour your emotions. It is (are you ready?): the suspension and elimination of destructive self-judgment. The self-judgment is what keeps you feeling confined, restricted, fearful, anxious, doubtful, tired and feeling bad about yourself. It is time to change this. We are not meant to be this way. We are asked to have compassion, understanding, kindness, respect and love for others by our culture and our religion. However, we also need to have these qualities for ourselves. This is the missing ingredient. You will feel better and better as you start to incorporate this principle of honouring your emotions by suspending negative self-judgment into your life.
Try this:
1. Choose one day or hour and observe how many times you have a negative thought about yourself or something you did. How does it make you feel?
2. Now, for day two or even hour two, find a more positive thought to replace each negative one. This can be a bit of a struggle. Don't be discouraged. It is normal. The critic inside your head may get louder. Just ignore him or her and keep doing it. If you need to, pretend for one hour that you are allowed to replace the negative thoughts with positive ones. Go ahead. Give yourself permission. Now, after one hour, how do you feel?
3. Be careful that you do not allow a negative self-judgment about your negative self-judgment.
This is the new process that needs to be implemented in your life to start changing the pattern of dishonouring your emotions. You can enlist the help of a friend or coach to point out to you when you are being negative towards yourself. Awareness takes time to develop. Be patient with yourself, but be persistent. In twenty-one days you can already start to feel the new pattern being automatic, but find a way to stick with it.
Reminders
E-book: Honouring Your Emotions: Why it matters by Johanna Vanderpol
If you haven't already done so, take a look at my new e-book on my website. Click here to look at some excerpts: www.johannavanderpol.com/HYE.asp . You can purchase it for $14.95 and download it immediately, no waiting for something to be shipped. You will then have the book on your computer and can read it whenever you want and print whatever you want. It will get you started on the path to honouring your emotions - a vital skill to improve the quality of your life, your health and your relationships.
FREE Teleclass: The Top Ten Ways to Honour Your Emotions, Monday, August 16, 2004, 8 PM EST, phone number 1-831-600-1000 password 13883
Stay tuned for group coaching programs to teach you how to honour your emotions and make it a part of your way of life.
______________________________________________________
 
Feedback:
I would appreciate any comments you have that would make this newsletter more useful for you or ways that it has helped you.
Subscriptions:
This is a permission-based email list. However, if, at any time, you no longer wish to be on this list, please reply with "unsubscribe" in the subject line and I will remove your name from my list. I do not give out your name to anyone else. Also, if you know of anyone that would be interested in information of this kind, please forward this newsletter to them and invite them to subscribe.
Website:
For more information on emotional intelligence, coaching, authentic happiness and calendar of workshops , go to
www.johannavanderpol.com
All information in this newsletter is protected by copyright. Feel free to forward it as long as you quote the source.