Structure:

• What is emotional intelligence and why is important for administrator in general
• How EI helps bureaucrat take decisions

Content:

Emotional intelligence is the ability to perceive emotions, to assess and generate emotions so as to assist thought, to understand emotions and emotional knowledge, and to reflectively regulate emotions so as to promote emotional and intellectual growth (Mayer and Salovey, 1997).

According to Goleman (1998), "emotional intelligence" refers to the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions, well in ourselves and in our relationships.

In simple words, emotional intelligence refers to attributes such as understanding one's feeling, empathy for others, and the regulation of emotions to enhance one's life.

An emotionally intelligent administrator will possess the ability to-

• Handle conflicts constructively
• De-personalize from the angers of others
• Deal with uncertainty and change
• Identify and abide by core values and beliefs that shape the choices you make
• Understand and empathize with positions different from others
• To enroll people into his/ her vision
• Manage difficult/ unreasonable persons in all situations

Relevance of Emotional Intelligence in the Current Environment of Civil Services

Civil services today work in an environment that is beset with numerous problems, challenges, and even contradictions such as-

• Fast changing social structure and
• Increasing regional,     economic     and     digital    divide,     rising    population and
• Inadequacy of basic necessities like housing and drinking water and infrastructure and so
• Increased awareness of the masses as well as existence of significant number of voiceless and marginalized
• Widespread application of information technology which has helped the government on one hand, but has also put pressure on the government to “appear to be performing and in control of things".
• The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments have led to decentralization of decision making and created a new class of politicians over the civil

There is an all pervasive demand for improved governance. A paradigm shift has occurred in the idea of governance, of what governments should do and also how they should govern. On one hand, governments are expected to move out of many areas, and on the other hand they are expected to perform multiple roles.

• There is, however, a consensus that government should perform better, be more responsive and transparent, and enhance scope for participation of people and civil
• Issues get politicized easily and
• There is an all pervasive and increased cynicism and contempt of politics and
• Inner dissent and conflicts over policies, programmes and implementation thereof are more open and sharper.
• There is an increased tendency on part of the people to resort to agitation and The common man is no longer satisfied easily. Even a small instance can provoke people to indulge in harmful and destructive activities. Increase in the number of frustrated and disgruntled people has only added fuel to the fire.
• The administration itself is beset with many problems- political pressures, rampant corruption, obsolete and outdated methods, procedures and laws, lack of avenues for growth, over- centralizaiton, self aggrandizement and so

Thus the work environment of the civil services is much more complex, demanding and even hostile at times. And given its present state, it is in no position to handle and tackle the problems in the old ways. Even the well intending civil servants cannot do much because all their energies are exhausted in sheer survival. Herein lies the role of Emotional Intelligence. The emotionally intelligent civil services can achieve a lot if they are professionally competent and positive in their approach.

How can Emotional Intelligence Help indecisiveness among Civil Services?

Emotional intelligence creates a amicable work environment . It leads Improvement in the behavior and performance of individual workers.

Specifically, the awareness and the application of EI helps in the following manner-

• Greater interpersonal skills: this helps to communicate with all the stakeholders and come up help in building a win-win situation if not consensus
• Increased capacity to handle- Changes in work, Pressures and stress
• Help deal with Conflicts relating to decision premise, input and the This will reduce the delay in decision making
• Ability to see the long term effects of one’s actions/ attitudes
• Increased levels of commitment, trustworthiness and conscientiousness
• Being able to see things in a holistic manner
• Being able to bounce back from setbacks and maintain optimism
• Finding healthy ways to handle negative/ extreme feelings
• Having greater motivation- achievement drive, initiative, persistence, motivating others as well
• Better ability to communicate
• Enhanced group dynamics in terms of cooperation, collaboration and building bonds
• Enhanced leadership traits, including the knowledge about when and how to lead, when to follow
• Ability to use win-win model for negotiations
• Ability to appreciate diversity and value for others
• Ability to perform multiple tasks due to better time and information management
• Greater focus
• Aware of but minimally concerned with and affected by office politics
• Not prone to aggression
• Ability to be a change catalyst