“Get your emotions to work for you”: Understanding emotional intelligence as a military leader

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Show Notes

How do emotional intelligence (known as EQ) and leadership go together? What does EQ have to do with leading in the military? How does EQ line up with scripture?

Noble Gibbens, also known as the EQ Gangster, joins me on the podcast to answer these questions. An Oklahoma-born West Point graduate who served in the U.S. Army in the 82nd Airborne Division, Noble combined his entrepreneurial spirit and experience with his passion for emotional intelligence to become a certified emotional intelligence practitioner, corporate speaker & trainer, and executive leadership coach.

After growing up in a home where he “learned absolutely nothing about conflict resolution” and realizing his emotional dysfunction in his own home as an adult, Noble met with a counselor and began his emotional fitness journey.

In this episode, he defines emotional intelligence, shares experiences with leadership in and out of the military context, talks about David and other biblical examples of emotional intelligence, and more.

Check out these resources mentioned in Noble’s interview: 

• Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Dr. Travis Bradberry and Dr. Jean Greaves
• EQ-i 2.0, an online self-rating assessment tool  
• EQ Gangster podcast, Episode #273: Dr. Brooks Gibbs, Emotional Resilience in Teens & Adults, and Creating Unstoppable Humans
• Changes That Heal: Four Practical Steps to a Happier, Healthier You by Dr. Henry Cloud
• Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life by Dr. Henry Cloud, Dr. John Townsend
• Leadership and Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box by The Arbinger Institute
• Running on Empty: Overcome Your Childhood Emotional Neglect by Jonice Webb, PhD, with Christine Musello
• Running on Empty No More: Transform Your Relationships With Your Partner, Your Parents and Your Children by Jonice Webb, PhD

As you listen to this conversation with Noble, here are a few questions to ponder in your personal time, with a small group, or with a mentor: 

1. How would you define emotional intelligence?
2. Think back to your own upbringing. How did your community, family, etc. talk about emotions? How has that impacted your understanding of emotional intelligence now?
3. To pose Noble’s question mentioned in this episode: How often do anxiety and frustrations, motivation, impulses, fear, and distress affect and impact your decision-making?
4. Having listened to Noble explain the impact emotional intelligence can have on working relationships, what can improve within your own workplace?
5. We talk about Jesus as the biblical model of being unoffendable, a trait that indicates high emotional intelligence. What can we learn from His example?