Emotional Intelligence Reappraised

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In a previous post, I have cautioned against emotional intelligence if it was misused to manipulate or commit unscrupulous purposes. I still believe that.  However, the emotional intelligence by itself is a skill that is generic, neutral, and useful in understanding oneself and other people. Allow me to elaborate. 

The skill is learnable. Although not taught in school, the emotional intelligence can be learned through  personal experience.  Be it our preferences  or values, the more we steep in our own feelings, the more it helps to enhance our awareness and empathy of what others are going through.

Take my recent loss of my mother for example. Even though I understand the concept of grief, its impacts and complexities hit home with me like never before through this episode.  It has made me appreciate more the emotional effect of such loss and relate better to others in similar circumstances.

So, to clarify – the emotional intelligence is a soft skill that can be learned to better aware of oneself and the people we associated with. Whether it is misused or abused absolutely depends on the individual character. The outcome is up to each of us.

How do you rate your emotional intelligence?

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Non-human Intelligence

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Human intelligence is a common used term. The language we use represents an example of how information is stored and disseminated. And of course technology is another example of how far the human intelligence has evolved. But non-human intelligence? What is with that?

The term non-human intelligence refers to intelligence possessed by any other species other than human. Other species such as plants, animal, and our planet. The plants around us go through seasonal cycles. They adapt, grow, and evolve independent of our language nor technology. Same is true with the animals and  planet.

Because the human intelligence is how we learn and understand the world around us, we may assume  that it is the best. Nothing can be farther from the truth. You see, we are part of a natural system. A subset of it really. Albeit, we have encroached and exploited the heck out of it in our pursuits.

What does your pet think when you got the urge to dress it up?

Week In Review – 5 Mar 2023

First weekend in March. Today, a sunny day in the nation’s capital.  The natural light paints every living things with a golden glow. Am I hearing the steps of an early Spring coming or just a teaser?

Typical of every Sunday, the news media compete to fill the air with stories:  Partisan politics, Ukraine war, or impact of interest rate on economy, you name it.  Washington DC is notorious this way – a bubble from the rest of the country. One exception is the sports & violence.

On travel. I noticed even in the airport each city shows off its unique flavor, people, and culture. Here in DC, the pundits may  espouse the “should’s” but it’s the politicians who play with the “will’s” but everyone keeps an eye  on their re-election coffers.

In this week, the WordPress platform will kick off its new Jetpack Mobile App. Not sure what will happen to the existing platform, but based on my imperfect understanding, I have chosen to stick with the old platform. A mistake? We shall see.

Stay safe & have a nice week

Imperfect Understanding

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Like many, I see the world through my own lenses. Trying to understand what is going on, and operate accordingly, easy to understand, right? Trouble is that my view of the world is not perfect, in fact, far from it.

Because my lenses are clouded by dirt, rose-colored by optimism, or simply off by my ignorance, how I see the world is distorted. It’s possible to improve through self awareness. But much easier said than done.

In other words, we operate through our self centers. We assess the world against our own understanding (biased by our lens). What we know, understand, and believe are not perfect, but good enough to get by.

So to behave as if we own the world (even just a sliver of it) or have the monopoly on the truth is ludicrous. Simply because we don’t know what battles others are waging inside. Nor do they about us. Because our imperfect understanding.

In what way are your lenses coloring your relationship?

My Take On The Jetpack Mobile App

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Comes March 8, next Wednesday, the WordPress as we know it will go through a transformation. A lot of the bells and whistles will be stripped from the WP and shift off to the so called Jetpack Mobile App – features like Stats, Notifications, and Reader.

After giving the Jetpack a try,  I decided it’s not for me. Here are my why’s.

Maybe I am a blogging dinosaur. But the Jetpack feel to me so much like a social media app and less a blogging platform. For one, it does not support the Classic block editor. Which I still use to write my blog. The Jetpack caters to the on the go, point and shoot with links and notifications, hence the mobile app.

I like to write my posts in front of my computer. Read some, think about or reflect on it, then compose. My process fits better with the WP as compared to the Jetpack. If I were doing a travel or foodie blog, perhaps the Jetpack would be the choice.

I will miss the connections with other bloggers though the Reader and Notification. But the WP is my choice.

Have you tried the Jetpack Mobile App? 

Stories

 

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Action speaks louder than words. Better believe it.

In fact, I would put less weight on words now-a-day. Social media is free wheeling. Not to mention, a chatbot can generate word filled content better than average Joe. No offense.

Despite that, everyone loves a good story. We want to believe it. Even fictions, if it is presented as such. Fictional story has its place. It conjures up imagination, frees our mind to make-believe, and enables human expression.

So what should we do? Do we have to verify, fact check every details? What’s the working surface? And the action there? Is it credible?

When Fox News knew that the 2020 Election was not stolen, but still went ahead with it regardless, it lost all credibility with me. Okay, business is business. Why should the truth spoils a good story, right? Not to mention the revenues and other ulterior motives. I get it.

Instead of the Fox News, maybe a more suitable name would be Fox Entertainment? Oh wait, isn’t that already taken? No matters. It makes a good story.

 Is it real or Memorex?

 

Should And Will

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Obeying speed limit, eating healthy, and exercising regularly are examples of what we should do. What will we do? That’s a whole different story.

You see the “should” deals with theory. Mostly academic if you will. Particularly when we were young.  Whereas the “will”  involves reality and more circumstantial.  Typically when we get older. No more answers at the back of the textbook.

Doctors face this often. If patients follow the doctors’ order, life would be different. The hospital would be less crowded. Healthcare cost would reduce.  The same can be said about parents. Less rebellious teenagers at home, in theory.

Such is life. We spend a chunk of it learning the should’s. What should I say? What should I wear? Where should I live? But ultimately it’s what we will do that define us. The “should’s” deal with the others’ expectations. The “will’s” are all about us.

What will you choose?

Sports & Violence

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In sports, the competition promotes winners, and by the same tokens, losers. People love winners. Losers? Not so much. But that’s okay, because an important lesson whether winning or losing is the concept of fair play – to compete within the rules.

Participants play their guts out, but after the final whistle blew, they shake hands and respect the outcome from their efforts. Bonus point: sports channel our energy towards positive directions.

Yes, sports provide outlets for people to get their aggression, excess energy, and competitive spirit out in an structured way. All in the domain of civility.  Even you are not a sports fan, the same prevails. Take game and work, the two common examples.

So what does sports have to do with violence? Glad you asked. Where things go awry is when the concept of  the fair play is violated.  When the rules are not enforced fairly, fights break out.

And that happens elsewhere as well: at the playground (think bully), traffic stop (bad policing), and other pubic gatherings (mass shooting). The tool of choice is not limited to fists or guns. Knifes, clubs, dogs, cars, or whatever is available.

Nobody says the world is fair, but we should strive for fair play or die trying.

What are other root causes of violence?

In The Airport

Drinking Fountains at Houston Hobby Airport

I am not coming. Nor am I going.

Not at this moment anyway.

Sitting here in Houston (Hobby) Airport.

The airport like its home state is really big,

Wide open space hopping with travelers, coming and going.

I just sit and observe.

Feels as if the Covid pandemic is a thing of the past.

Rarely is anyone wearing mask ( except yours truly).

Less than one percent maybe.

Que sera, sera.

 

 

Week In Review – 26 Feb 2023

Among the major news this week is the one year anniversary of Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine. As the war grinds on and the conflict in stalemate, the lost on each side are mounting. The sanctions against Russia led by the US along with other Western nations are slow in their effects.

Instead, these sanctions gave the Russian President Putin’s propaganda a foothold in rallying its people in nationalism: Russia versus the West. Clearly a decisive war is out of the question. So when China proposed a peace plan for the conflict, it was an alternative of think win/win.

What would Putin do? More interestingly, how about the Ukraine President Zelenskyy, who has much more work to do in convincing the people including the Western allies? By the way, Zelenskyy has been doing a superb job at it.

Too early to tell if the peace plan will work, but it is a start which beats the lose/lose. By the way, I posed  the question — will the China’s peace plan work? — to the ChatGPT, and for whatever it’s worth, below is the response I got back:

The success of the China peace plan will depend on a number of factors, including the willingness of all parties involved to engage in dialogue and compromise, the influence of external actors such as the United States and the European Union, and the ability of the international community to effectively coordinate and support the peace process.

It is also important to note that the conflict in Ukraine is complex and has deep historical roots, and a lasting peace will require a sustained effort by all parties involved. While the China peace plan could be a positive step towards a resolution of the conflict, it remains to be seen whether it will be successful in achieving its goals.

Stay safe & Have a nice week