Emotional Intelligence is a set of emotional and social skills that collectively establish how well we recognise ourselves, relate to others, and respond to what is happening around us. It shapes the quality of our thinking, choices, and behaviour in real time. It reflects:

  • How accurately we perceive and express ourselves, including whether we can notice, name, and communicate our feelings and needs in a way that is grounded, honest, and constructive rather than reactive or avoidant.

  • How effectively we develop and maintain social relationships, including whether we can build trust, collaborate with others, navigate difference, and bring empathy and curiosity into our interactions, especially when views diverge.

  • How skilfully we cope with challenges, setbacks, and pressure, including whether we can stay adaptive in unfamiliar situations, regulate our emotional state when we are under stress, and maintain a balanced internal centre when circumstances are difficult, ambiguous, or fast changing.

  • How well we use emotional information in an effective and meaningful way, including whether we can integrate emotion into our judgement rather than suppressing it or being driven by it, so that we make decisions that are intelligent both rationally and relationally.

Emotional Intelligence is also a credible predictor of success in life and work.

MHS’s EQ-i is one of the most widely used models for measuring Emotional Intelligence in professional settings. It translates Emotional Intelligence into fifteen specific composite skills, organised under five overarching facets. This structure makes Emotional Intelligence practical to discuss, observable in behaviour, and coachable in real working contexts.

For leaders, Emotional Intelligence shows up in how we prepare for pressure, how we respond to setbacks, and how we engage others. Leaders who are emotionally intelligent tend to think more clearly when stakes are high, maintain stronger working relationships, and make more balanced and constructive choices. They are also more likely to create teams and climates where people can do their best work.

The five facets of EQ-i

Diagram of the EQ-i 2.0 Emotional Intelligence model showing the five facets (Self Perception, Self Expression, Interpersonal, Decision Making, Stress Management) and the fifteen composite scales.

© MHS Assessments. EQ-i and EQ-i 2.0 are registered trademarks of Multi-Health Systems Inc. Used as a Certified Coach. Visual representation for contextual explanation only.

This sections offers an overview of the five EQ-i facets and the fifteen composites. Each heading links to a facet or component overview.

Self Perception

Self-perception describes how accurately, constructively, and realistically an individual understands themselves. It reflects whether a person can recognise their strengths, limitations, needs, and internal drivers without distortion or avoidance. This facet of Emotional Intelligence influences personal confidence, grounded decision making, and the ability to take ownership of one’s development. It also affects how well a leader stays connected to inner signals before acting externally.

Self Regard: The ability to accept, respect, and value oneself realistically, including acknowledging strengths and limitations without harsh self criticism or inflated self importance.

Self Actualisation: The drive to pursue personally meaningful goals, express potential, and take consistent action towards growth, fulfilment, and purpose rather than remaining static or passive.

Emotional Self Awareness: The capacity to recognise, name, and understand one’s own emotions as they arise, including noticing internal signals, triggers, needs, and the impact those feelings have on behaviour.

Self Expression

Self Expression describes how clearly, constructively, and authentically individuals communicate their inner experience. It reflects whether someone can express feelings, needs, positions, and viewpoints in ways that are honest, balanced, and respectful. This facet of Emotional Intelligence influences whether leaders communicate with clarity, whether they remain congruent under pressure, and whether they can assert themselves without aggression, withdrawal, or emotional suppression.

Emotional Expression: The capacity to communicate feelings in a clear, grounded, and appropriate manner rather than masking, suppressing, or leaking emotion indirectly.

Assertiveness: The ability to state needs, boundaries, and viewpoints openly and respectfully, without becoming passive, avoidant, aggressive, or dominant.

Independence: The capability to act, think, and form judgement autonomously, using internal guidance rather than relying excessively on reassurance, approval, or permission from others.

Interpersonal

Interpersonal describes how effectively individuals connect with others, build trust, and maintain mutually supportive relationships. It reflects whether someone can understand another person’s emotional world, respond with empathy, and remain relationally engaged even when perspectives differ. This facet of Emotional Intelligence influences collaboration quality, psychological safety, and whether interactions are experienced as constructive, respectful, and human rather than transactional or self focused.

Interpersonal Relationships: The ability to form and maintain mutually satisfying relationships characterised by trust, reliability, shared commitment, and genuine emotional connection.

Empathy: The capacity to understand and appreciate how others feel, including tuning into emotional cues, perspective taking, and responding in ways that acknowledge the other person’s internal state.

Social Responsibility: The motivation to contribute to the welfare of others and the wider group, balancing personal needs with collective benefit, and acting with integrity and community mindedness.

Decision Making

Decision Making describes how well individuals integrate emotional information into problem solving and judgement. It reflects whether someone can stay objective, analyse information accurately, and make choices that are not distorted by impulse, avoidance, or emotional reactivity. This facet of Emotional Intelligence influences the quality of reasoning under stress, the ability to evaluate risk realistically, and whether decisions are both rationally sound and situationally intelligent.

Problem Solving: The ability to approach challenges with a structured, analytic, and emotionally steady lens so that solutions are based on facts, logic, and evidence rather than emotional escalation or avoidance.

Reality Testing: The capacity to check assumptions against what is actually happening, distinguishing personal emotions and interpretation from observable facts, and ensuring thinking remains grounded in objective information.

Impulse Control: The ability to resist knee jerk reactions, delay immediate responses, regulate emotional surges, and choose behaviour intentionally rather than reflexively.

Stress Management

Stress Management describes how effectively individuals regulate emotional load, maintain psychological equilibrium, and respond constructively when circumstances are demanding, uncertain, or fast changing. It reflects whether someone can stay steady under pressure, tolerate discomfort without shutting down, and remain adaptive even when the situation feels personally or professionally challenging. This facet of Emotional Intelligence influences resilience, personal sustainability, and the ability to think clearly when stakes are high.

Flexibility: The ability to adjust thinking, emotional stance, and behaviour in response to changing conditions, staying open to alternatives rather than becoming rigid or fixed.

Stress Tolerance: The capacity to cope with pressure effectively, manage emotional strain, and stay constructive in the face of difficulty without becoming overwhelmed or avoidant.

Optimism: The ability to maintain a grounded and constructive view of the future, framing setbacks as workable and time limited rather than permanent or identity defining.

How I use the EQ-i in executive coaching and leadership development

As an executive coach and leadership educator, I use the EQ-i to help leaders understand the emotional patterns that shape their judgement, relational impact, and decision making under pressure. The model makes Emotional Intelligence measurable, coachable, and behavioural. It provides a clear structure for development, not simply a description of personality. The fifteen composites create specific doors for targeted practice, and this is where meaningful leadership change becomes possible.

Common applications in my work include:

  • leadership development programmes where participants strengthen the emotional skills that support real world performance

  • executive coaching engagements where the EQ-i gives leaders a clear starting point for behavioural change

  • accelerating role transition and onboarding by mapping the emotional capabilities required to be effective early and establish credibility fast

  • supporting leaders to be more effective in change and transformation work by strengthening the emotional processes that maintain engagement, adaptability, and psychological safety through uncertainty

  • team development work where the EQ-i helps uncover emotional patterns affecting collaboration, trust, psychological safety, and shared decision making

Frequently asked questions about the EQ-i and EQ360

Is the EQ-i 2.0 a valid and reliable measure? Yes. The EQ-i 2.0 is a psychometrically validated assessment developed by MHS. It has strong internal consistency, retest reliability and construct validity. It is widely used in corporate leadership development because results are trusted and repeatable.

What is the difference between facets and composites? Facets are the five overarching domains of emotional functioning. Composites are the fifteen specific emotional capabilities inside those domains. Facets provide the architecture. Composites are the behavioural levers that coaching can directly strengthen.

Is the EQ-i the same thing as emotional intelligence? No. Emotional intelligence is the psychological construct. The EQ-i 2.0 is the measurement model that converts emotional intelligence into fifteen measurable behavioural skills.

Can EQ-i scores be developed? Yes. Emotional capability is not fixed. Each composite can be strengthened with repeated behavioural practice, reflective review and coaching support.

Is a high score always better? No. Balanced expression is more effective than maximised expression. Very high capability can become unhelpful when used in an extreme way. EQ-i development focuses on contextually intelligent use rather than high numbers.

Is EQ-i only useful for individual insight? No. It is also used for role transitions, executive coaching, leadership programme cohorts, culture and change work and team effectiveness.

Does the EQ-i measure personality? No. EQ-i 2.0 measures behaviour and to some extent capability. It does not measure traits or static preferences.

Is the EQ-i useful during organisational change? Yes. Change requires emotional reinterpretation, tolerance for uncertainty, relational trust and adaptive problem solving. The EQ-i makes these processes visible and coachable.

How does the EQ-i 360 support executive coaching? The EQ-i 360 compares self ratings with observer groups such as manager, peers and direct reports. This provides insight into how capability is actually experienced by others rather than how it is assumed internally. In coaching terms this often creates the most leverage because leaders see impact not intention.

How is the EQ-i typically used inside coaching programmes? A common structure is:

  1. baseline EQ-i 2.0 or EQ-i 360

  2. facilitated debrief

  3. focus selection of one or two composites for deliberate practice

  4. 90 day behavioural experiments

  5. re-assessment and progress reflection

Which composites most often show up in senior leader coaching? Most often: Emotional Self Awareness, Impulse Control, Reality Testing, Problem Solving, Flexibility and Interpersonal Relationships. These directly influence judgment in high pressure environments.

Do teams ever use the EQ-i? Yes. Many organisations use EQ-i based team development to create shared language around relational norms, psychological safety and collaboration.

Can Andi Roberts provide EQ-i based coaching and development for our leaders and teams?

Yes. Andi offers:

• Individual EQ-i and EQ-i 360 report debriefs

• Executive coaching based on one or two targeted composites

• One to one coaching and feedback sessions based on EQ-i insights

• One day and two day Emotional Intelligence workshops built around the EQ-i model

• A series of 2 hour interactive webinars, one per composite. These can be pulled together as required to create a bespoke program.

• He also embeds EQ-i into training and executive education programmes that support organisational priorities such as decision making, resilience under pressure and strengthening relationships.