Emotional intelligence, self awareness and identity each have deep connections to our personal and professional life. Do you understand who you are, how you feel about yourself and your surroundings, and how you align your self image with reality? Do you understand your true strength and values?
Dr. Linda Papadopoulos shared with us her insights and perspectives - definitely something I wish I and everyone knew at a very young age!
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
1. CURATE YOUR CONSCIOUSNESS TO ENSURE THAT IT'S ENRICHING YOU
Your self-image and sense of self are built on the information you consistently feed yourself about who you are, how you are, and why you are that way. Dr. Linda cautions individuals to beware of how they talk to themselves; catching and reversing negative thinking can help to instill positive affirmations that boost confidence, self esteem, and help with emotional control. Dr. Linda offers one possible way to add this to your everyday life: whenever you look in the mirror, don’t leave without focusing on at least one thing you like about yourself.
2. DON'T PUT ALL YOUR SELF ESTEEM EGGS IN ONE BASKET
Your self esteem should be built out of a variety of sources of personal pride. What parts of yourself are you most proud of? Maybe it’s your writing abilities, your running skills, or the way your hair shines. Ensure that your self esteem is built through more than one specific pride in self; that way, you can turn to these areas of strength and build on them throughout the day. When your self esteem eggs are all in one basket, it becomes a lot easier to be affected by the images and feedback you receive on this trait; when your self confidence stems from more than one area, you can pull on them individually to build an effective sense of identity and self. For example, body image in particular is only a subjective account of how you look, and can easily drip into self image problems or body dysmorphia - building your self esteem through other means can help ensure a greater sense of personal identity.
3. EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IS THE KEY TO SUCCESS
Knowing how to read and interpret emotional signals can be an incredibly powerful tool in any industry, including accounting. Build your confidence in this by consistently engaging with others, smiling, and reading the rooms you occupy. Understanding body language, tone of voice, and emotional signals will help you better curate your responses and build adaptability when interacting with others. It’s an unfortunate reality that emotional intelligence is not built into school curriculum; curate a syllabus of learning how to read others, and test yourself often.
🎧 To learn more about these ideas, dive deeper into the concept of emotional regulation, learn about self esteem or emotional intelligence, or find yourself a mentor in Cece, head to the Dear Accountant Podcast here.
🎙 “Dear Accountant” podcast is a uniquely insightful and entertaining podcast for aspiring young business professionals. Each episode is packed with actionable advice to help young finance professionals get ready for whatever challenge they may face next. Aside from all of the many cool things in accounting (technical topics and trends), we bring in industry experts and influential leaders to share their journey, insights and perspectives. We will also cover topics that were not taught in school - life essential skills such as personal finance, emotional intelligence, mentorship, networking, body language and human behaviors, and so much more!
💬 About our guest, Dr. Linda Papadopoulos: Dr. Linda Papadopoulos is a well-known and respected psychologist. In her work, she explores the many sides of human psychology. From the psychology behind anxiety, dealing with grief, body confidence and attitudes in the workplace & everything in between. She has published more than forty academic articles and is the author of numerous books including her most recent book, “UNFOLLOW: Living life on your own terms.”
📖 Get the amazing advices from the 20 mentors in the “Dear Accountant” Book: The book offers a unique immersion into the lives and careers of 20 inspiring leaders in finance from different disciplines - their backstories, pivotal moments, career trajectories, and hiccups along the way.
🎧 Listen to Cece’s interviews about her passion and mission in writing this book and paying it forward to help young professionals to find meaning and fulfillment in their life and career: