Telah Walani, Tawananyasha Mangwanani, Priscilla Jokonya, Tania Chareka, Tafadzwa Banda &

Francis Maponga

Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence is the ability to identify, comprehend and be in control of your emotions.
This also transcends beyond one'self to also being able to identify, apprehend and influence the
emotions of others. It simply means that one has to be aware of how emotions drive their
behavior and the impact that they have on people, both negatively and positively. Hence
emotional intelligence is a gateway to awareness over how best we can communicate our
ideas, perceptions and other cognitions without ignorance of other people's emotions.

Emotional intelligence is a relational understanding that one does not exist in solitude. It is
characterized by a myriad of components namely, ability to accept criticism and responsibility,
moving on after making a mistake, showing a great skill of empathy for others and having great
listening skills more than talking skills. There are many of them but the main idea is that, most
of our reactions show our lack of emotional stability. This then breeds conflict internally and
externally. Thus this makes our communication difficult to create harmony because we present
unresolved feelings without proper consideration of how they may affect our relationships. One
has to keep in mind that, "would l like this if it were said or done to me?". This way we are able
to communicate better with an empathetic approach in our daily dealings. Therefore it is
imperative that we improve our communication through emotional intelligence in how we
react and perceive things without taking the hammer to nail approach all the time.

Emotional intelligence can be fostered through self awareness. This means being cognizant of
your own emotions and how they affect your thoughts and behavior. It is imperative to know
your strengths and weaknesses. Self control plays a big role in emotional intelligence because
one is always in check of their potential impulsive behaviors and feelings. Hence a constant
reminder that communication is a way to reach favourable understanding without arrogance
or ignoance of how our actions or words can make things either difficult or simple for others.
Therefore emotional intelligence is vital in communication because it helps you think before
you act, that way you can workout possible outcomes and choose the best way to resond or
communicate without ignorance. Keeping in mind that its not about what we say but how we
say it that makes a difference.

Emotions help us to prioritize what we give our time to, react to and mostly we respond to
things that draw our attention. Most times our responses maybe impulsive but through
reasoning with our emotions we are capable of figuring out a best way to communicate better.
Once again emotional intelligence comes down to empathy so that we respond in a way that
we would want to be responded with. However this is a matter of subjectivity depending on
circumstance. The underlying fact is that emotional intelligence is meant to communicate
better internally so that when we verbalize or act out our thoughts, or ideas we are clear and
honest knowing that even in our honesty and empathy, it can still be interpreted and impact
people negatively.

Clarity & Cohesion

Clarity is the essential and distinguishing factor or condition under which an idea or opinion is easy to
understand. Cohesion is the act or state of sticking together tightly. In this case clarity and cohesion are
essential in fostering better communication because when a thought verbally put is clear, it helps the
message to be understood better, be it a negative or positive message. However if the message put
across is interpreted correctly, it brings about cohesion in the sense that even in a disagreement, there
is a sameness of one idea that is not misinterpreted.

Clarity helps you to find focus and direction. Sometimes if you feel lost or without a sense of purpose in
life it becomes hard to make progress. It's easier to move towards what you want if you have clarity
around your goals and priorities. Having a set of thoughts gathered in a pattern that is clear, makes it
easier to act. This also improves your communication because if you are clear on who you are and what
you want, you can communicate it best to others. Hence clarity makes communication better because it
leaves no room for misinterpretations in either social or business conversations

One can get clarity through creating some space to meditate, gather your thoughts and focus on what
you want to get out of that time you have. Write it down, take action to get clarity and reflect and act
clear. To get clarity in communication, say exactly what you need, be precise and simple, choose the
right medium to convey the message.
Clarity is important in communication because it improves connection and increases trust. It also
exposes purpose by revealing expectations. Clarity helps to reduce failure in communication because it
makes known what one's expectations are. They may not be favourable to all but what matters is being
clear on what you want and it also helps the receivers of your message to give clear feedback as well.
Clarity makes it easier for people to help

Clarity in a relationship means listen to each other's answers without reacting, support without making
facial expressions or anger. To achieve clarity a person should create a safe space to identify what
matters, do one thing at a time, less distractions and get quiet when you feel like you may overreact.

Lacking clarity means you are most likely unsettled causing no clear plan because you will be making
changes anytime but will never be relaxed.

In conclusion, clarity and cohesion are important in communication because there cannot be cohesion
without clarity on circumstances at hand. Clarity makes communication easier, a need is best met when
it is clear as to what exactly it is about. Even an expectation that is clear makes communicating it better
so that the receivers can understand how to work through it. Clarity makes things easier not just for the
individual but for groups and communities through how they communicate. Therefore fostering
cohesion of groups with the same expectations or ideas.