In the film “A Brilliant Mind”, which tells the story of Nobel Prize-winning mathematician John Nash against schizophrenia, there is a scene illustrating emotional intelligence. Young Josh Nash is in a bar when a woman catches his eye. Using the typical phrases of conquest, characterized by a subtle game, his proposal is direct and direct: he prefers to avoid any flirting ritual and requires a “fluid exchange”. So, without any romance. The woman, who looks at him in amazement, thinks he is a bully, however, John Nash is considered a reference in his field and, despite his young age, already stands out even among his university professors. the emotional sphere, its IQ should not be very high.
Emotional intelligence is the ability to control our emotions and express them assertively. Although the word? Intelligence? Formerly associated with memory and cognitive abilities, the mind is much more complex and scientists have been studying other areas of the brain since the last century.
- Emotions have reigned since the origins of the human being: the brainstem.
- The most primitive part of the brain that controls basic functions.
- Gave rise to emotional centers.
- And only after millions of years was neocortex born.
- Which gives us the ability to reason It is in this order that we act today: we feel it first and then reason; first we feel pain in our finger.
- And then we realize that we are pressing it against the door.
In addition, the cerebral amygdala is the part of the brain where emotions are controlled, if we isolate it we lose the ability to analyze the emotional meaning of events and suffer memory loss, because it is the one that keeps all memories connected to our emotions, both happy and traumatic. Without the amygdala, we also lose the ability to produce tears. Real emotional blindness.
This is also why our childhood experiences play such an important role in our adult life, since as children our memories were recorded directly in the cerebral amygdala, without going through a verbal process, at this stage events were limited to pure emotions, without having enough words to explain what had happened and why. As adults, these emotional memories sometimes arise, without being able to control them several times, even if we know they are irrational.
Many kids and teens with problems at school are mistakenly classified as “idiots,” when in reality their problem is not cognitive, but emotional: they have difficulty managing their emotions and impulses. It’s just that all our thinking is geared towards keeping us in an emotional state. If we do not feel well, however rational the circumstances may seem to convince us otherwise, we will not be able to find a balance.
In a society where reasoning seems to overlap emotions more and more, it is important to note that emotional intelligence plays a more important role even than the rational brain; however, it is rare for today’s education systems to prioritize emotional education. educated to observe how we feel and therefore we do not know how to act effectively in the face of our feelings.
In this way, we see how emotional intelligence plays a much more important role than simply attracting someone to a bar, through it we motivate ourselves, control our impulses, regulate our mood and generate empathy with others, this allows us not only to live with those around us, but also to survive. She controls a lot of who we really are.
Image courtesy of Brandon Warren.