Forget AI; it’s EI we need to worry about.
Written by Dr. John Roger Eggers, Ed.D.
Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to the capability of computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. We experience it daily on our iPhones, computers, cars, radios, and TVs; we can no longer escape it.
AI is amazing and valuable, but it takes a human being to operate it, and humans cannot always be trusted.
Bad people can manipulate AI tools to clone voices, generate fake identities, and create convincing bad emails—all intending to scam, hack, steal a person's identity, or compromise their privacy and security. Unfortunately, we have all experienced bad people with high AI. We have lost time and money and have been frustrated and angered. Why do those scam phone calls come at a time when we are just about to eat?
Why would someone make AI into something bad? What do these people lack? They may have a high IQ in terms of AI, but they are dismally low in EI (Emotional Intelligence).
Emotional Intelligence (EI) is the ability to manage one's own emotions and understand the emotions of others. EI has five elements: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills.
A person with a high EI knows how to manage their emotions and strives to understand the emotions of others. People you know with high EI’s may have been your mother, grandmother or a favorite clergy or teacher. These people strive to understand you and let their conscience guide them.
Social skills are a huge part of EI. How are you around others? Are you aware of others? Are you aware of how you interact with others? Would you say that your treatment of others is a first or last concern for you? What about empathy? Can you walk in someone else’s shoes? Can you try to feel how they feel?
People who do not treat others fairly do not consider others' feelings, or have no regard for others have a low EI. We have people with low EI all around us. They are world leaders, drug dealers, swindlers, murderers, liars, and cheaters. Put simply, they have no regard for the feelings of others. Empathy is not part of how their brain works. There is no compassion, no self-regulation, and no motivation to change.
You and I know of people like that. Kim Jong Un, North Korea's leader, would be in this category of having a low EI. Putin, gang leader cartels, and Hamas would also be part of this group. I am sorry to say many people would put our current president in the same group as Israel’s leader, Netanyahu.
You and I have no doubt also had periods when our EI was low. However, when our conscience tells us something is not quite right in our world, we change how we act. We even show remorse and apologize.
Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand and manage one's emotions and recognize and influence the emotions of others. Psychologist Daniel Goleman popularized it in his 1995 best-selling book, Emotional Intelligence.
If you have a high EI, you are likely to possess these qualities:
1.
You think about feelings.
2.
You think first and don’t act irrationally.
3.
You view criticism as beneficial.
4.
You demonstrate empathy.
5.
You praise others.
6.
You apologize.
7.
You keep your commitments.
8.
You help others.
When you look at world leaders with high EI’s, you think about Martin Luther King, Jr., Mother Teresa, Corey Booker, Helen Keller, John Lewis, Abraham Lincoln, Bobby Kennedy, Eleanor Roosevelt, Billy Graham, Gandhi, Franklin Roosevelt, Jacinda Ardern (New Zealand leader), Churchill and Nelson Mandela.
These individuals had at least one thing in common: they were concerned about their neighbors, and their concern was genuine. Yes, AI may be wonderful, but we need to allow our EI to guide us in using our AI.