Emotional Intelligence in Dance and Business

Emotional Intelligence (EQ), as defined by Robert Cooper in Executive EQ: Emotional Intelligence in Leadership and Organization, is the ability to sense, understand and pass judgment on the emotions as a source of information and influence. It motivates us to pursue our potential and activate our desires. Cooper says, “the word emotion may be simply defined as applying ‘movement,’ either metaphorically or literally, to core feelings.”

This way of deriving movement from an emotion or attaching an emotion to a movement is of great interest to me. Dance allows performers to express their desires, values and aspirations in a healthy and physical way. With emotions attached to the performance, an underlying bond connects the audience to the performers and the work as a whole.  

This type of expression and understanding of EQ is important not only for dancers, but for all people −even those who work behind a desk all day. Exploring emotions through movement and understanding the underlying meaning has brought about EQ research in the business world. Understanding emotions though movement would help all business leaders recognize the emotions of their followers, allowing them to lead and react with the appropriate counter emotion. 

Unfortunately, taking dance class or even viewing dance performance that is thought and emotionally provoking is not of interest to today’s general society. Most people view art solely for the purpose of entertainment and escape. The challenge for choreographers today is to bridge a gap between entertainment and mind-engaging dance, to bring about a shift in the general dance-viewing audience.