What is emotional intelligence in sports mental health?

In athlete mental health, one of the areas that must be addressed is emotional intelligence. This is a critical part of mental wellness, mental toughness, performance, personal development, and so much more. We can’t escape that fact that we have emotions, so learning how to understand them and manage them can only improve mental wellness.

What is emotional intelligence?

Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to identify and manage one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions of others. Emotional intelligence is generally said to include at least three skills: emotional awareness, or the ability to identify and name one’s own emotions; the ability to harness those emotions and apply them to tasks like thinking and problem solving; and the ability to manage emotions, which includes both regulating one’s own emotions when necessary and helping others to do the same.

PsychologyToday.com

Looking at this definition, we see that the three main components of emotional intelligence include identification, application, and management. We unconsciously go through this process all day, every day. What we may not do is take the time to develop these skills. The way someone handles his or her emotions is part personality and part learned behavior although factors such as hormones and brain development can also play a role. What marks the level of emotional intelligence is just like anything else in life, it’s what you learn, how you practice, and what you do with it.

What is emotional intelligence in sports?

Emotional intelligence in sports is an extension of the individual’s mental toughness and mental wellness capabilities. For instance, we’ve all seen an athlete explode or implode during a game or afterward in the locker room. His or her emotions lead those reactions. When we judge an athlete’s emotional maturity or depth, we’re essentially talking about his or her emotional intelligence.

Competition is emotional in nature because as the definition implies, it’s a rivalry. Therefore, emotional intelligence in sports is as much a part of the contest as any other factor. However, in practice, it’s often understated or even ignored when in reality, training players’ emotional intelligence could impact their athletic performance and their life as a whole for the better.  

Why is emotional intelligence important in sports?

Have you ever heard someone say, “don’t let your emotions get in your way” or conversely, “think from your heart.” Emotions are woven into every moment of our lives. We “feel” our way through any given moment and act accordingly.

Somewhere on the scale among hypersensitive, reactive, controlled, or apathetic, an individual’s emotions will largely determine their actions because they are making decisions from their emotional state. It’s human nature to do so and the reason that people say things like, “emotions cloud judgment.” The development of emotional intelligence not only aids on a personal level but also in the ability to read others. Both of these skills are critical for athletes who seek mental toughness and a clear mind.

As an example, if an athlete is easily angered or rattled, he or she might overreact during their play, lose their clear focus, or let an opponent get in their head, which might derail the rest of the game and in some cases, carry over for longer periods of time. An emotional intelligent athlete, on the other hand, may identify what stirs those negative emotions and learn how to manage them before they disrupt their thinking and decision-making.

Emotional intelligence in sports can lead to more success, better performance, and improved motivation. However, emotional intelligence depends on the athlete’s personality and how they perform under pressure.

Emotional Intelligence in Sports: How Does it Help You?

Questions to increase your emotional intelligence

An individual’s emotional intelligence can be improved by taking the time to become aware of his or her feelings and how those feelings affect their thinking, decision-making, etc. Here are a few questions that you can ask yourself. The idea is to deepen your self-awareness so that you begin to understand the things that push your buttons so you can then work on managing those emotions and your reactions.

1. How did I feel when I woke up this morning
2. What emotions did I feel throughout the day?
3. What made my emotions change?
4. What actions did I take because of how I was feeling in the moment?
5. What can I learn from this and what new habits or thinking patterns, if any, can I work on?

The other half of emotional intelligence is learning to understand other’s emotions. For an athlete, that might mean gaining a deeper understanding of teammates or even opponents. Here are a few questions to help you begin to understand others while also becoming aware of your responses to them.

1. What does this person appear to be feeling?
2. How is their reaction/action affecting how I respond to them?
3. What would be an emotionally mature response?
4. How can I be supportive and understanding without absorbing their emotions? Or How can I be supportive and understanding with compassion? (This question is phrased two different ways because one person might be very sensitive and therefore take on the other person’s emotions as if it were their own emotions while another person might have a wall and be shut off from how another person is feeling altogether.)

On or off the field or court, the more developed an individual is as a whole individual (i.e. mind, body, and soul), the better they will perform in all areas of his or her life.  Mental wellness and emotional intelligence is undoubtedly an imperative piece of that development.

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