Soldiers are trained to function under extremely challenging conditions such as extreme physical and mental exhaustion, sleep deprivation, lack of resources, constant stress, and even traumatic experiences. To maintain peak performance during these demanding situations, they rely on their emotional intelligence skills to manage their emotions, regulate their behaviors, and build positive relationships with their team members. Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to recognize one's own feelings and those of others, understand how emotions affect thoughts and behavior, and effectively manage emotions to achieve personal goals. It involves self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship management, and empathy. Soldiers utilize these four components of emotional intelligence to sustain relational satisfaction under stress.
Self-Awareness: One key component of emotional intelligence is self-awareness, which involves understanding oneself accurately and recognizing one's strengths, weaknesses, values, motivations, and reactions to various situations. In combat situations, soldiers need to be aware of their emotions, including fear, anxiety, anger, frustration, and stress, to avoid being overwhelmed by them. They also need to identify their physical and emotional limitations and use strategies to manage their emotions.
They may practice deep breathing exercises, visualization techniques, or positive affirmations to reduce anxiety before a mission. They may also set realistic expectations for themselves and focus on small achievements rather than big goals to stay motivated and energized. This self-awareness helps soldiers to remain calm and focused in stressful situations, making better decisions, and communicating effectively with their team members.
Self-Management: Self-management is the second component of emotional intelligence that requires soldiers to regulate their emotions, behaviors, and actions to meet their goals. Under extreme stress, soldiers need to control their impulses and maintain discipline. They may practice mindfulness meditation, exercise regularly, eat healthily, or develop effective time-management skills to prevent burnout and improve resilience. They may also learn to recognize and accept negative emotions such as disappointment, failure, and frustration and turn them into positive outcomes.
They can acknowledge mistakes and learn from them instead of blaming others or giving up. Soldiers also need to maintain an optimistic attitude towards life, focusing on the positives and minimizing the negatives to keep morale high.
Social Awareness: The third component of emotional intelligence involves understanding other people's perspectives, feelings, and needs. In combat situations, soldiers work closely with their team members, so it's essential to build strong relationships based on trust, respect, and collaboration. By recognizing each other's strengths and weaknesses, soldiers can allocate tasks appropriately and support each other during difficult times. They may use active listening techniques, empathy, and nonverbal cues to understand their teammates' thoughts and feelings and communicate effectively. They may also show appreciation for their teammates' efforts and provide constructive feedback to help them grow. Building these social connections helps soldiers to feel supported, valued, and part of a community.
Relationship Management: The fourth and final component of emotional intelligence is relationship management, which involves building and maintaining positive relationships with others. Under stress, soldiers may experience conflicts, disagreements, or misunderstandings that threaten their relationships. To manage these issues, soldiers should express their opinions openly, apologize when necessary, compromise, or seek outside help if needed. By resolving conflicts peacefully, soldiers can prevent resentment, anger, and mistrust and develop deeper bonds with their teammates. They may also take breaks together, celebrate successes, and share personal experiences to strengthen their relationships.
Emotional intelligence plays an important role in helping soldiers sustain relational satisfaction under stress. By improving self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management skills, soldiers can regulate their emotions, reduce conflict, and maintain positive relationships with their team members. These skills not only improve performance but also enhance mental health and wellbeing, making soldiers more resilient and effective.
How do soldiers utilize emotional intelligence to sustain relational satisfaction under stress?
Soldiers may rely on their emotional intelligence to sustain relational satisfaction under stress by developing empathy for others, managing their emotions, being mindful of their surroundings, recognizing nonverbal cues, self-regulating, and communicating effectively. By doing so, they can maintain high levels of personal resilience and promote positive relationships with other individuals within the military context.