What is EQ?
EQ (emotional intelligence) is your ability to identify emotions you’re feeling, understand them, use appropriate means of expressing them, and manage your emotional responses in positive, effective ways. Those with high EQ communicate better with others, manage conflicts better, have better relationships, and can empathize with another person—exactly what copywriters do.
Writing with EQ
Consider when you write a long sales letter that needs to communicate your product’s or service’s benefits in such as way that your readers respond to viscerally. You need to foresee and manage their objections with flair, and empathize with how your prospects or targets are feeling. You’re trying to establish a tenuous relationship with readers through your very words.
Managing clients with EQ
Now imagine a new client clearly rushed for time, who isn't explaining her needs very well. She's getting frustrated that you’re not picking up on what she wants done. If you can put yourself in the new client’s shoes using your EQ, you’ll establish a better working relationship with her and understand how best to communicate with her while she’s feeling harried.
Your business as a copywriter depends on dealing with others in ways that are positive and effective and to respond appropriately to emotional cues from others. This is the key to providing great client service and to writing great content that touches your readers.
How to cultivate EQ
There’s good news if you weren’t born with a high EQ; you can work at increasing and improving yours. Here are ways to work on EQ every day:
Become aware of how you feel
We’re so rushed to get everything done in a day that we don’t take the time to examine how we feel. Being out of touch with your emotions means you’ll behave unconsciously in situations. You can turn this around by being mindful during the day about how your emotions change. Take the time to stop, even during the busiest time of day, and observe your emotions. For example, set a timer on your phone to connect with your emotions every hour. The more you do this, the better you’ll get at identifying emotions—which leads to the next point.
Practice managing your emotions
Instead of reacting to situations as they arise, make a conscious effort to respond to it consciously. For example, when you’re feeling stressed out about a deadline, you may unconsciously express that by snapping at someone who interrupts your work.
To respond instead of react, use the previous step to identify your emotions and decide how you want to behave. You could tell the interrupter how you feel, why it’s not a good time, and when would be better. This helps you manage your emotions instead of letting them control you.
Practice empathy
Understand what others are feeling; develop your own empathy. This ultimately means seeing the world through another person’s eyes and appreciating them as a human being. Seek to understand their feelings, then communicate your understanding to them.
- See the world through another person’s eyes
- Appreciate that person as a human being
- Seek to understand their feelings
- Communicate your understanding to them
Practice the 4 keys for a better outlook
- Stay away from the never-ending “what if” scenarios,
- Appreciate the work you do,
- But learn how to disconnect when necessary, and finally
- Look for the positive in every situation.
Final thoughts
Developing EQ in your copywriting business is really akin to developing strong social skills. You know how to communicate clearly and courteously. You set your own emotions and motives aside to actively listen to understand how someone else feels. And you put yourself in their shoes to help them figure out a solution or solve a conflict.
Pretty powerful mojo to use in your content and your business relationships.
Next up: Copywriting Skills You Need to Conquer
Be confident about grammar
Check every email, essay, or story for grammar mistakes. Fix them before you press send.
