Emotional intelligence allows us to be aware of our own emotions, express them appropriately, and manage them in ways that have a positive impact on our interpersonal relationships.
Being able to identify and understand our emotions is one of the first steps to build positive mental health that allows us to function successfully and thus create healthy bonds with other people.
And as we all know, adolescence is the time with the most changes in the lives of human beings. Very few times we know how to handle them, so this time we share 5 techniques with which you can work the emotions of your children or adolescent students.
1. Classify the emotions
It is important for adolescents to be clear about the name of each emotion and what situations each one can lead to. An excellent exercise is to talk with them, listen to how they feel and guide them to know how to react to each situation that generates in them a feeling (either negative or positive).
2. Help him discover himself
One way to help them know their emotional limits and how to keep their reactions to what is happening in their environment under control is to ask them the following questions:
Do I have the ability to admit that I am wrong?
What are 3 of my strengths?
What are 3 of my weaknesses?
How old am I today and what is my life goal?
How does my mood influence when I make decisions?
What bothers me the most about the others?
Their answers will give you the guideline of where you should guide them so that their emotions do not control them when making important decisions in their adult life.
3. Put emotions into words
The best way to fix a problem is to know what caused it. Sometimes adolescents have a strong emotional impact due to everyday situations. Before these, we must stop with them to name them: frustration, anger, helplessness, nostalgia, happiness, and so on. Once you have identified what you feel and what makes you feel, you can proceed to decide what to do about it.
4. The art of regulating emotions
In general, important decisions require a calm mind that thinks about the pros and cons; that you see the whole picture before saying yes or no, without being carried away by what you feel in the moment.
It is vital that teens take time to think and regulate the emotion they are feeling before taking action. A good tip is that if you find yourself very angry about something, take a walk while doing breathing exercises and meditate on what you are going to want in the future and not on what you feel right now.
5. All criticism is an opportunity to improve
It is common for teenagers to take constructive comments very badly, they often have the impression that everything is a criticism (and negative, of course!) So it is essential that we help them to see each comment as an opportunity to improve. You can help channel the information you are receiving on the positive side with this simple question: How can I improve with these comments?
Lastly, helping adolescents to have a high level of self-awareness is one of the most important and useful tools in their entire life. Knowing who they are and how they react to day-to-day situations prepares them to make better decisions.
