Registrar of Takoradi Technical, Dr. Moses Maclean Abnory, has called for emotional intelligence consciousness due to its potential to make or unmake an individual. Dr. Abnory who was delivering a public lecture on the topic-Emotional Intelligence, Myth or Reality, said lack of emotional intelligence has been found to be responsible for numerous preventable road accidents, broken marriages, work place conflicts and underperformance. He said the way to address the concerns with the lack of emotional intelligence starts with knowing the self.

“Your emotional intelligence can send you very far but your lack of emotional intelligence can send you to a very wrong place. Until you discover yourself to know who you are, you will continue to cause emotional blunder…therefore the need for you to stay aware of yourself in order not to hurt yourself and others, for your inability to control yourself can destroy you” he said.

While emphasizing the fact that lack of emotional intelligence has been found to be responsible for workplace under performance, Dr. Abnory called for the institutionalization of emotional intelligence across all facets of life for better relationships and performance at the work place, school among others to impact
productivity.

“Most philosophers believe that success and happiness are guaranteed if we handle our emotions and others’ emotions too. Although traditional understanding of intelligence is important for success in life, emotional intelligence is key to relating well with others and achieving goals, because the human world is all about relationships. Thus, we can say that to be successful, one does not only require having effective awareness, control and management of one’s own emotions but awareness and understanding of other people’s emotions too…Different studies have shown that individuals who possess positive human relations also have excellent job performances. Individuals who promote Emotional Intelligence are successful in life because there is a relationship between success and Emotional Intelligence, and both influence each other. The ability to understand oneself and also be empathetic to others is of utmost importance in fostering teamwork and successful relationships. It is recommended that various institutions (educational, religious, security, families etc) create conducive environment to enhance the Emotional Intelligence of people to help in the growth and development of our society” he noted.

Dr. Moses Maclean Abnory ending his lecture which was attended by a cross section of the public from far and near and with different backgrounds, also called for the need for various institutions and organizations to restructure recruitment practices to include Emotional Intelligence as a critical parameter.

“…the corporate world should focus much more attention on Emotional Intelligence skills of their staff to meet the expectations of their clients. In more specificity, lecturers and their students need Emotional Intelligence to enhance their academic achievements. To reduce road crushes, drivers and other road users require some doses of Emotional Intelligence to be modest in the use of the road. The major goal of every manager in the 4th industrial revolution should be to embrace Emotional Intelligence in his/her daily routines and strategic engagements. Therefore there must be continuous research and training in this area to build the capacity of staff at the institutional/organisational levels and also equip the citizenry, especially, those in leadership positions“, he added.

Vice Chancellor of Takoradi Technical University, Rev. Prof. John Frank Eshun while reiterating the importance of the topic of the lecture due to the ever increasing societal pressures said the public lecture series has come to stay on the calendar of TTU to advance the university’s relevance to society.

“as part of the objective of the Takoradi Technical University’s 5-year Strategic Plan, the university is using this public lecture to improve its visibility and corporate image…it is worthy to mention that, the University has a lot of professors with wide range of expertise. This public lecture will set the pace for a series of lectures to be organized by the University. We intend to leverage on the expertise of these professors to address the myriads of socio-economics issues confronting the region in particular and the country as whole. I must further add that all efforts are far advance to begin inaugural lectures by our professors. As the world is rapidly evolving and technology explosion occurring so are employees becoming more sophisticated. The increasing social, family and economic pressure always has impact on employee’s attitude and performance at the work place. It is, therefore, vital to acquire some form of Emotional Intelligence to help us get along better and be more empathic and compassionate with our subordinates, colleagues and superiors to sustain a peaceful work climate for us all”, he mentioned.

Prof. Bernard Kumi Boateng from the University of Mines and Technology who chaired the lecture advised persons occupying privilege positions to be guided by their emotional intelligence in the conduct of their responsibilities in order not to abuse their subordinates and those they deal with.

For a good lecture delivered and his personal achievement as an academician with three PhDs, Dr. Moses Maclean Abnory was honoured with a plaque and a citation by management of TTU and the University of Cape Coast branch of the Ghana Association of University Administrators respectively.