Emotional Intelligence is always thought of as a good thing.We lament a lack ofit and praise an abundance.of course, everyone has it to some degree, but with leaders, it's of ten seen as a pre-requisite—the fairy dust a charismatic leader deploys to get things done with a swish, a sprinkle and a smile.

As a concept, EQ is still relatively new, especially compared with IQ, having been around for only some 30 years.The term was coined by psychologists Peter Salvoey and John Mayer in 1990,who described it as “a form of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one's own and others' feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one 's thinking and action.”

Emotional intelligence has a dark side, one that is talked about less of ten but is equally potent.Like a superhero 's superpower.Jochen Menges, assistant professor of organizational behavior at the University of Cambridge, has looked at the dark tactics of EQ while exploring how leaders exert in-fluence.Those with high levels of EQ are brilliant at managing others' emotions to ensure they achieve their own goal, but sometimes they do so with evil intent.

A good leader will use EQ to win over other to achieve success and harmony, but a bad one will use it to manipulate and make people's lives a misery.Almost everyone can remember a leader who did the latter, of ten with aplomb-the charming sociopath who was super effective and always got their own way but left a trail of human devastation in their wake.

It's not all bad news, however.There is a way to tell the good eggs from the bad apples.It's by looking carefully at what they believe in, their guiding principles.“If we wish to know how someone uses their EQ, we need to measure the value they endorse,” Menges says.

Shared beliefis what anchors a leader in their school and their community and makes others follow them.An ethical leader constantly ask themselves and others: are the right things being done for the right reasons? Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, once articulated this eloquently: “We have to be able to look ourselves in the eye and think:did we know what was right there?”

We all have choices and some must be made with a heavy heart.Being an ethical leader is tough: the responsibility is great but the rewards can be great still.Stay true to your beliefs and the principles you cherish.Use your superpowers for good, to do the best by those you serve.

By mentioning superhero, the author intends to show that________.