Emotionally Intelligent coaching for executives who want more from their emotions.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What exactly is ExecutiveEQ?

  ExecutiveEQ helps leaders grow their emotional capacity by integrating emotional intelligence, Jungian psychology, and neuroscience.

   

  This allows a leader to reverse engineer whatever emotion they are feeling at any moment. As a result, leaders become more self-aware, which allows them to take positive action for themselves, their followers and their organization. Reading emotions and understanding their instructions becomes as simple as reading this sentence.

   

  When triggered, the Amygdala has the authority to control any part of the brain that it deems necessary. A triggering event can therefore result in the leader acting irrationally, betraying their long-term goals and desires without knowing it.

   

  With immediate access to a tool that helps them understand emotion, leaders can quickly regain control. This allows them to move from "Acting Without Thinking" to "Thinking Before Acting."

   

  Ongoing coaching is provided by our CEO, who holds a Master's in the Psychology of Leadership. Leaders learn how their emotions, thoughts, and notions of self constrain their ability to lead and be happy. Using psychometrics and advanced coaching techniques, these constraints are removed by showing leaders which beliefs no longer serve their long-term aspirations. Following this, a reinforcement process is used that mirrors how habits are formed in the brain. New constraints are then added. These constraints are the boundaries and expectations leaders must abide by in order to facilitate others' success.

   

  The process is called Constraint-Based Coaching, and it produces emotional mastery unlike anything else.

• How would you explain ExecutiveEQ to a 5 year old?

  Bosses are very busy. Sometimes they get so busy, their brains get tired. The boss can't do their job well when their brains are tired.

   

  We help bosses understand their own feelings and emotions better. This way, they can make good choices and be a good boss for the people they work with.

   

  They learn from a teacher who knows a lot about emotions and how to make good decisions. The bosses get to practice making good choices and following rules that help everyone be happy and do well.

• What will ExecutiveEQ do for me that I can’t do on my own?

  We remove your blind spots. You can't tickle yourself for the same reason that you can't remove your own blind spots. It is known as somatic insensitivity.

   

  A part of your brain (cerebellum) predicts exactly how you will move before you do. It can't predict another person's movement with the same accuracy, which is why they can tickle you, even if you see them coming.

   

  This part of the brain also stores memories of emotions. These memories subconsciously drive reactions to current situations based on past experiences. You aren't triggered by a nasty email. You're triggered by the emotional pattern the email fits.

   

  Once again, your own attempts at intervention are predicted with more accuracy than our attempts at intervention can be. This allows us to 'disrupt' emotions' control over your actions, giving you back control.

• How do you ensure this works?

  Most leaders are familiar with psychometrics like DISC or Insights, and most coaches use these tools to help leaders gain awareness.

   

  None of them address emotion however. We are the first to extend the framework to emotions. You may be a “Red” in our system, but surely you would agree that a happy Red behaves differently than an anxious Red, and an anxious Red behaves differently than an angry one.

   

  Emotion drives behaviour. Leaders seek coaching to change their behaviour. You cannot change behaviour without understanding emotion, therefore we fail to see how coaching that fails to address emotion will work.

• What do I need to do to ensure this works?

  Be prepared to feel uncomfortable. It is a myth that having a high EQ will make you happy. High EQ allows you to tolerate the pain and uncertainty of leadership, which ultimately leads to growth. No one is immune to pain. Everyone is subject to uncertainty. No one is exempt from doing the work. The only difference is whether you have the tools necessary to make the growth process bearable. We offer those tools.

• What can I compare ExecutiveEQ against for context?

  Executive coaches are the closest comparable, but it's hard to compare apples to apples since it's the relationship with the coach that matters most. An article in Harvard Business Review discusses the dangers of hiring a coach who does not understand the root causes of behaviour. Therefore, at a minimum you should ask what their experience is in this area. When you're looking for a coach, you're in a vulnerable position making any form of help feel welcome, so do your research.

• When can I expect to see results?

  Is 15 minutes fast enough? In all seriousness, schedule a free 15-minute coaching session. With 10 questions, we can diagnose the exact blind spot contributing to whatever is keeping you stuck, and provide you with concrete steps to resolve the issue.

• What new problems might ExecutiveEQ create for me?

  You cannot learn to regulate an emotion you refuse to let yourself feel. You will often ‘feel bad’ when working with us.

   

  Personal growth is often compared to growing muscles. We use this metaphor too. A major difference exists, however. Workouts are uncomfortable. However, your brain rewards this discomfort with endorphins since fitness is essential to survival.

   

  The opposite happens when you sit in a negative emotion long enough to learn what it means. These emotions were designed to aid survival by making you run away or fight. The brain offers no chemical reward for the discomfort we ask you to endure. While it's true that discomfort is needed for both physical and emotional growth, it's imperative you know the specific type of discomfort you're signing up for.

• Why should I prioritize this over everything else I currently have on the go?

  What are the benefits of placing anything above your emotional well-being?

   

  This is not a rhetorical question. There is an answer. A person who suppresses their own well-being is satisfying some form of unmet need, which can range from imposter syndrome to much more troubling issues.

   

  If you are struggling, but rationalizing that struggle as ‘the price of leadership’, please know there is a better way.

• Burnout & Overwhelm

  Leaders contribute by: Taking on too many responsibilities, struggling to delegate, and having unrealistic expectations for themself and others.

  
  Followers contribute by: Resisting change or new initiatives, lacking accountability, inefficiency leading to high workload and long hours.

  
  Situational triggers: Rapid organizational growth, industry challenges, or a sudden reduction in resources.

• Imposter Syndrome

  Leaders contribute by: Failing to address a lack of confidence, self-doubt, or fear of failure.

  
  Followers contribute by: Resisting the leader’s feedback, showing low motivation when the leader tries to inspire.

  
  Situational triggers: High-stakes projects, rapid organizational growth, or a change in the leader’s responsibilities.

• Isolation & Lonliness

  Leaders contributes by: Not asking for the right support, fail to address their distrust of others, not spending enough time building key relationships.

  Follower contributes by: Growing defensive, encouraging leader to do things on their own rather than give feedback.

  Situational triggers: Organizational restructuring, the need for the leader to hold confidential information, conflicting stakeholder interests.

• Flustered & Unproductive

  Leader contributes by: Struggling to prioritize tasks, adopting the false belief that lack of focus and procrastination can be solved through willpower.

  
  Follower contributes by: Creating constant distractions, not seeking clarity on tasks assigned, having a level of disorganization that impacts the work environment.

  
  Situational triggers: High demand for results, tight deadlines, or complex projects.

• Struggles Delegating

  Leaders contribute by: Not addressing the root causes of indecision, hiring the wrong people, a lack of trust in others that becomes micromanagement tendencies.

  
  Followers contribute by: Refusing to take initiative or ownership, having low confidence, willingness to accept unclear responsibilities.

  
  Situational triggers: Rapidly changing priorities, limited resources, or conflicting stakeholder interests.

• Conflict In Teams - How to Deal With It

  Leaders contribute by: Trying to ‘stomp out’ conflict, ineffective communication, a lack of empathy, or rigid management style.

  
  Followers contribute by: Resisting change, engaging in gossip, refusing to collaborate.

  
  Situational triggers: Organizational restructuring, personality differences, or conflicting goals.

• Feeling Stuck & Unfulfilled

  Leaders contribute by: Struggling to determine and communicate an inspiring vision, preferring to be reactive over embracing strategic thinking, too many gods ideas / not enough execution.

  
  Followers contribute by: Fighting change, embracing entitlement, silence in meetings.

  
  Situational triggers: Uncertain market conditions, increased competition, or limited resources with each causing ambiguity.

• Difficulty Managing Stress & Adapting To Change

  Leaders contribute by: Suppressing emotion, having underdeveloped coping skills, fear of the unknown.

  
  Followers contribute by: Not supporting one another, responding poorly to pressure, not sharing their expectations.

  
  Situational triggers: Rapid organizational change, industry disruptions, or high-stakes projects.

• Communication Issues

  Leaders contribute by: Assuming everyone communicates as they do, seeing empathy as a weakness, lacking the ability to articulate vision.

  
  Followers contribute by: Assuming the worst intentions in others, gossip, defensiveness, judgement.

  
  Situational triggers: Complex projects, conflicting stakeholder interests, or limited resources.

Pricing FAQs:

• Do you offer coaching on an hourly rate?

  While we have never adopted an hourly rate pricing model, we completed extensive research on it a number a years ago and found:

  Budget Challenges: it is very difficult to forecast the number of hours someone will need as you cannot control when you get triggered.

  Incentive to Limit Coaching: this can create pressure on both the leader and coach to limit the amount of support given to fit within a budget rather than focusing on the growth of the leader.

  Lack of Commitment: our pricing is designed to give leaders pause and ask themselves if it is worth to commitment, because a lack of commitment will ensure the program fails.

  Those are just three of the big reasons.

• Can I move from Sprint to Transformation or from Transformation to Sprint?

  Again, this is something we have historically never offered, and most likely will not in the future. Each program is designed with intention to serve a specific purpose. We work closely with you at the outset to ensure you are selecting the right program.

• Do you offer a discount on coaching if we are using CultureSmith’s other services?

  Absolutely. We offer bundled discounts on all our services. Book a demo call below, we’ll discuss your needs, and create a custom quote.

• How large is a team within the Belonging package? What happens if we have more than one team who needs coaching?

  We’ve resisted putting hard headcount’s on team coaching as the focus of the program is to cement the concept of team and charging per individuals goes against that.

  If an organization has multiple teams who need coaching, each team would be billed individually. Each team would however count as a ‘service’ making the organization eligible for bundled discounts, even if no other CultureSmith service was used.