How many of us remember the loveable Winnie the Pooh characters of our childhood? Within the forest community of the Hundred Acre Wood, Winnie the Pooh and his friends navigate through everyday problems of life. As a group, they experience many wonderful adventures, conflicts and crises. Each of these forest friends are unique and characterized by specific traits – some desirable and some not so desirable. These traits become more or less useful as the characters engage with one another in problem solving adventures within the Hundred-Acre Wood. Most of us can identify with at least one of the Winnie the Pooh friends – we can see them as a projection of ourselves and others that we encounter in our own social circles.
Who do you identify with? As we reflect on these characters, we find that we identify with some more than others. Maybe we see ourselves like Tigger who is exuberant, optimistic and full of fun, Kanga who is even tempered, nurturing and kind, or Roo who is energetic, childlike and of good cheer. These positive qualities exibited by these characters help attract others to us. On the flip side, we may identify with some of Winnie’s forest friends who struggle with not so positive traits. Rabbit, although industrious, is characterized by his irritability; and Owl, although wise is scatterbrained. Piglet is kind yet timid and fearful. And lest we forget, there is Eeyore who is forever glum, self-focused, and pessimistic. Each of us exhibit some combination of these different traits. Winnie the Pooh is an example of what we might consider a good balance of characteristics. Pooh is kind, friendly, loyal, optimistic, courageous, and steady during times of difficultly – a natural leader and well-liked by all.
Emotional Intelligence. Those traits that we find most admirable and helpful in the Winnie the Pooh characters are the same ones that we might find helpful as we navigate interpersonal relationships in the real world. These traits are those most often associated with emotional intelligence – or the tendency to perceive, understand, regulate and harness emotions adaptively in the self and in others. Individuals with high emotional intelligence are more likely to be successful in all aspects of life including work, social and interpersonal relationships (Goleman, 1995).
As we can see through the lives of the characters in the Hundred-Acre Wood, those who exhibited positive emotional traits were more successful in their friendships than those who exhibited negative emotional traits. Research indicates that successful personal relationships greatly enhance life satisfaction and improve all aspects of daily living, including physical and mental health, work satisfaction and positive connections with others. And, because there is a strong correlation between high emotional intelligence and relationship satisfaction, it is important to learn how to develop skills which will lead us to act in more emotionally intelligent ways.
How do we become more emotionally intelligent? The most important step is to become self-aware. We must take stock of what traits help or hurt us as we engage with others in our social network. We might ask ourselves – do I tend to be more like a Tigger or an Eeyore who tend to be on the opposite ends of the emotional spectrum? If you answered Eeyore, remember that as a rule, people are not attracted to negativity and will look for ways to avoid or insulate themselves from you. If you recognize this tendency in yourself, you might consider taking steps to change your negativity. People who act happier, friendlier, and more energetic will not only help others feel more upbeat, but themselves as well.
If you identify more as a Tigger, be grateful for this positive trait and let your happiness naturally rub off on others. As you attempt to spread sunshine to others, you might want to remember to keep your expectations in check -- you cannot make someone be happy. All you can do is be an influencer.
As we look back at the characters in the Hundred-Acre Wood, we can see how their different traits allowed them to be more or less successful as they integrated as a group. And, whether you identify more as a Tigger, an Eeyore, or any other of Winne's forest friends, each of us have the ability to change behavior and create the relationships we desire. As we become more self-aware, we are better able to identify those traits that will help us be more emotional intelligent, make changes, and find greater relationship satisfaction.
References:
Goleman, D. (1995).
Emotional Intelligence, New York, NY, England: Bantam Books, Inc.
You could be a counselor or psychologist. Everyone would benefit from emotional intelligence. Also, the way you speak of it here is very simple and easy to access. I mean that in a good way. It's advice that works for adults and children.
ReplyDeleteThanks Eddie. I think I was speaking from my inner child -- or the world that I been entrenched in for the past 20+ years. I can't help but see the Hundred Acre Wood as a slice of reality -- we engage in these same types of problems and issues in our own relationships. Admittedly, they are a bit messier in real life, but maybe that is just because we as adults make things more complicated!
DeleteWell I, for one, think things are more complicated. But in order to navigate the messiness, core traits and tools are often the key. Which Winney the Pooh does well, I think.
DeleteWow! Great post Marshiela!!!
ReplyDeleteI love the connection with Pooh. This cartoon has always been my favorite for these exact reasons and I applaud your ability to use a childhood icon to simplify a complex topic for your readers. The examples work perfectly for your topic.
My only critique is that I want more. :) I know there is more to EI than just being self-aware and it feels like you could have really easily added some of the more impactful aspects to this blog to help us really understand the importance and intricacies of EI. (obviously, this would have been a very long blog and way more than the requirements for this assignment... but I still want more. I think this goes to show just how well you did with this example and how far you could go with this information if you wanted to.)
Great post!
The Pooh gang was fun to work with and I would have liked to go further into other areas had I not had the word constraint. I think if I had an actual blog with interested readers over a period of time, I would have used these characters over a series of blogs to emphasize different points.
DeleteThanks for your kind and helpful feedback!
Hi Marshiela! I'm wondering who your audience is? What is it about the Pooh gang you think those audience members might connect with? Did you consider a different set of characters to frame your blog around, and why or why not? After reading your blog, what do you hope your readers see differently as a result?
ReplyDeleteI did think about my audience ... I think I was thinking of those 18-45, who are still young or have had children of their own who are probably still familiar with these characters. They are so iconic I thought that they might have wide appeal. However, I do realize that there are others who might be so far removed from their childhood, that they may not have any clue who you are talking about ... I did consider other characters, however, it is the innocence of these characters ... the genuniness ... that people could easily identify with them without being defensive about their own inadequacies, especially as they try to become aware and understand elements of their own natures that would benefit from change.
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DeleteI love this post. It is such a simple way to understand emotional intelligence and see where you stand. Plus, it takes a trip to my childhood. Which makes me think of how without realizing it, a show like this is demonstrating to us as a child all these different personality traits and allowing to empathize with all of them; thus having us think how we would interact with a person who demonstrated such traits. Watching Tigger would make me smile and I would enjoy being around people who reminded me as such, while Eeyore would make me want to go and give him a big hug to get him to smile.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sophia ... it was definitely the most fun I have had writing a blog. I know that even for me as the author, I felt more relaxed and less defensive as I engaged the subject of in emotional intelligence through the eyes of these characters.
DeleteThis is a great final blog! I love the way you characterize emotionally intelligent characteristics with Pooh and his friends. This is a great way to first, connect with a wide range of emotions and also a simplistic way to view emotional intelligence. When you first brought up the topic of emotional intelligence, I wasn’t sure what exactly that meant. Throughout the semester I have come to a greater understanding of what it means to have emotional intelligence or not have it. The Pooh wrap up offered a great way to clearly and easily understand emotional intelligence – also fun! I like how your reiterate that the first step is being self-aware. Do you find this to be the most important step?
ReplyDeleteAgain, great blog this semester!
Thanks Kinzi! As far as self-awareness is concerned, I do believe it is the most important step and one that many of us are not willing to take. It is painful to look inward and accept our flaws and failings. It is easier to sweep them under the rug and blame others for our unhappiness. This step really requires a hard look at ourselves and then a determination to make a change. Sometimes self-awareness may take counseling or a very difficult experience to really admit our shortcomings. So ... yes, this step is definitely by far the most critical as we embark upon on our quest to becoming more emotionally intelligent.
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