Emotional intelligence has been on my mind a lot this year, because I’m teaching a new class of seventh graders. They are new to my school and one another, so it’s quite exciting to perceive them as blank slates and nurture them to fulfill their potential. The challenge in teaching rowdy teens is that their prefrontal contex doesn’t get developed until they reach 25. So, they give in to their impulses and react to defend their opinion/turf/ego before pausing to process their feelings and think through their turmoil of thoughts. What seems to me petty issues can turn out into major squabbles among them. It can be exasperating, especially when my personal store of energy and patience is running low. Inevitably, I ponder about my EQ. I wonder whether it has dipped over the years since I became a father haha. The suffocating strangle of multiple responsibilities make me impatient to clear everything on my plate so that I can finally have some ME! time. I feel like I’m on a perpetual edge, never really 💯 present in the moment. Do you think you have high EQ? Stackers seem to me to be highly evolved individuals, the way you all navigate discourse. Many of you start off with a “Thank you for sharing” and acknowledge others’ point of view before starting your conflicting one with a “yes, and”. How did you ever learn to communicate with such civility? Does SN bring out the best in you?