IQ and EQ

Part 1

Once a month we have Company Day at eShares where I present monthly financials and discuss a topic that’s been on my mind. Below is a recording of a presentation called IQ and EQ (slide deck here). I’m sharing in the hope that its helpful for other CEOs wrestling with company building.

Prologue

When I look at the problems we face building eShares, none are IQ problems. It is never the case that we are not “smart enough” to write an algorithm, build a financial model, or execute a transaction. Our problems are EQ problems. They are problems in how we engage with one another. The symptoms are misunderstandings, arguments, complaints, and frustrations. The consequence is failed execution and bad decisions.

A high EQ organization is a community of free-flowing ideas, daily progress, and accelerating execution. Teams execute well because they love working together. And teams love working together because they execute well. EQ and execution are reinforcing.

Low EQ organizations are engines without oil. Pistons grind to a halt and rapid execution is replaced with bickering and frustration. Teamwork, the engine of execution, seizes. Without intervention it is difficult, sometimes impossible, to add lubricant and restart.

The world over-values IQ and undervalues EQ. We will do the opposite. We will never assume success comes from being “smart.” We will never rely on “intellectual property.” We will never be complacent in “expertise.”

Instead we will make eShares a high EQ organization. We will treat our ability to work with one another as our competitive advantage. When business schools write the eShares case study, they will not write about how smart, educated, or experienced we were. They will write about how well we worked together.

Watch Part 1 of the video

eShares Company Day Presentation — IQ and EQ (November 2016)

Part 2

In the second half of my presentation, I give a few tips and tricks for practicing EQ.

TL;DR

1. If you find yourself in argument, you’re wrong
2. Frustration means you don’t know what to do
3. Be puzzled, not disagreeing
4. Agree in ways you can
5. Yes, and…
6. Help people solve their problems, not your problems
7. First person to be mature wins
8. Do the right thing

Watch Part 2 of the video

Read the full slide deck