We never learned any emotional skills in school. We all have some emotional intelligence, but we picked it up subconsciously, for the most part. We usually don't know that we know stuff about our emotions.
Actually, though, there are many emotional skills that can be learned. Simple but powerful tools like cheerfulness, simply being of good cheer, is something we can learn and practice. And, there are some skills that can be called Higher Emotional Skills.
One such skill is Conscious Compassion. Directly and on purpose applying compassion to some of the people and circumstances of our lives. We all feel compassion sometimes, but mostly we think it has to hit us, like when we watch the news and see suffering people. However, the truth is that you don't have to sit around and wait for bad news to feel compassion. You can generate it.
That's one of the main things to learn about Higher Emotions.
We don't have to sit around waiting for them to strike us. We can learn to bring them on purpose to our lives. We can have lots of compassion fill us up every day, if we want.That's why it is called a Higher Emotional Skill. It is something you can learn to generate. Lets say your boss is a pain in the butt. Grumpy, irritable, unthankful, a jerk at times. You've been complaining about your boss for months.
What would change if you generated some conscious compassion for your boss? There are many steps to doing this, but it is not hard to do. Consider these possibilities: your boss is having some personal problems at home, maybe with a spouse or child. Or under a lot of stress. Or your boss is unhappy in life and doesn't know how to be at peace. Do any of these thoughts start to make room for compassion?
If you generated some compassion for your boss, right now, what would change? What would change for you? Well, for one thing, you'd likely stop complaining about your boss so much. You'd probably feel more peace and tolerance for them and their suffering.
Clearly, there is much more to the subject of Higher Emotional Skills. But they are powerful. They can alter your life and empower you. Applying conscious compassion to your life on purpose from time to time can heal and transform your - and our - world.
Self Help Using Higher Emotional Skills