Students interested in learning how to maximize their chances of landing a good job turned out to Hanes Hall on Tuesday night.
And it’s not all about your GPA, said Jeff Sackaroff, associate director of University Career Services.
Sackaroff led a discussion entitled “Emotional Intelligence and Your Success,” which stressed self-awareness and building communication skills.
Above all, Sackaroff emphasized the importance of a positive attitude.
“We have 60,000 thoughts a day. Eighty percent of those thoughts are negative,” he said.
“Get in the habit of watching yourself. Pause and take away the negativity.”
Sackaroff insisted on the importance of emotional intelligence for college students.
“Emotional intelligence accounts for 90 percent of professional and personal success. Maximize it,” he said.
Sackaroff cited the results of a national survey in which employers ranked the most important traits they look for in new hires.
At the top of the list was communications skills, followed by honesty, teamwork skills, interpersonal skills and motivation.
Sackaroff admitted that the topic is not typical for his department, but that it is an important one.
“It’s a unique topic for University Career Services, sort of off the beaten path,” Sackaroff said.
Sackaroff summed up the idea of emotional intelligence as how people relate to themselves and the world.
“These are things we’re not explicitly taught in school,” Sackaroff said, urging the attendees to seek out their own opportunities.
Sackaroff said there are five major components that make up emotional intelligence, including self-awareness, self-control, motivation, empathy and social skills.
About a dozen students attended the event.
Desirée Chavis, a junior, said she found attending the meeting helpful to her as a communications major.
“It seems after sitting through this that emotional intelligence is the key to networking both personally and professionally. It’s vital to both,” she said.
Clayton Westbrook, a junior business major, said job prospects drew him to the meeting.
“Emotional intelligence is important in the job search now.”
Sackaroff encouraged students to step out of their comfort zone with extra challenges such as study abroad programs.
“Be prepared for those hurdles instead of stopping and saying, ‘I’m not going to run anymore,’” he said.
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