People with social intelligence can feel how others feel because they have well-developed empathy. They intuitively know what to say in social situations and seem very confident, even when there are many people around them. Edward Thorndike in 1920 defined social intelligence as: “The ability to understand and manage men, women, boys and girls, to act wisely in human relationships.” These skills can be learned.

Do you have social intelligence?

People who are socially intelligent show fundamental traits that help them communicate and connect with others, are you one of them?

• • Effective listening. A person with social intelligence does not simply listen to respond, but actually pays attention to what a person is saying. People feel that they have really been understood and even established a kind of connection with this person.

• • Conversational skills. These people have conversational skills that allow them to have a discussion with just about anyone. They are sincere people and remember details about the people that allow the dialogue to be more meaningful.

• • They know how to have a good reputation. People with good social intelligence think about the impression they can make on other people. Having a good reputation requires a careful balance: one person must create an impression on another person while remaining authentic.

Lack of discussion. Someone with social intelligence understands that arguing or proving a point by making someone else feel bad is not the way to go. They do not openly reject someone else’s ideas, but rather listen to them with an open mind, even when it is not an idea that they personally agree with. They are highly assertive.

Develop social intelligence

If you think that you are not a person with a lot of social intelligence, you can be if you work to achieve it. Fortunately, certain strategies can help you develop social skills and be a person with good social intelligence.

• • Pay attention to your surroundings. You will have to pay attention to your surroundings and also to the people who are close to you. Socially intelligent people are observant and pay attention to subtle social cues from those around them. If you think someone in your life has strong people skills, watch how they interact with others.

• • Boost your emotional intelligence . Although similar to social intelligence, emotional intelligence helps you control your emotions and how you empathize with others. This requires recognizing when you are experiencing an emotion and will help you recognize that emotion in others and regulate it. An emotionally intelligent person can recognize and control negative feelings, such as frustration or anger, when in a social environment.

• • Respect cultural differences. Understand cultural differences and then respect them. Although most people learn the skills of people from their family, friends, and the community around them, a socially intelligent person understands that others may have different responses and customs based on their upbringing.

• Practice active listening. To develop social intelligence you must work on your communication skills and this requires active listening. Don’t interrupt other people when they speak to you and take your time to think before responding. Listen to the inflections in what others are saying, which can give you clues as to what they really mean. Non-verbal language is also important to keep in mind.

In addition to all this, it is also important that you appreciate the important people in your life. Socially intelligent people have deep relationships with people who are meaningful to them. Pay attention to the emotions of your family and friends every day. If you ignore this, you will be ignoring the keys to really connect with them.

If you want to be a person with social intelligence, you can be. You just have to want to do it and enhance your skills from today.