Does this speak of something which you’re navigating right now?If Emotional Intelligence, Systems Thinking, Agile, or self-awareness are part of your journey, this post might tickle your brain a bit and Agile Malta loves to hear your take in the comments.
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Someone recently asked us:
“How do Emotional Intelligence (EQ) and Systems Thinking fit together?”
And it sparked a reflection I thought I’d share here with the Agile Malta community.
We often think of EQ as just communication or empathy, but if you zoom in, or better yet, view things with an external lens, it’s really a kind of personal Systems Thinking: the ability to observe how thoughts and emotions move through you, without becoming them.
Each of us is a system. Teams are networks of systems. Within us, thoughts and emotions emerge and interact like signals in a system, flowing through, influencing action, and feeding back into how we respond and evolve.When we grow in EQ, we’re learning to:
Notice how emotions affect our thinking Understand how thinking drives our actions Recognise how those actions shape the systems around usThat’s not just “soft skills”, it’s systems awareness at a human level.
Zooming out, Systems Thinking helps us make sense of the natural complexity of our life, just like Agile and Lean do. They’re all connected by a mindset of continuous learning, adaptability, and human-centred design.
Whether you’re coaching, building, leading, or learning —EQ + Systems Thinking can be a powerful combo.
Curious: How have these mindsets shown up in your work or growth?