TRAINING| Emotional Quotient (aka Emotional Intelligence)

Through effortswith the PacificJudicial Council,the Judiciaryhosted two professional development sessionson February18,2022 and March 4,2022 on Emotional Quotient (aka Emotional Intelligence)

Carmen Ulloa-Kasperbauer,MPA,conducted the sessionsvia MSTeamswith in-person seating at the Guma' Hustisia Assembly Hall.The United States District Court for the Northern Mariana Islandsstaff also participated in the sessions.

Session 1 focused on introducing the concept of Emotional Quotient ("EQ") which isthe abilityto understand,use,and manage your own emotionsin positive waysto relieve stress,communicate effectively,empathize with others,overcome challengesand defuse conflict.EQhelpsone build stronger relationships,succeed at school and work, and achieve career and personal goalsbyhelping one to connect with their feelings,turn their intention into action,and make informed decisions about what mattersmost to them.The key skillsfor building EQare: self-management,self-awareness, social awareness,and relationship management.

Session 2 focused on cognitivedistortionswhich are unhelpful thoughtsor negative pattern thinking, which can take a serioustoll on one'smental health, leading to increased stress,depression,and anxiety. If left unchecked,these automaticthought patterns can become entrenched and maynegatively influence the rational,logical wayone makes decisions.Examplesof cognitive distortionsinclude: disqualifyingthepositive,labelingandmislabeling, magnificationandminimization,mental filter,mind reading,fortuneteller error,personalization,emotional reasoning,all or nothingthinking,and over-generalization.

In addition to the two EQsessions,the Judiciary hosted a professional development EQforum on March 11,2022,with the PublicSchool System and the CommunityGuidance Center to discuss communityoutreach efforts.Through the continued effortswith the PacificJudicial Council,the Judiciary wasable to conduct the EQforum at the Guma' Hustisia AssemblyHall.