summary ofThe School of LifeBook by School of Life, introduced by Alain de Botton

first KEY POINT

Emotional intelligence is the fulcrum upon which our lives gain balance

Humans are essentially emotional creatures, everything we do in life is driven by emotions. Many people don't realize this since it seems like logic takes the precedence in our daily decisions and actions, but the truth is, we're always more emotional than logical.A few examples. Emotions dictate our buying decisions, not logic. We're committed to our intimate partners because of how they make us feel not necessarily what we think about them. The way we dress, the careers we pick, the cycle of friends we keep, etc, are all driven by emotions.But it's sad that our emotions haven't been given the kind of consideration they deserve.We've advanced so much in our understanding of science and technology. And we've come up with witty inventions that are making our lives easier. One can categorically say that we're a well advanced civilization. But when it comes to the emotional and psychological aspects of our lives, we don't seem to have made so much progress. It's true that we've grown in our understanding of the human mind and how emotions and habits work, but outside the academic communities specializing in these disciplines many people are still in the dark.

We've been programmed to prioritize scientific information and the skills that would earn us money, above the understanding of who we are. The average parent is more concerned about their kids scoring high grades in school than they are about their emotional wellbeing. And the result of this negligence is a rich society that doesn't know anything about emotional intelligence. Topics along these lines aren't taught in school, unless you specifically enrolled for them. People don't know how to introspect and communicate, or how to read the moods of others, or even how to relate with patience, charity and imagination when people around them are suffering.But you'll be different because the chapters that follow are going to teach you the basics of emotional intelligence and help you avoid unnecessary problems.