(1 min read; 5 min team activity)
The win: because icebreakers help teams feel more connected, better work can happen.
This month’s featured icebreaker is Best Day / Worst Day, an activity we use every month here at Leaders for Leaders. While it can work well as a one-off icebreaker, we find it is very effective as a standing item in a regular monthly or quarterly meeting.
Some team activities help people laugh. Some help people think. This one does both, and gives you something useful to work with after.
How it works:
- Ask each person to reflect on the past week, month, or quarter.
- Have them choose one best day they had at work and one worst day they had at work.
- Go around and invite each person to briefly share what happened on those days and what made each one stand out.
- After everyone has shared, ask:
- What is one small thing we could change to create more best days?
- What is one thing we could change, reduce, or address to make worst days less common?
That is where this activity becomes especially helpful. It is not just about reflecting on the past. It is about using what you learn to shape the future.
That’s it. It’s a simple way to build self-awareness, team empathy, and practical action, all in one conversation.
(5 second chuckle)
The win: a good laugh after a long week.
For anyone who has ever been in a meeting that quickly went off the rails – this will feel familiar:
(2 minute support system)
The win: A timely leadership idea and a reminder that you are not alone in this.
What AI Can’t Replace in Great Leadership
TLDR: In a world full of “smart” tools and technologies, emotional intelligence is now more than a nice-to-have. It is a leadership essential.
AI can summarize the meeting, draft the email, and pull the data in seconds. But as Adam Mosseri said, “People are better at nuance and technology is better at scale.” Technology can help us move faster, but it still takes a human leader to notice hesitation, read the room, and respond with empathy, judgment, and care.
That is why emotional intelligence matters even more right now. Capgemini found that 74% of executives believe emotional intelligence will become a must-have skill. Daniel Goleman also found that for senior leaders, nearly 90% of the difference between star performers and average performers was tied to emotional intelligence rather than cognitive ability alone.
What leaders need now is not less humanity. It is more skill in how they use it. And that is exactly where emotional intelligence gives leaders an edge.
Emotional intelligence helps leaders stay aware of their own reactions, notice what others may be feeling, and respond in ways that build trust instead of friction. It helps leaders stay steady under pressure, communicate clearly, navigate tension, and lead people well when change feels constant.
Leaders are being asked to move faster, adopt new tools, support their teams through uncertainty, and still show up with clarity and empathy. That’s a lot. And it is exactly why emotional intelligence is not a side skill. It is part of how leaders do their work well.
We hear that need from the organizations we work with too. As one of our YMCA partners shared:
“At the YMCA, we regard the talent and skill of our staff leaders as the cornerstone to organizational achievement. Our investment in their development has embraced the principles and concepts of Relationship Intelligence.”
That kind of feedback speaks to what many teams are looking for right now. Not a magic fix. Not more pressure. Practical support that helps leaders reflect, build self-awareness, strengthen relationships, and lead with more confidence in real-world situations.
Because the more work gets automated, the more leadership shows up in the human moments.
In the pause before reacting.
In the empathy to understand someone else’s perspective.
In the judgment to know what this moment calls for.
In the courage to have the conversation well.
And if this season of leadership has felt especially human, messy, or demanding, you are not behind. You are leading in a time when emotional intelligence matters even more.
If this feels relevant for your team, we’d be glad to connect with you about our Emotional Intelligence workshop options.
