I hear it time and again: “She’s got a high EQ,” or “He doesn’t have any EQ.” And every time I hear this, I wince. Unlike IQ, there is no single score that sums up a person’s emotional intelligence.  (And I don’t use the term ‘EQ’ much either – I prefer ‘EI’). Remember there are four aspects of EI: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management. Self-awareness and social awareness refer to what we know about ourselves and others; self-management and relationship management are what we do with that information. We can all be stronger in one or more of these four, and less strong in the others. We don’t have an EI score; we have an EI profile. Another common mistake people make about EI: that there are five parts to my model. After seeing research that showed motivation – the now outdated fifth part – was handled by self-management, I scrapped motivation.  Folks who have only read my early Harvard Business Review article, or my original book, Emotional Intelligence, still make that error. That four-part model of EI breaks down even further. Within each of those four elements are nested competencies that largely depend on the particular overall EI ability. So, for example, within self-management you find competencies like a positive outlook and adaptability; within relationship management are competencies like influence and coaching. Here are the twelve competencies my research partners – and decades of study – have found identify people who are in outstanding performers in the workplace:  The most accurate EI profile has peaks and valleys, showing the extent to which you demonstrate strengths (or not) in a given competence.  The analog: a detailed blood test, where you can be out-of-ideal-range in some aspects, like bad cholesterol, and in a good range for others, like white blood cell count. How can you know your particular EI profile? For starters, don’t go only by your own sense of how you do in each competence.  We all have blindspots when it comes to our strengths and limitations.  Research shows that getting evaluation of your EI from people who work with you, know you well, and whose opinions you trust, will give you a far more accurate EI profile than would your own rating. That’s why Richard Boyatzis and I, with partners at Korn Ferry Haygroup, developed the Emotional and Social Competence Inventory, a 360-degree assessment that gives you a detailed look at your strengths and limitations. Next question: How do I get better at the EI competencies? Over the years I’ve seen the limits of cookie-cutter EI development programs that give the same recipe to everyone. But cookie-cutter programs will miss part or much of what any of us actually needs. We are all unique in our profiles, not to mention our motivations, goals, and passions.  The best EI improvement plans harness the energy you feel for your meaning and purpose to strengthening the competencies that will help you fulfill that deeper aim. For more on the competencies above, see the full collection of primers exploring each of the 12 Emotional and Social Intelligence Leadership Competencies. I authored this collection with Richard Boyatzis, neuroscientist Richard J. Davidson, and 12 other exceptional researchers, leaders, coaches, and experts on each of the topics.