One day a close friend gave me an advice; “If you want your performance at your work to be perfect, then you have to work hard and act well.” Actually I didn’t ask for any explanation. When I recall this advice, I discover that hard work is doing our best and focusing on our goals to achieve the best results. Yet, what about acting? Are we supposed to put on masks when we enter our work place to perform well and achieve the best results? Does acting mean to behave in such a way which is completely opposite to our personalities or values just to win people and positions? Is this right and accepted? Or does it mean to hide true emotions just to look more practical and professional?
In the past, people thought that emotions of any kind were disruptive. A well-known organization didn’t allow employees to express feelings like fear, anger, joy, hate… etc., though researches and managers knew emotions are a part of our personality and an inseparable part of everyday life. Thus, people will never be machines and ignore their emotions.
In addition, researches discovered an important relationship between emotions and rational thinking as our emotions provides us valuable information that helps in our thinking processes. That’s why; employees bring their emotions to work every day and it affects their performance. Also, trying to act in a different way opposite to our emotions for a long time will lead to dissonance in our emotions.
Shakespeare said, “Life is a great play” وما الدنيا إلا مسرح كبير. I think this quote make us believe that we have to act, but in my opinion gaining emotional intelligence will help a lot as emotional intelligence is to discover feelings in ourselves and others and then regulate and control them. Also, good leaders understand the great effect of emotions and sometimes it helps them to lead, motivate and manage people. In that sense, wearing masks will help for a short period and after a while you will lose yourself.
By: Ola Youssry
Photography: Ola Youssry
Editor: Hadeer Salah Aldeen