How can emotional intelligence help you become a successful game developer?

I think it's a skill that people should be conscious of and learn more about for sure. However, for some people they can struggle with their social and emotional abilities, so not possessing EI shouldn't be a barrier to success. Neurodivergent individuals for example may face more challenges with expressing emotions than others, but can still be massively successful as a video game developer.

Ability to create meaningful experiences which resonate with your audience on a personal level is crucial for world building. EI is not about understanding target audience and emulating their response; it is about visual culture which can transpose key messages across any genre in order to engage players with dedicated game world.

It's important to understand your audience and yourself as separate groups with different desires. If you make a game or experience for a younger audience, you need to be cognizant of how that age gap may have completely different goals or interests. For instance, Udonis published a post on Gen Z and Alpha gamers. Alphas didn't care too much for currency rewards because they didn't understand fungibility. Kids don't use money a lot; they trade instead. A good game designer should be able to hear what's important for the audience and intuit how they would react, which takes in many factors, but in large part EI.

Emotional intelligence is an essential skill needed when it comes to game development. Imagine you are a player and you are progressing through a game. Players who are playing the games are experiencing a wide range of emotions whether that be mad, sad, angry, happy, excited, nervous, etc. To be a game developer means to be able to strategically have these players feel these certain emotions at certain areas in a game. It is also important to be emotionally intelligent to work in a professional environment because it will enable one to have successful relationships with their peers and leaders.

Your audience might want something different from what you want or plan on doing, so it's very important for you to learn and utilize the wants of both you and your audience.

In interviews, I often ask, "What is the most important skill for a studio to succeed?" And time and time again, the best answer is "Communication." Video games are extremely hard to make, and to work collaboratively, we need to understand and trust one another. If either of those properties aren't present, the process falls apart, and I say that from lived experience. Communication is not just what you say but understanding how it will be received, or whether feedback needs to be given now or later. I heard a wonderful story about a storyteller who saw his actor friend in a play. The play was awful, but the teller said, "I had a lovely evening and enjoyed myself." immediately after, which was true. They talked more honestly the next day.

I've seen and experienced many initiatives fail due to a lack of communication, especially in a remote setup. But, there is a hack you can use to fight this, or at least I see it that way. Make a consensus to organize your work knowledge around a single tool - IE Notion, Trello or Confluence. Communicate commitments and progress daily or weekly via chat, record team calls for an accessible archive, and use AI to organize/summarize your notes. The mantra is to overcommunicate, avoid assumptions by asking questions, document work, and employ AI for streamlining. Foster a culture of public communication and you will save a lot of time and relationships in advance!

Whether it’s articulating a vision to your team or negotiating with stakeholders, effective communication is paramount. Developers with high emotional intelligence have the advantage of reading verbal and non-verbal cues, adjusting their message for clarity and impact. I’ve seen firsthand how honing these skills can bridge gaps between artists, programmers, and marketers, creating a cohesive and productive work environment that pushes projects across the finish line with fewer hiccups.

Transparency is key to communication. The lead designer and/or executive at the studio should have frequent open meetings with the entire team. If there comes a time when something invariably goes awry, the team will be more understanding if there is a clear picture as to how the studio got in that situation in the first place. Also, have a very clear north star in terms of how the studio should normally operate and what the idea of the game is going to be.

Cultivating trust lets contributions flow without fear. Brainstorming thrives on appreciating diverse views, so everyone voices ideas freely. Seeing Multiple perspectives diffuses change fears while finding the potential, and gaining support. Tapping others' insights transforms risks into opportunities. An inclusive culture plants vision seeds through understanding across groups, dissolving divides. Cooperation and care spark extraordinary collaborations, where fresh intersections bloom without restraint. Innovation emerges from bringing minds together creatively.

Find what relaxes you after a stressful day and hold onto it. Don't go with all this mindfulness, relaxation and all that stuff, unless it really helps you. You need to find your own means of dealing with stress and this can be anything. It can even be starting your own project but at a much slower pace.

The development cycle can be a rollercoaster of highs and lows. With deadlines looming and bugs proliferating, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Emotional Intelligence is your ally here, enabling you to remain calm and make decisions with a clear mind. Or at least to have the self-recognition to know what is triggering you and what you require to shift those feelings. During my training sessions, we explore stress management techniques, ensuring that you can lead by example, maintaining a steady ship even when the waters get choppy. After all, a cool head develops hot titles!

Stress management should be standard practice at any company. With current technology, I see more white collar workers "bringing their work home" by working off hours and during weekends. It has been shown that learning quickly requires emotion - the majority of your long term memories are likely tied to an emotion (whether good or bad). This likely means that in order to get the best performance from your teams requires they bring their emotions to the workplace. In order to do this in a manner that is productive, stress management is required. A good morning ritual and nightly unwinding ritual are important. Team members should always celebrate each other for wins big or small.

That's why when we got stuck in one problem our team approach is take a break or work on some other task. That helps to view problem from different perspective.

I think everyone is different on this front but I suggest trying different methods and then seeing what is best for you. Once you have that my best advice is to schedule a bit of this time into your day via your calendar. This way you will make sure you take the time to do it and nothing else will steal that time on your calendar. Even if it is just taking your laptop outside and working for 30 minutes in the sunshine. Find it, schedule it, and then do it.

My biggest lessons came from my biggest failures. - One of my biggest failures became one of the best retention mechanics we ever made. - One of my biggest failures taught me to really test deep, and that soft launch data shouldn't be trusted. - One of my biggest failures taught me how important phrasing is, and that being honest isn't a free pass to being mean Designers who openly talk about failure also show humility and that growth matters more than image. It speaks a lot to me when a candidate can really dig in, own, and flip the script on failures.

In the field of NLP we have an expression "There is no failure, only feedback" Failure isn’t the end; it’s often the start of something better. A developer with high EI won't crumble under criticism or setbacks. I’ve observed that those who approach failure with a growth mindset tend to innovate and improve, turning potential disasters into learning opportunities and ultimately, success stories. Games are an iterative process, and so is professional growth. Learning about giving and receiving feedback to the team (and yourself) plus the value in reflective practice can really make a difference moving forward.

Failure is a part of the growing process. You can't succeed without failure. It is easier said than done. I recommend learning about the growth mindset and finding a community of people who you can rely on to hold you accountable, celebrate your wins, help figure out the root cause of failures (without blaming others) and help lift you up when you are in a rut. Game development requires a lot of team player mentality, servant leadership and collaboration - both in work and personal aspects

A big thing I have done and like to share with others is starting your week off by outlining goals for the week. Not a lot of them but a few major ones you want to accomplish. Then end your week with reflections on how you did. The great thing with this system is each week we have a lot of micro "failures" that we can learn from and if you are receptive enough to run this form of retro on your own self and week you can continuously learn from them and grow.

I deeply believe in the power of servant leadership. It starts with the question of, "How can I help?" and aims to build trust and independence between leaders and other team members. As a servant leader, I ask for feedback, so I can grow and improve. As a servant leader, I set the standard for what good work looks like. As a servant leader, I'm a couch first, friend second, but always a friend still. If you base your leadership style around elevating others and helping them shine, you'll not only see amazing growth, but you'll build lasting relationships and helping someone change their life, inside and outside of work.

Leading a team isn’t just about delegating tasks; it’s about inspiring action and fostering a creative haven. Developers who master this can galvanize their team, providing the support and motivation to turn vision into reality. My leadership development training focused on how to harness emotional insights to empower and energise teams, encouraging a culture where every member feels valued and vested in the project’s success. The shadow you cast on the team will impact on their ability to get the job done so cast a good one!

I love to do this by fully collaborating with my team throughout our dev cycles. Letting them know why we are doing things, asking for their opinions and perspectives on direction, and decisions that are taking place. Some times there are going to be disagreements with choices or direction and a lot of times I have noticed it comes from a misunderstanding in communication. By working together the communication starts to improve as they hear things over and over and become much more open and share more freely. Everyone wants the same end goal and there are many ways of getting there. Bringing the team together empowers them and they will want to work with you more.

Game development is all about potential. The potential of the game itself and as well as for the team dynamics. Dedicate time in your scheduling to re-examine the process of development for your team. You will likely have some of the most innovative systems designers on your team who can re-think and examine the processes in which a game is made. Innovate not just in the game, but in the process. Allow time for that early as it will save in the end.

For many games and projects, the effort end to end takes years, and it could be a long while in between those chaotic moments - enjoying and taking advantage of all the moments is essential. Today it might be chaotic, long hours and several debates on delivery where as tomorrow it could be very minimalistic, short days, boredom and little direction. Though the second option sounds nice - if you are like me and thrive on the chaos, a slow paced work environment can be very challenging. Enjoy every aspect and try to embrace it all. You will look back at the stressful and slow times fondly - and both help you to recharge for what is next.