Emotions are everywhere: my story & the truth about Emotional Intelligence

Mexico Tech Week Keynote “AI VS Human Intelligence: Who’s leading?”

In the third episode of my Spotify Podcast “Human Technology and Heart Intelligence with Vanessa”, I really wanted to open a vulnerable space, and share.
To talk about something we all experience, but never talk about.
Something we want to share, but often struggle to express: our emotions.

This episode is a journey into my personal story and the dots that I finally connected towards Emotional intelligence.
The moments and work experience that shaped me, the challenges of hypersensibility that awakened my emotional awareness, and the truth I’ve discovered about what emotional intelligence really means in our modern world.

What Emotional Intelligence really is

Emotional intelligence  isn’t just a buzzword. It’s the ability to recognize, understand, and manage our emotions — and to respond to the emotions of others with empathy and clarity.

Emotional intelligence is not about suppressing what we feel. It’s about:

• Identifying exactly what you are feeling. When you can not name it, you can not regulate it
  Understanding your emotional signals, instead of fighting or avoiding them;

• Naming your emotions, even the uncomfortable ones;

• Regulating your reactions without shutting yourself down;

• Feeling with others, creating authentic and compassionate connections.

How to listen to your emotions

In the episode, I truly wanted to share moments from my personal journey, so that maybe you, reading them, could relate.
Moments when emotions felt overwhelming, confusing, or simply too much. Or even the moments where I had no clue what was happening because I could not identify it.
Many of us grow up believing that feelings are weaknesses, interruptions, or distractions. 

I believed that too, for a long time.

I didn’t even know I was feeling something, because I was only tuned into what the person in front of me felt or wanted.

But life has a way of putting emotions right in front of us (or from within to out, if you want) until we finally learn to listen.

It was important for me to share about:

• Times when I hid how I really felt;

• Moments of fear, doubt, and inner disconnection;

• Turning points where I finally allowed myself to feel fully;

• The liberation that came with naming the emotion instead of running from it.

What I have learned alongside the way is simple but extremely powerful.

Emotions are signals — revealing truths that our mind might not see yet.

When we deny our emotions, we deny parts of ourselves. 

When we listen to them, we return to who we really are.

Why Emotional Intelligence matters today

In a world driven by speed, productivity, and digital noise, emotional intelligence is not optional — it is necessary.

It helps us:

• Build deeper, more meaningful relationships: when we understand our own emotional world, we naturally become better listeners, partners, friends, and leaders;

• Navigate stress and uncertainty: emotional awareness grounds us. It helps us respond with clarity instead of reacting from fear or confusion;

• Understand our patterns, needs, and boundaries: the better we know ourselves, the more empowered our decisions become;

• Live more authentically: we stop performing and start being. We show up with presence, honesty, and courage.

Emotional intelligence isn’t about being “calm and positive” all the time.

It’s about being real, aware, and aligned with what you feel.

Take a moment to reconnect with yourself.

If you’re reading this, take a moment — right now, yes, why wait ? :)  — to tune inward.

* What emotion is present in you at this moment?

* What is it trying to tell you?

* What would happen if you welcomed it instead of resisting it?

Emotions are not obstacles. They are messages. Guides. 

Parts of your inner technology — the heart-based intelligence that allows you to feel, connect, and evolve.

The more we learn to embrace them, the more we step into our true power.