I coach executives. AI makes their emotional intelligence more valuable, not less.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Pam Manfredo Curtis, author of "Origin of a Leader." It has been edited for length and clarity.

It's no surprise that we often make choices based on how we were raised. I can see it in my own life: my mom was a school psychologist. I went into psychology, too, and married a man who is also an industrial and organizational psychologist, like me.

In our field, there's a lot of focus on empathy, tuning in to others, and helping them understand why they show up the way they do. Oftentimes, the answer lies in childhood.

I know that might sound like psychological gobbley gook, or Freudian hogwash. I've had clients tell me that. But after working with me, they realize that emotions are data. Leaders and companies can use that data to excel — and that emotional information is becoming more important than ever in the age of AI.

Parents often worry about the little mistakes they make. The moment when you raise your voice, or say the wrong thing, can haunt you. Luckily, those aren't usually the things that stick with our kids over time.

What matters more is our parenting patterns. Children pay attention to how we build relationships, express love, and deal with conflict. Those teachings will stay with them long into their adulthood and career.

I often ask the executives whom I coach how they are feeling. Their response is usually the same: "Fine."

I sometimes want to yell, "Fine is not an emotion!" Once, I was working with an executive of a well-known company, asking him again and again how he was feeling, and he answered, "Fine. Fine. Fine." One day, he said "sad," and I thought "woohoo. There's something I can work with."

The greatest executives I work with are able to tune into and name the emotions they're feeling. They understand why they're feeling the way they are, and can tell others. This is important data for them and their company — and something that can't be replicated by AI. Teaching children to recognize their emotions will equip them for the C-suite — or any other career.

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