The Attention Advantage: How Emotionally Intelligent Leaders Shape Teams
- Apr 14
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 15
When Jen took over a struggling project team, the problems looked technical: missed deadlines and milestones, re-work and poor decisions. But in the first week, she noticed something deeper - people stopped talking when she walked past, updates were factual but flat, and no-one was willing to bring up risk early on. At first her attention went straight to the plan and the process, what changed everything was when she shifted her attention to the emotional temperature of the team.
Instead of launching a new set of metrics, Jen did something quieter. She started each stand-up by asking one question, “What’s one thing that’s making your work harder this week?” Then she listened, and she named what she saw - frustration, anxiety, pride - without judgement. Over a few weeks, conversations changed, risks were voiced earlier, conflicts were surfaced and resolved, and decisions improved. The project didn’t succeed because she got smarter. It succeeded because she chose to focus her attention on emotions and relationships.
Coronado-Maldonado and Benítez-Márquez reviewed 104 studies on emotional intelligence, leadership and teams and found that emotional intelligence isn’t a soft skill, it’s performance critical. Across sectors and countries, emotionally intelligent leaders were linked to better team behaviours, stronger business results and more positive attitudes to work. The effect is more pronounced in exactly the volatile environments many leaders now face: uncertainty, geopolitical shocks and techdriven change. Where a leader’s attention rests, whether it’s on blame, task or emotion, culture and performance follow.
So, what can you do this week?
Name emotions in the room: “I’m sensing frustration about this deadline - let’s talk about it.”
Ask one deeper question: “What are we not saying about this plan?”
Practise a pause: take ten seconds before responding in tense moments; choose curiosity over defence or criticism.
Build emotionally intelligent team norms: agree how you’ll raise concerns, give feedback and repair after conflict.
Technical expertise gets you into leadership. What you repeatedly pay attention to - and the emotional intelligence you bring to it - is what keeps your team with you when the ground starts to move.
At Behind the Lines we help leaders turn these research findings into habits through practical, scenariobased training that builds emotional intelligence under real pressure, not just in the classroom. If you want your next difficult meeting to become a turning point rather than a drain, you can contact us here.
Coronado-Maldonado, I., & Benítez-Márquez, M.-D. (2023). Emotional intelligence, leadership, and work teams: A hybrid literature review.
