The Missing Skill That Can Transform Your Career and It’s Not What You Think
- Brainz Magazine
- Aug 20
- 6 min read
Written by Lora Banicevic, Dental Physician
Dr. Lora Banicevic is a dental physician, author, and multi-award-winning entrepreneur passionate about emotional intelligence in healthcare. She’s the founder of Corner 32 Dental and author of The Emotionally Intelligent Clinician, empowering health professionals to unlock their full potential.
You’ve spent years perfecting your skills, collecting qualifications, and building a track record of results. You know your stuff, inside and out. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: the people who rise fastest and stay at the top aren’t always the ones with the deepest technical expertise. They’re the ones who can read a room, adapt under pressure, and connect with people in a way that makes them want to listen. That’s emotional intelligence, and if you want long-term career success, it’s the skill you can’t afford to overlook.
1. Why technical skills alone aren’t enough
Think back to the most talented person you’ve ever worked with. The one who could solve problems in their sleep, whose technical ability made them the go-to in any crisis. Now, be honest, were they always the easiest person to work with?
I’ve met plenty of people who are brilliant in their field, but struggle to advance because they can’t inspire trust, navigate conflict, or collaborate effectively. In fact, I’ve seen the opposite too, people with average technical ability but exceptional emotional intelligence who became the ones everyone wanted on their team.
According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025, resilience, leadership and social influence, motivation and self-awareness, and empathy and active listening all rank within the top ten skills professionals need today, and will need even more by 2030. These are the hallmarks of an emotionally intelligent leader. The report is clear: to thrive, workers must balance hard skills and soft skills, not lean solely on technical expertise.
Technical skills open doors. They get you hired. But as you progress, the game changes. Promotions, leadership opportunities, and career-defining projects often go to the people who can motivate others, handle tough conversations, and stay composed when things get messy. In these situations, emotional intelligence becomes the differentiator. This is not because your technical ability no longer matters, but because without EQ, your skills will never be fully recognised or leveraged to their full potential.
2. What emotional intelligence actually means
At its core, emotional intelligence (EQ) is the ability to recognise, understand, and manage emotions both your own and those of others. It’s not about being “soft” or avoiding hard truths; it’s about responding in ways that create trust, clarity, and progress rather than tension or misunderstanding.
The framework I use breaks EQ into five key areas:
Self-awareness: Knowing your strengths, weaknesses, and recognising your emotional triggers.
Self-regulation: Staying composed and making thoughtful, intentional decisions under pressure.
Motivation: Maintaining drive and resilience even when challenges stack up.
Empathy: Understanding and valuing others’ perspectives.
Social skills: Building rapport, resolving conflict, and communicating effectively.
When you take the time to build these skills, you don’t just improve your relationships, but you make yourself invaluable in any professional setting. That’s where the real career acceleration begins.
Emotional intelligence in action
A few years ago, I was working with a patient whose treatment had been challenging since day one. He was anxious, resistant to certain options, and often avoided following the agreed plan. On a particularly tough day, I could feel my frustration bubbling up. I’d spent extra time, adjusted my approach, and tried multiple solutions, yet progress was minimal.
In that moment, I had a choice: react from a place of annoyance or pause and reset. I took a breath, reminded myself of his perspective, and shifted into curiosity instead of criticism. I asked open-ended questions, listened without interrupting, and acknowledged his concerns without judgement. That conversation ended not in conflict, but in a renewed plan we both felt confident about. Over the following months, he became one of my most cooperative patients.
You don’t need to work in healthcare to see the lesson here. In any workplace, you will encounter resistance, misunderstandings, or people who seem “difficult.” Technical know-how won’t always win those moments. But the ability to regulate your own reaction, genuinely understand the other person’s perspective, and communicate with empathy can transform the dynamic. You have the power to turn a potential standoff into a shared path forward.
How to start developing your emotional intelligence today
The good news? Emotional intelligence isn’t fixed. It’s not something you either have or don’t have – it’s a skill you can develop at any stage of your career. Here are a few ways to start strengthening it right now:
1. Pause before you respond
It sounds simple, but that split-second gap between stimulus and response is a game-changer. When you feel triggered, pause. Take a breath. Ask yourself: What outcome do I actually want here? That moment of self-regulation can stop a knee-jerk reaction from derailing a conversation.
2. Practice active listening
Most people listen with the intent to reply, not to understand. As Stephen R. Covey famously wrote in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: “Seek first to understand, then to be understood.” Try flipping your default approach. In your next conversation, aim to speak less, ask clarifying questions, and summarise what you’ve heard before adding your own view. It’s a small shift that builds trust fast.
3. Notice your emotional triggers
Start keeping a simple “emotional log.” Note situations that make you feel frustrated, anxious, or defensive and the physical signs that show up (tight jaw, faster heartbeat, etc.). Over time, you’ll start spotting patterns and can work on strategies to manage your triggers before they escalate.
4. Use humour to build connection
A well-placed, light-hearted comment can cut tension, make people feel at ease, and humanise you as a leader. The key is using it in a way that’s inclusive and never at someone’s expense. Humour, when used with empathy, can turn a cold exchange into a collaborative one.
5. Seek feedback on your impact, not just your output
Ask colleagues, mentors, or friends that you trust: “When we work together, how do you experience me?” This can reveal blind spots in how you communicate, handle stress, or show empathy and give you a roadmap for growth.
If you’re committed to building your emotional intelligence, start small. Choose one of these practices to focus on this week and treat it like you would any other skill: repeat it, refine it, and reflect on the results. Over time, the difference won’t just show up in your career, you’ll see it in your relationships, your confidence, and even your wellbeing.
Final thoughts: The career advantage you can’t afford to ignore
Technical skills will always matter. After all, they’re the foundation of your craft. But they are no longer the deciding factor in whether you plateau or progress. Emotional intelligence is what helps you navigate challenges with composure, inspire trust in others, and create opportunities that technical know-how alone can’t unlock.
Fortunately, emotional intelligence can be built through daily practice, pausing before you react, truly listening to others, staying curious instead of defensive, and seeing each interaction as an opportunity to connect.
If you’re ready to take your career further, start here:
Choose one area of emotional intelligence to focus on this month.
Commit to one small daily action in that area.
Reflect regularly on what changes you notice in your interactions and results.
The difference may surprise you not just in how others respond to you, but in how you feel about yourself, your work, and your future.
Emotional intelligence can change the way you work, lead, and connect, and it’s a skill you can build starting today. If you’d like to explore it more deeply, my book The Emotionally Intelligent Clinician shares practical strategies, real-world stories, and tools you can apply right away whether you work in healthcare or any people-focused profession. You can learn more about me and my work here.
Read more from Lora Banicevic
Lora Banicevic, Dental Physician
Dr. Lora Banicevic is an author, multi-award-winning entrepreneur, and the founder of Corner 32 Dental. With over a decade of experience in healthcare and business, she’s known for combining clinical precision with genuine human connection to reshape the patient experience. Her passion for emotionally intelligent care began in the dental chair, driven by a desire to transform stories of fear and shame into ones of trust and empowerment. Today, she’s on a mission to elevate the standard of care across healthcare by helping health professionals realise their full potential and create lasting impact through empathy, presence, and purpose.
.jpg)