MIT Sloan Management Review Article on The Emotional Landscape of Leadership

Navigating a first-time leadership role often mirrors the balancing act of a tightrope walker. On one side, there’s a team seeking direction and inspiration; on the other, higher-ups are scrutinizing each decision. This journey isn’t just about taking on added responsibilities like managing teams and coordinating projects; it’s also about stepping into a heightened arena of emotions that includes joy, pride, anxiety, fear, and occasional self-doubt.

As new leaders climb the organizational hierarchy, they face both the joys of success and the burden of failure, and the significance of their decisions is magnified in their more visible role. In our research — forthcoming in the journal BMJ Leader — approximately 67% of new leaders reported feeling immense pride when their team achieved a milestone. Similarly, 72% cited joy when their guidance positively impacted a team member’s growth.

About the Author

Benjamin Laker (@drbenlaker) is a professor of leadership at the University of Reading’s Henley Business School in the U.K. Natalia Weisz is a professor of leadership at IAE Business School in Argentina. Vijay Pereira is a distinguished professor of international and strategic human capital management at NEOMA Business School in France. Alfredo De Massis is a professor of entrepreneurship and family business at the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano in Italy, the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) in Switzerland, and Lancaster University Management School in the U.K.

Learn more about MIT SMR.