When Enthusiasm Goes Too Far
Steve Adubato, Ph.D.

Watching Howard Dean on television deliver his concession speech after the Iowa Caucuses underscored the point that often it's not just what you say that counts, but how you say it. This column is not about politics or the presidential race, but rather illustrates why those in a position to communicate publicly must be aware of their demeanor and its impact on others.

While Dean was a distant third in Iowa, he wanted to communicate the message to his supporters that things were looking up and it was not time to quit. No problem with that. His execution, however, was another story. Jacket off, shirt sleeves rolled up, and microphone in hand, there was Howard Dean screaming at the top of his lungs, "We have just begun to fight. We have just begun to fight. And we are going to fight and fight and fight."

He then continued to scream about where he was going to fight naming various states holding presidential primaries. "We're going to New Hampshire, South Carolina, New York…" As he did this, his face was contorted and his body language anything but under control. At the end of his speech he let out a perplexing howl that sounded like a weightlifter who had just finished breaking a world record and was now screaming in celebration.

No one should criticize Howard Dean or anyone else for wanting to pump up the troops. Passion clearly has its place. But, if in the effort to do it you come off as angry and enraged, bad things often happen. This is particularly true when the position you attempt to hold is so important. Whether we are talking Presidents of the United States, or the CEO of a major company, demeanor and communication style matter a lot.

As soon as I saw Dean's speech I sensed he had a problem. There was little doubt television networks would replay this part of his speech over and over again cementing this image of the screaming candidate in our minds as well as in our psyches.

Skip Cimino, Senior VP for Public Affairs at Schoor DePalma, is the former Commissioner of the NJ Department of Personnel. Cimino has spent years evaluating employees' professional potential based on their communication skills and says there is a big difference between being enthusiastic and being "over the edge" in your communication. Says Cimino; "What a speaker, be it a presidential candidate or the manager of a workplace team, needs to convey to people is a confidence in his message without being shrill. In his speech, Howard Dean lacked a real sense of understanding that his message was being communicated not just to a group of supporters, but to the entire country via television."

Any speaker, but particularly one in such a high visibility position, must understand who his audience is and how that audience is likely to perceive his message and the delivery of it. So here's the deal. If you want to be enthusiastic in your communication, that's great, just do it without screaming. Screaming has no place in campaigns or in business. It also has no place with teachers attempting to motivate students or parents trying to change a child's behavior. The only place screaming may work is on the football field, and I'm not so sure about that. Just know that even though we are sometimes tempted to scream and yell at the top of our lungs, when we actually do it, we pay a hefty price. For if we are too loud for too long, our audience may not hear what we are saying because they are so turned off by our approach.

Dr. Steve Adubato coaches and speaks on the subjects of communication and leadership and is the author of the book "Speak from the Heart." Write to him at The Star-Ledger, 1 Star-Ledger Plaza, Newark, NJ 07102, visit his Web site at www.stand-deliver.com, or e-mail him at sadubato@aol.com.

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