In the mental health community there is a term: “Emotional dysregulation”.

This term refers to an emotional response that wouldn’t be conventionally accepted.

The explanation given is that the person who is seen to be overly emotional is unable to contain their internal discomfort, resulting in some form of excessive display.

There are two advantages to being overly emotional:

People tend to do as you ask so that they do not have to endure your emotional display
No one has to guess what you are thinking or feeling, because you demonstrate this so freely

There are also two serious disadvantages to being overly emotional:

People tend to stay away from you, or keep information from you in fear of how you will react
Relationships will be damaged or destroyed by emotional displays because others will reach a point that they will not tolerate it anymore

In the executive world where people often jump when an executive tells them to, permission is often perceived to have been given by being in an authoritative position to behave as you like.

Boundaries are removed and personal inhibitions are unrestricted, allowing a senior executive to often rant and rave as he or she sees fit.

The damage that is done both to individuals and to the business in these tantrums, is often not measurable or even realised at the time, but make no mistake, damage is done and this is often unrepaired.

There is value in being able to express yourself, and there is value in being able to mindfully adapt yourself to the challenges that are presented to you.

Sitting with internal discomfort may irritate the individual, however, it facilitates communication and resolution far more effectively than a shouting match which leaves behind a trail of destruction.

There are very few environments that will endure over emotionality for long period of time.

Competence relies on basic behavioural traits.

For the business owner, the entrepreneur and the executive who ‘feel too much’, perhaps it is time to gain control over emotional dysregulation, so that the real issues that need to be addressed can be, professionally.