Denison Herald
June 7, 1992

Ciaccio teaches 'human personal development'
by Charles Pollet
Herald Staff Writer

Nick Ciaccio sits at the back of the classroom, monitoring the time of class members' speeches and keeping reports.  Occasionally, he gives the class an example of the upcoming assignment.
The class meets one night a week for three and a half hours but it is not a course in education.  Ciaccio says it is a course in "human personal development."
Ciaccio is a v olunteer graduate assistant for self-help Dale Carnegie courses.
"Actually, you don't take the Dale Carnegie course, you live it," the 69-year-old sand and gravel businessman said.  "Knowledge isn't useful unless you put it into action."
Ciaccio first took the course with his wife in 1979, and he will be assisting his 15th seminar, which begins June 15 in Sherman.  The class lasts for 12 weeks and costs $895 per person.  But Ciaccio says the program is more than worth it.
"How much money do we spend on a new car, or new clothes or a new boat?  Then how much do we spend on ol' Nick?" he asked.  "We never spend money in improving ourselves.
"When my wife and I took the course, it cost $450, and we had to borrow every penny.  But that's the best money I ever spent in my life."
Ciaccio, who is not paid for assisting the program, said, "this is more or less a labor of love for me to help others.  In 12 classes so far, I've probably helped 400 members.  I've also made 400 friends."
The program's creator, Carnegie, was a jack-of-all-trades during the early 20th century who later taught seminars about speaking effectively.  He began conducting courses in public speaking for businessmen at YMCA schools in New York.
The program uses three books written by Carnegie, "A Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking," "How to Win Friends and Influence People" and "How to Stop Worrying and Start Living."  The texts are part of the fee, and class members are expected to read and study them.  Combined with the instructor's lessons and members' testimonies, participants improve t heir self-confidence, communication, friendliness and stress-handling skills, Ciaccio said.
Each three-and-a-half hour class is divided into A and B sessions.  In the A session members give a 60-second testimony of that week's assignment.  Session B calls for two minutes speeches.
For every session, class members elect a "top vote getter," the person who the majority think gave the best speech.
"We dn't say winner because if you have a winner, you have to have a loser, and there are no loseres in Dale Carnegie," Ciaccio said.
The speeches are designed to explain how members incorporated what members learned to their lives.
"You can get more cooperation out of people when you deal with them in a friendly manner," Ciaccio said.  "The only way to become more friendly is by practicing it.  It's just like a woman baking a cake.  The first time she tries, it, it's just fair.  But then each time she makes a cake, it tastes better and better because she knows more about what she's doing becuase she's done it over and over gain."
Because of the constant participation, classes are limited to 44 people, but Ciaccio says there are usually about 30 members.  He said member imput is the most important factor of learning.
""I can read all the books on aviation and how to fly a plane and how to take off and land.  Then I come to you and ask, "Would you like to go with me on my solo flight?  Of course you'd say no," he said.  That's exactly what this class teaches.  We can talk all day long about being self-confident or being friendly or how to not worry, but unless we practice it, we might as well be taking a nap."
Ciaccio uses his own experiences to persuade people to take the course.
"I used to spend $1,000 worth of energy on a 10-cent problem," he said.  "I know that 99 percent of my worries nevre happened.  One of the things this course teaches you is that the law of averages applies in everything.  For every bad thing that happens at least one good thing will happen."