Portuguese Proverb Quotes

The most important thing in an argument, next to being right, is to leave an escape hatch for your opponent, so that he can gracefully swing over to your side without too much apparent loss of face.

God does not always give victory to the leaders by means of the sword, nor are such things always accomplished by fighting. But what toil has not procured, words have often effected, and the greatest trophies have been erected by friendly and propitiatory intercourse. Let us therefore not spend our time here uselessly, but endeavor to accomplish something sensible and courageous for our own safety… Let each one of us studiously try to win over the barbarian who guards our respective section.

Sometimes you need conflict in order to come up with a solution. Through weakness, oftentimes, you can't make the right sort of settlement, so I'm aggressive, but I also get things done, and in the end, everybody likes me.

When people disagree with you, what you ultimately have to do is persuade people to agree with you - period.

It is an excellent rule to be observed in all disputes, that men should give soft words and hard arguments; that they should not so much strive to vex as to convince each other.

There is only one way under high heaven to get the best of an argument—and that is to avoid it.

I have to fight as if there were no negotiations and negotiate as if there was no war.

We can argue and we can disagree, but we don’t need to poke our fingers in each other’s eyes in order to get our points across.

My goal is to be the tough negotiator but... not to air differences through press releases.

I've spent my life navigating through sensitive issues. Not wanting to upset people.

There should be an honest attempt at the reconciliation of differences before resorting to combat.

I hope everybody will go back to the negotiating table. I've always said this is the only way forward.

I try to avoid conflict. I don't want people to be unhappy.

It is highly probable that in most cases, war could be avoided or ended. For discussions allow passion to subside, and to persuade alienated neighbors, or at least one of them, to listen to the voice of a conciliator is a step in the direction of peace.

There are two types of people: those who try to win and those who try to win arguments. They are never the same.

We have to find compromises. That's the way it is in Norway.

If you are going to make peace, you can't just meet nice people.

Freeing hostages is like putting up a stage set, which you do with the captors, agreeing on each piece as you slowly put it together; then you leave an exit through which both the captor and the captive can walk with sincerity and dignity.

I'm not looking for a battle with anybody, neither the council nor our labor partners.

So much of life is a negotiation - so even if you're not in business, you have opportunities to practice all around you.

Better talk than fight, if nothing of sovereign value is anyway lost. Dialogue has achieved more than confrontation in many parts of the world.

I like to win without fighting. But if I can't, then I'm prepared to fight.

The Iranians and Persians are excellent at the art of negotiation.

The whole concept of negotiating is intimidating to many people.

You have to listen to adversaries and keep looking for that point beyond which it's against their interests to keep on disagreeing or fighting.