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About this quote

What does it mean?
We have one tongue but two ears so we should listen twice as much as we speak.
In plain terms
Listen more than you talk.
What can you take from it?
Prioritize listening over speaking.

Where it applies

  • meetings
  • conflicts
  • learning environments

Putting it to work

  • pause before responding
  • ask clarifying questions

Questions to consider

  • When have you spoken too much and missed important information?
  • How can you improve your listening habits?

Another view

Sometimes speaking up is necessary to correct misinformation.

More from Epictetus

  1. Crows pick out the eyes of the dead, when the dead have no longer need of them; but flatterers mar the soul of the living, and her eyes they blind.

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  2. Do not give sentence in another tribunal till you have been yourself judged in the tribunal of Justice.

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  3. The soul that companies with Virtue is like an ever-flowing source. It is a pure, clear, and wholesome draught; sweet, rich, and generous of its store; that in…

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