And surely one of the best rules in conversation is, never to say a thing which any of the company can reasonably wish had been left unsaid:
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Good conversation requires avoiding remarks that others would regret hearing.
- In plain terms
- Do not say anything you would wish you hadn't.
- What can you take from it?
- Think before you speak to avoid regret.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What is something you wish you had not said?
- How do you decide what is safe to say?
Another view
Sometimes silence can be more awkward than a blunt truth.
More from Jonathan Swift
There are few, very few, that will own themselves in a mistake, though all the World sees them to be in downright nonsense.
Permalink to quote #9 'Tis very warm weather when one's in bed.
Permalink to quote #11 There is nothing in this world constant, but inconstancy.
Permalink to quote #8
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