Never promise more than you can perform.
Publilius SyrusRead
Reprove your friends in secret, praise them openly.
Interpretation
Criticism should be private, while compliments should be public.
This quote emphasizes the importance of how we communicate with our friends. It suggests that when addressing a friend's shortcomings, it is more respectful and constructive to do so privately, preserving their dignity and trust, while praise should be shared openly to encourage and uplift them in front of others. This approach helps maintain healthy relationships by balancing honesty and support.
In practice
A leader might use this quote during a team meeting to explain how to provide feedback to coworkers.
Never promise more than you can perform.
Pain forces even the innocent to lie.
In a heated argument we are apt to lose sight of the truth.
Admonish your friends privately, but praise them openly.
What a tragedy is help where it harms what it supports!
The miser is as much in want of what he has as of what he has not.
Everything is connected. Surfing is a solitary sport. But I can tell you that some of the most amazing things I've done surfing have come from being a part of a tribe.
Cultivate solitude and quiet and a few sincere friends, rather than mob merriment, noise and thousands of nodding acquaintances.
Friendship is born at that moment when one man says to another: "What! You too? I thought that no one but myself . . ."
Some people go to priests; others to poetry; I to my friends.
Friendship is a sheltering tree.
...he will be our friend for always and always and always.
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