Adlai Stevenson II Quotes

Some people approach every problem with an open mouth.

My trouble is I talk first and think later.

You have to do a lot of listening, you don't just learn out of yourself.

I listen. I meet with everybody, I don't care what their political persuasion is - whether it be a labor union or small-business folks or individuals who have problems. But I meet with everybody and listen.

The trouble with talking too fast is you may say something you haven't thought of yet.

Modern diplomats approach every problem with an open mouth.

I think you've got be willing as an interviewer to ask the dumb question every now and then.

What the nation's built on is discussion, contradiction and growth, and at the moment you can't discuss anything. If you do start to discuss it, you get criticized. If people hate us, you have to find out why and try to solve that problem.

I'm a darned good listener.

The biggest piece of advice I have is - listen. Don't jump to the answer or what you think the answer is. The more you listen, the more you learn.

My focus has always been: I can be an incredibly conservative, principled idea person, but that doesn't mean I have to shout at people.

The rules of improvisation apply beautifully to life. Never say no - you have to be interested to be interesting, and your job is to support your partners.

Sometimes, my mouth can get the better of me.

I don't want to be a negative piece of barbed wire sitting up in the booth with all the answers. I think that's a turn-off.

I think one of the things I really learned in Denver is the value of being a good listener.

You don't have to always be the smartest person in the room, but if you listen and absorb what you are hearing, you will be ahead of the game.

I'm someone who likes to listen, who likes to watch, and who likes to learn.

When I was at school, one of my teachers had two statements hanging from the board all year: 'Be observant' and 'Be empathetic.'

I'm really good at being sarcastic with guys. That's the best way to hang out with them, because that's what guys . They don't want the quiet, prissy little things.

Real listening is a willingness to let the other person change you.

If I listen long enough, the person will generally come up with an adequate solution.

Incorrect assumptions lie at the root of every failure. Have the courage to test your assumptions.

Instead of making others right or wrong, or bottling up right and wrong in ourselves, there's a middle way, a very powerful middle way...... Could we have no agenda when we walk into a room with another person, not know what to say, not make that person wrong or right? Could we see, hear, feel other people as they really are? It is powerful to practice this way..... true communication can happen only in that open space.

The way to keep yourself from making assumptions is to ask questions.

Some people think of the glass as half full. Some people think of the glass as half empty. I think of the glass as too big.