John Oates Quotes

Compatibility is an achievement of love; it shouldn't be its precondition.

I think the way to keep a friendship is to respect that everybody is different.

A marriage doesn't have to be perfect, but you can be perfect for each other.

All of us have to make some accommodations and allowances if we are to live with another person.

Real tolerance means respecting other people even when they baffle you and you have no idea why they think what they think.

The best relationship is one that does not foster too much independence nor too much dependence, but exists in the healthy interdependence zone.

I think in a new relationship it's really important to at least respect each other's interests, even if you don't get super into everything.

We must take our friends as they are.

The most important phase of living with a person is respect for that person as an individual.

I have my own high standards for what I want in a partner and how I want to be treated. I bring a lot to the table. I'm not talking about material things but what I have to offer as a person - love and loyalty and all the things that make a good relationship.

We run into some pretty tough arguments sometimes, but the idea is that at the end of the day, my wife and I realize that we'll always be holding each other's hand.

The motto should not be: Forgive one another; rather understand one another.

I want people to talk to one another no matter what their difference of opinion might be.

A healthy state encourages many voices - and lots of listening.

Ideally, couples need three lives; one for him, one for her, and one for them together.

It is not our purpose to become each other; it is to recognize each other, to learn to see the other and honor him for what he is.

I don't think it's good to try and change anyone. The trick and the mystery - of relationships and life in general - is to learn to live with the bits you don't like.

I want there to be a level of respect between everybody.

We don't need to share the same opinions as others, but we need to be respectful.

One thing is clear to me: We, as human beings, must be willing to accept people who are different from ourselves.

There would be no society if living together depended upon understanding each other.

I realize you can't please everyone.

Husbands, be patient with your wives; and wives, be patient with your husbands. Don't expect perfection. Find agreeable ways to work out the differences that arise.

I have differences with every single human being I know, but that difference shouldn’t define our relationship.

Let us not speak of tolerance. This negative word implies grudging concessions by smug consciences. Rather, let us speak of mutual understanding and mutual respect.