Voltaire and his homeboy Frederick II of Prussia.
Voltaire said, "The secret of being boring is to say everything." In other words, blab your entire life's story within the first ten minutes of meeting someone, and you'll cure their insomnia. Fast. So, avoid talking too much as well as the pervasive tendency to overshare. Your family, friends, and new acquaintances will thank you.
-- Heinz-Ulrich
Robert Greene summarised this concept very well in his book '48 Laws of Power'. He said, "When you are trying to impress people with words, the more you say, the more common you appear, and the less in control. The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish."
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Mark
That sounds interesting. I must find and read it. My maternal grandmother had a similar saying (I'm sure she heard it somewhere as a girl). Give certain people enough rope, and they'll hang themselves with it more often than not.
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Heinz-Ulrich von B.