In-negative / Doubt url
Police questioning thief
- Your story doesn’t hold water.
- Can you please run that by me again?
- That’s hard to believe.
- You expect me to believe that?
- There’s something fishy about your story.
- You’re lying through his teeth.
- What you’re tell me just doesn’t wash.
- Do you expect me to believe that cock and bull story?
- That’s nothing new.
- It’s too late for that.
- I think you’ve been up to no good.
- You can talk till you’re blue in the face, I just don’t buy it.
Police questioning thief
Out-neutral / Advice url
Others - Protect yourself-1
- You’ve got to watch him like a hawk.
- You’ve over estimated him.
- Appearances can be deceiving.
- Beauty is only skin deep.
- Don’t let him out of your sight.
- She’s as slippery as an eel.
- If you want my advice, I’d say just drop him like a hot potato.
- He’ll take you to the cleaners.
- Let him make the first move.
- She’s got you in the palm of her hand.
- He’s not the sharpest tool in the shed.
- He’s out to lunch.
- Sometimes he acts like a bull in a china shop.
Others - Protect yourself-1
In-neutral / Acceptance url
Taking bad tasting medicine
- It all goes into the same stomach.
- Life’s not a bowl of cherries.
- Is that so terrible?
- It could be worse.
- It’s not all that bad.
- You have to take the good with the bad.
Taking bad tasting medicine
Out-positive / Friendship url
Opening a conversation
- A penny for your thoughts?
- What’s on your mind?
- It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?
- Do you like it here?
- How’s it going?
- Let’s have a little chat.
- Let me know when you are free.
- Let’s not talk shop.
Opening a conversation
Out-positive / Encouragement url
For a friend who is depressed
- I never promised you a rose garden.
- You’re putting up a brave front.
- It can’t be as bad as all that.
- You have to look at the bright side.
- Don’t be too hard on yourself.
- Alright, get it out of your system.
- I know how you feel.
- It’s a step in the right direction.
- I think you can figure this out for yourself.
- With a bit of luck and hard work it will all work out fine in the end.
- You have to look yourself in the eye and ask yourself plain and simple, with all your abilities, what’s holding you back from fulfilling more of your potential?
- It looks worse than it really is.
- Don’t you worry, you will be fine.
- Do the best you can.
- What’s eating you?
- You have your whole life ahead of you.
For a friend who is depressed
Out-positive / Encouragement url
To a quarterback at half-time with the score tied
- Knock ‘em dead.
- Give it all you’ve got!
- It’s a great start.
- It’s your moment of truth.
- Don’t give out on us now.
- The sky’s the limit.
- We’re confident that if you break through, you’ll be in the clear.
To a quarterback at half-time with the score tied
Out-neutral / Negotiating url
Let’s work things out-3
- It’s easy to have 20-20 vision about things that happened in the past.
- We both have to admit that neither one of us saw it coming.
- There are no guarantees.
- Let’s get it out in the open.
- So what’s the bottom line?
- Now let’s get things out in the open.
- We both want the same thing.
- Let’s have the whole story out in the open.
- I’ll be glad to answer any questions you might have.
- Take all the time in the world.
- It doesn’t have to be that way.
- If that’s all right with you.
- Does it really matter?
- I’ll give it a try.
Let’s work things out-3
In-neutral / Acceptance url
Finding a parking place 5 blocks from the restaurant
- This is a good place as any.
- It’s certainly not what we hoped for, but it’s better than nothing.
- I think we don’t have much of a choice.
- That’s good enough for me.
- That’s to be expected.
- That’s just the way it’s going to have to be then.
Finding a parking place 5 blocks from the restaurant
In-negative / Doubt url
To a friend who won’t leave the house at 2AM
- Can’t you take a hint?
- Don’t overstay your welcome.
- Sometimes it’s best just to call it a day.
- All good things must come to an end.
- There’s a time for everything.
- Too much of a good thing is not good.
- I can’t wait around all night for you to make up your mind.
- Don’t let the door hit you on your way out.
To a friend who won’t leave the house at 2AM
In-negative / Disappointment url
Employee feeling unappreciated
- I worked so hard for them, and all I got was a measly pat on the back.
- I feel so un-appreciated.
- I feel like I’m being exploited, but there doesn’t seem to be too much I can do to stop it.
- It’s the same old thing all over again.
- I feel like I’ve really been through the mill.
- I expected more.
- I think I deserve to be treated better.
- I’m not a happy camper.
Employee feeling unappreciated
In-negative / Disappointment url
Entrepreneur folding company
- It doesn’t seem to be getting off the ground.
- This is the end of the line.
- I’m washing my hands of the whole thing.
- It’s going to be rough, but it’s better than the alternative.
- We spent all that money and effort on our plans, and look where it got us – nowhere.
- I’m not exactly overjoyed.
- It wasn’t for a lack of effort.
- I think I can speak for all of us that I’m just sick about what happened.
- Frankly, perhaps I’m just chicken to go see what happens if we continue It would be throwing good money after bad.
- We put our best into it, but it seems that it just wasn’t enough.
- Sometimes one just has to call it quits.
- It turned out that it was little, too late.
Entrepreneur folding company
In-positive / Confidence url
After someone else buys the house they wanted
- Something better will come along.
- I could see that coming from a mile away.
- There’s plenty of fish in the sea.
- I’m confident that it’ll work out for the best in the end.
- There’s more where that came from.
- Experiences like this make us stronger.
- We’ll keep our eyes peeled for the next opportunity that comes our way.
- It was bound to happen sooner or later.
After someone else buys the house they wanted