In-negative / Confusion url
Waking up after a deep sleep.
- I fell into a deep sleep, and when I woke up I was so disoriented that for a short while I couldn’t remember where I was.
- My mind is going in ten different directions.
- I don’t know what to make of it.
- What time is it?
- How did I get here?
- I could use a breath of fresh air.
- What’s going on here?
- I don’t have the bandwidth to deal with it right now.
- I don’t feel like myself.
- I’m so tired, I can hardly see straight.
Waking up after a deep sleep.
Out-positive / Agreement url
Can you write a letter of recommendation for me?
- Just say the word.
- I’ll do whatever I can do to be helpful.
- I’ll try to put in a good word for you.
- If you want it, you’ve got it.
- Anything you say.
- Sounds good.
- Yes, by all means.
Can you write a letter of recommendation for me?
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
In-negative / Desperation url
Losing a job
- I can’t tell you how awful it is.
- I’m going to lose my mind.
- After what I’ve been through, I don’t know which way is up.
- It’s a lost cause.
- It’s a no win situation.
- It’s all downhill from here.
- It’s a sad state of affairs.
- It feels like things are spinning out of control.
- This is driving me up a wall.
- I’m at loose ends.
- It all seems like a bad dream.
- I feel like I’m on the ropes.
- I think I’m going to throw in the towel.
- After I try my best, and I find a lot of good that does.
- Where can I turn to?
- It hit me like a ton of bricks.
Losing a job
Out-neutral / Negotiating url
Let’s make peace-2
- Let’s be reasonable.
- Don’t rule it out.
- Let’s not get started on the wrong foot.
- Is that OK with you?
- Nobody is holding a gun to your head.
- Let’s be open with each other.
- There’s no hard feelings between us, OK?
- I’ll make it up to you.
- See, that wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
- I’ve had a change of heart.
Let’s make peace-2
Out-positive / Concern url
To a friend whose new job is harder than he expected
- How’s this working out for you?
- Perhaps you got more than you bargained for.
- Your old job is a hard act to follow.
- You have to give it time for the dust to settle, to see if it works out.
- Things sometimes get worse before they get better.
- This is a chance for you to show your mettle.
- Rise to the challenge!
To a friend whose new job is harder than he expected
Out-positive / Concern url
After a friend has just been robbed
- Are you alright?
- Get a hold of yourself.
- It’s not the end of the world.
- You can’t blame yourself.
- You’re shaking like a leaf.
- You’re as white as a ghost.
- It’s not your day.
- You’re as stiff as a board.
- It’s not something you could have been prepared for.
- It totally came out of the blue and took you completely by surprised.
- Day by day, this is something that you will gradually recover from.
- Take it from me, in a little while this will recede into the background of everything else in your life.
- I find your story absolutely heartbreaking.
After a friend has just been robbed
In-positive / Determination url
Head of a political party
- The reason most people do not accomplish more is that they do not attempt more.
- We still have a ways to go.
- The show must go on.
- We have our work cut out for us.
- We have an image to uphold.
- You have to cut through the red tape.
- It’s time to shift into high gear.
- My lips are sealed.
- There’s nothing that stick-to-itive-ness can’t accomplish.
- It’ll happen before you know it.
- You ain’t seen nothing yet.
- Greatness is within our reach.
Head of a political party
Out-neutral / Advice url
Priorities
- First things first.
- Don’t put the cart before the horse.
- Just stick to business.
- Don’t waste your time.
- I think you’re cutting off your nose to spite your face.
- Put your best foot forward.
- Don’t let yourself get sidetracked.
Priorities
Out-neutral / Advice url
Lighten up
- Don’t work so hard.
- Do it the easy way.
- Lighten up.
- Don’t take it so seriously.
- Why make things more complicated than they really are?
- Take the easy way out.
Lighten up
Out-positive / Encouragement url
To a fellow worker who was scolded for being late too often
- Between you and me, I think you got off pretty easy this time.
- You put up a good front.
- You and I know that you can do better than that.
- That’s to be expected.
- I’d say you got off easy.
- It’s not earth shattering.
- What did you expect?
- You need to stand up for yourself.
- It happens to the best of us.
- You and I know that you can do better than that.
To a fellow worker who was scolded for being late too often
In-neutral / Caution url
Telling someone a secret
- The less said about it the better.
- Don’t breathe a word of it.
- I was sworn to secrecy.
- Mum’s the word.
- This could be something that I might come to regret.
- This might be against my better judgement.
- I have to ask myself, why am I doing this?
Telling someone a secret