“There is no other way of guarding oneself against flattery than by letting men understand that they will not offend you by speaking the truth; but when everyone can tell you the truth, you lose their respect.”

— Niccolo Machiavelli , book The Prince

Source: The Prince (1513), Ch. 23; translated by Luigi Ricci

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Niccolo Machiavelli 130

Italian politician, Writer and Author 1469–1527

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