Benjamin Franklin said, “If you argue, you may achieve a temporary victory—sometimes; but it will be an empty victory because you will never win your opponent’s goodwill.”
We all know this is true. Yet our ego still pushes us to be right. The irony is that 90% of the things we insist on being right about are forgotten within a week. But the feeling we leave someone with when we make them wrong? They may remember that for a very long time. So who really wins?
Think about how often we correct people:“No, that’s not right.”“That’s not how it happened.”“I’m telling you, you’re wrong.”
I caught myself doing it recently with a customer service representative—someone who had probably heard “No, that’s wrong” a hundred times that day. When I looked closer, I realized something uncomfortable: I rarely do this with clients. I do it more often with coworkers. And I do it most often with friends and family—the people I care about the most.
That realization is revealing. It means I can control my reactions. I just don’t always choose to.
And that’s the point: we have a choice.
The real question is this:Do you want to be right, or do you want results?
Because when we choose being right, we damage relationships—even when we win. When we choose results, connection, and understanding, we build trust. And trust gets things done.
Take a look at your recent texts, emails, and conversations. Are you pushing to be right, or are you creating space for solutions?
It’s all up to you.
Do you want to be right—or do you want results?