Let the Truth Show the Way
When a colleague protested one of his rulings, he thanked him, declined to ask for agreement, and stood by what he found true.
The Rav of Amsterdam wrote to Rav Yechezkel to object to a ruling he had issued, and he apologized at length for disagreeing. Rav Yechezkel replied that there was no need. It was not his way, he wrote, to say "accept my view." As he had written in the introduction to his sefer, he was not fit to be relied upon. He had published his work so that the students Hashem allowed him to raise would learn from it, and he had no thought of instructing the great men of the generation, each of whom stood on his own. His prayer, he said, was that his book never become a stumbling block and that whatever in it was not correct should be left unaccepted. He thanked his colleague for writing. Yet on the law itself he would not show favor, and he wrote that truth shows the way.
Source: Noda BiYehudah, Mahadura Tinyana, Orach Chaim 101
When someone disagrees with you, whether a colleague, a spouse or a child, try the Rav's reply. Thank them for caring enough to question you, and say honestly that you do not need to be proved right. Then look at the substance with open eyes and stand by what is true. This week, choose one disagreement and begin your answer with thanks. You will often find that the conversation grows calmer and that the truth becomes easier to see.