George learned this trick from his first wife which is one of the reasons why she was his first wife.
He said, “Let’s go away for a holiday, maybe overseas.” She replied, “I am glad you have money, but I don’t want to do away, but we do need new curtains and the lounge needs re-carpeting.”
No matter what argument he put forward about being needing a change of scene, wanting to travel abroad (he was only 24) or needing to do something together, she just kept saying “No. We need new curtains and a new carpet.” She did not try to justify by saying the home looked tatty. She just kept saying “No”.
Eventually she wore George down and they stayed home and bought the b……. curtains and carpet.
The lesson
By merely staking out a position when you disagree and continually saying “No” you can sometimes wear the other party down. The other lesson is not to buckle but to negotiate. They should perhaps have bought the curtains and gone away for a few days as a negotiated compromise.