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Alain de Botton Quotes - Page 15

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Status Anxiety: A worry, so pernicious as to be capable of ruining extended stretches of our lives, that we are in danger of failing to conform to the ideals of success laid down by our society and that we may as a

Status Anxiety: A worry, so pernicious as to be capable of ruining extended stretches of our lives, that we are in danger of failing to conform to the ideals of success laid down by our society and that we may as a result be stripped of dignity and respect; a worry that we are currently occupying too modest a rung or are about to fall to a lower one.

Alain de Botton
Happiness, Success, Fall

Despite the best efforts of critics and the hopes of authors, our tastes in books are probably as inherent & unbudgeable as those in food.

Alain de Botton
Book, Best Effort, Taste

We depend on our surroundings obliquely to embody the moods and ideas we respect and then to remind us of them. We look to our buildings to hold us, like a kind of psychological mould, to a helpful vision of ourselves. We arrange around us material forms which communicate to us what we need — but are at constant risk of forgetting what we need — within. We turn to wallpaper, benches, paintings and streets to staunch the disappearance of our true selves.

Alain de Botton
Self, Ideas, Risk
Alain de Botton (2007). “The Architecture of Happiness”, p.55, Penguin UK

The activities of drawing, eating and drinking, all involve assimilations by the self of desirable elements from the world, a transfer of goodness from without to within.

Alain de Botton
Drinking, Self, Drawing

We should not be frightened by appearances.

Alain de Botton
Appearance, Should, Frightened
"The Consolations of Philosophy". Book by Alain de Botton, 2000.

Our bodies hold our minds hostage to their whims and rhythms.

Alain de Botton
Mind, Body, Whim
"The Consolations of Philosophy". Book by Alain de Botton, 2000.

Anxiety is the handmaiden of contemporary ambition.

Alain de Botton
Ambition, Anxiety, Contemporary
Alain De Botton (2008). “Status Anxiety”, p.85, Vintage

It seemed an advantage to be traveling alone. Our responses to the world are crucially moulded by the company we keep, for we temper our curiosity to fit in with the expectations of others...Being closely observed by a companion can also inhibit our observation of others; then, too, we may become caught up in adjusting ourselves to the companion's questions and remarks, or feel the need to make ourselves seem more normal than is good for our curiosity.

Alain de Botton
Company We Keep, Expectations, Curiosity

Architects themselves tend to shy away from the word, preferring instead to talk about the manipulation of space.

Alain de Botton
Space, Shy, Manipulation

...if the beginnings of love and amorous politics are equally rosy, then the ends may be equally bloody.

Alain de Botton
Love, May, Ends

Year-end financial statements express a truth about office life which is no less irrefutable yet also, in the end, no less irrelevant or irritating than an evolutionary biologist's proud reminder that the purpose of existence lies in the propagation of our genes.

Alain de Botton
Lying, Years, Year End
"The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work". Book by Alain de Botton, 2009.

Responsible for wrapping the iron fist of authority in its velvet glove is Jane Axtell, head of the accountancy firm's Human Resources department.

Alain de Botton
Iron, Velvet, Gloves
"The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work". Book by Alain de Botton, 2008.

Unrequited love may be painful, but it is safely painful, because it does not involve inflicting damage on anyone but oneself, a private pain that is as bittersweet as it is self-induced. But as soon as love is reciprocated, one must be prepared to give up the passivity of simply being hurt and take on the responsibility of perpetrating hurt oneself.

Alain de Botton
Hurt, Giving Up, Pain
Alain de Botton (2006). “On Love: A Novel”, p.45, Grove/Atlantic, Inc.

Let's say you went to Harvard or Oxford or Cambridge, and you said, 'I've come here because I'm in search of morality, guidance and consolation; I want to know how to live,' - they would show you the way to the insane asylum.

Alain de Botton
Motivation, Inspiration, Oxford

Pick up any newspaper or magazine, open the TV, and you'll be bombarded with suggestions of how to have a successful life. Some of these suggestions are deeply unhelpful to our own projects and priorities - and we should take care.

Alain de Botton
Successful, Bombarded By, Priorities

On paper, being good sounds great but a lot depends on the atmosphere of the workplace or community we live in. We tend to become good or bad depending on the cues sent out within a particular space.

Alain de Botton
Space, Community, Atmosphere

A simple problem of arithmetic: there are far more ambitions than there are grand destinies available.

Alain de Botton
Ambition, Simple, Destiny

I was uncomfortable writing fiction. My love was the personal essay rather than the novel.

Alain de Botton
Writing, Fiction, Uncomfortable
"Biography / Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.

The longing for a destiny is no nowhere stronger than in our romantic life. All too often forced to share our bed with those who cannot fathom our soul, can we not be forgiven if we believe ourselves fated to stumble one day upon the man or woman of our dreams.

Alain de Botton
Dream, Believe, Destiny
Alain De Botton (1993). “On Love”, Grove/Atlantic

I know a lot about writing, but I don't know much about how other industries work. I've tried to use my naivety to my advantage.

Alain de Botton
Writing, Use, Naivety

I went to church and couldn't swallow it. The music was nice but I don't belong there.

Alain de Botton
Nice, Church

A great writer picks up on those things that matter. It’s almost like their radar is attuned to the most significant moments.

Alain de Botton
Matter, Moments, Significant

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