It is in books, poems, paintings which often give us the confidence to take seriously feelings in ourselves that we might otherwise never have thought to acknowledge.
Alain De BottonRead
Life seems to be a process of replacing one anxiety with another and substituting one desire for another--which is not to say that we should never strive to overcome any of our anxieties or fulfil any of our desires, but rather to suggest that we should perhaps build into our strivings an awareness of the way our goals promise us a respite and a resolution that they cannot, by definition, deliver.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Life involves a continuous cycle of desires and anxieties, and we must recognize that achieving our goals may not bring the peace we seek.
In this quote, Alain De Botton explores the nature of human existence, emphasizing that our lives often consist of trading one anxiety for another, and one desire for another. He notes that while it is important to strive to overcome our anxieties and fulfill our desires, we should remain aware that the goals we pursue may promise us relief and resolutions that they ultimately cannot provide. This suggests a deeper understanding of our motivations and the limitations of external achievements in finding true satisfaction.
Themes
AnxietyDesireGoalsLifeSatisfactionHuman Experience
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about managing stress and expectations.
More from Alain De Botton
All quotes →Taking architecture seriously therefore makes some singular and strenuous demands upon us...It means conceding that we are inconveniently vulnerable to the colour of our wallpaper and that our sense of purpose may be derailed by an unfortunate bedspread
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The more closely we analyze what we consider 'sexy,' the more clearly we will understand that eroticism is the feeling of excitement we experience at finding another human being who shares our values and our sense of the meaning of existence.
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Good books put a finger on emotions that are deeply our own - but that we could never have described on our own.
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The challenge of modern relationships: how to prove more interesting than the other's smartphone.
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It is the most ambitious and driven among us who are the most sorely in need of having our reckless hopes dampened through immersive dousings in the darkness which religions have explored. This is a particular priority for secular Americans, perhaps the most anxious and disappointed people on earth, for their nation infuses them with the most extreme hopes about what they may be able to achieve in their working lives and relationships.
Alain De BottonRead
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