Alain De Botton (Part 1) - How to Love and Avoid Loneliness

One of the most requested guests by Slo Mo&aposs listeners has been British-Swiss philosopher, Alain de Botton, and I&aposm honored to have him on this episode and the next to talk about one of my favorite topics: Love. This is Part 1 of a two-part episode, and it may just be the paradigm shift you&aposre looking for if you&aposre facing challenges in the realm of love, be it giving love or receiving it (and let&aposs be honest: who isn&apost?)

Alain de Botton is a philosoper and writer of essayistic books that have been described as a ‘philosophy of everyday life." He’s written on love, travel, architecture and literature. His books have been bestsellers in 30 countries and have sold millions of copies. Alain also started and helps to run a school in London called The School of Life, dedicated to a new vision of education. His latest book, published in September 2019, is a collection of essays written for The School of Life, titled The School of Life: An Emotional Education.

I love talking about love, just as much as I&aposm happy to discuss happiness. Alain&aposs body and scope of work is so vast, I decided to focus this conversation entirely on love, sex, and relationships. I&aposm so glad I did.

Listen as we discuss:

What is love? Alain&aposs definition of love: &aposwhen two people meet in their raw condition.&aposHow the opposite extreme of love is Loneliness, not Hatred.How Life is a desperate emergency, and if we can just admit that, things open up.Why Christianity gives a privileged role to those who sufferOne of the most honest takes on sex you&aposll ever hearHow we&aposre always trying to get our life as close as possible to our true realityIf we&aposre all imperfect, doesn&apost that make imperfection perfect?How we&aposve replaced happiness with "fun" just as we&aposve replaced love with "romance"The contradictions in love and how they&aposre only glaring because they violate a script or story we expect from our relationshipHow we shouldn&apost be held accountable for what we feel, but rather the actions we take based on those feelings.Reinterpreting the typical disaster scenario in a relationship when one partner cheats on another

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Don&apost forget to subscribe to Slo Mo for new episodes every Saturday. Only with your help can we reach One Billion Happy #onebillionhappy