QuoteProject
Objectively good spaces to work rarely end up being so; in their faultlessness, quiet and well-equipped studios have a habit of rendering the fear of failure overwhelming. Original thoughts are like shy animals. We sometimes have to look the other way - towards a busy street or terminal - before they run out of their burrows.
Alain De Botton
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

Perfect workspaces can stifle creativity and induce fear of failure.

Alain De Botton suggests that while ideal work environments might seem beneficial, they can unintentionally create pressure that inhibits originality. He likens original ideas to shy animals, which require an unguarded moment or distraction to emerge from hiding, highlighting the need for a less intimidating atmosphere to foster creativity.

Themes

CreativityFearWorkplacePressureOriginality

In practice

Example use cases

During a motivational speech about fostering innovation in the workplace.

More from Alain De Botton

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
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
Alain De BottonRead
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.
Alain De BottonRead
Good books put a finger on emotions that are deeply our own - but that we could never have described on our own.
Alain De BottonRead
The challenge of modern relationships: how to prove more interesting than the other's smartphone.
Alain De BottonRead
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

Similar quotes

I've found, in my own writing, that a little hatred, keenly directed, is a useful thing.
Alice WalkerRead
One who is slow to anger is better than the mighty; one who rules his spirit, than he who takes a city.
SolomonRead
Everything is perfect, but there is a lot of room for improvement.
Shunryu SuzukiRead
Optimistic people generally feel that good things will last a long time and will have a beneficial effect on everything they do. And they think that bad things are isolated: They won't last too long and won't affect other parts of life.
Martin SeligmanRead
If I see one dilemma with Western man, it's that he can't accept how beautiful he is. He can't accept that he is pure light, that he's pure love, that he's pure consciousness, that he's divine.
Ram DassRead
Lack of time is actually lack of priorities.
Tim FerrissRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.