Alain de Botton is the founder of School of Life. That is where I first met him. He is influential in my understanding of love (minimum requirements for a relationship per botton). I listened several times to his interview in On Being where he elaborated on his ideas about thriving in romantic relationships. Aside from his views on love, he was influential in helping me understand how to practice religious tolerance as an atheist. His argument that even atheists can benefit from social and cultural artifacts from religious traditions is fascinating although can be quite tricky to apply. I also view Alain as a model for writing philosophy in a more attractive manner. He said that he is a philosopher who leans towards its humanistic rather than analytic variant (someone like Michel de Montaigne).

References

Alain de Botton—The True Hard Work of Love and Relationships. (n.d.). The On Being Project. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://onbeing.org/programs/alain-de-botton-the-true-hard-work-of-love-and-relationships/

Alain de Botton on Philosophy Within and Outside the Academy. (n.d.). Philosophy Bites. Retrieved August 13, 2021, from https://philosophybites.com/2007/11/alain-de-botton.html