How to Live in the City Quotes

“the time is ripe to step out from the Twittersphere and engage with people rather than their profiles. It seems ridiculous that so many of us are happy to engage in virtual conversations with strangers, yet remain silent in a group of real people. What”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City

“It’s a paradox of modern times that the more we engage with social media in our virtual lives, the more antisocial we become in reality.”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City

“It takes two to tango, but it always takes one person to ask another to dance. Don’t sit and wait.”
― Hugo Macdonald, How to Live in the City

“The Art of a Relationship Living in a city is an art, not a science. Choosing to live in a city is choosing to enter into a relationship with it. And, like any human relationship, the relationship you have with your city is one that requires nurturing, constant practice and work.”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City

“The neighbourhood is a social construct that enables people to live, work and play together in close quarters with a feeling of engagement and security beyond their existence as individuals. (...) a sense of scale and community that is manageable, more village-like than urban. The most attractive neighbourhoods [are] the ones where there’s a palpable sense of an open, rather than closed community. Being a good neighbour is not about watching from behind your curtains and reporting any suspected misdemeanour to the police - it’s about inhabiting your neighbourhood beyond the curtains, bringing life to your street with open arms, not closed minds.”
― Hugo Macdonald, How to Live in the City

“I’m sure we are all familiar with that gratifying feeling of having our coffee or drink order given to us before we’ve asked. It means recognition, which in turn makes us feel that we belong.”
― Hugo Macdonald, How to Live in the City

“working out whether you feel comfortable as a member of this community - and comfortably anonymous within it, too. Do you feel normal here? (...) ‘Fitting in’ sounds so dull and passive, but when it comes to your neighbourhood, sticking out is worse.”
― Hugo Macdonald, How to Live in the City

“The Danish urban pioneer Jan Gehl made a wonderful illustration that shows the increasing detachment of humans from real life, the higher the storey of their building.”
― Hugo Macdonald, How to Live in the City

“Your environment is larger than the sum of you and your own existence, your worries, your hopes and your fears.”
― Hugo Macdonald, How to Live in the City

“It takes two to tango, but is alway takes one person to ask another to dance. Don’t sit and wait.”
― Hugo Macdonald, How to Live in the City

“We all have the tools to shape culture to some degree, by organizing, attending and spreading the word. We can all create or contribute to experiences that touch other inhabitants, and this feels good. You don’t have to start a gallery or spend your weekends carving kebab meat, but consider what your strengths and interests might be and how you can give something of yourself to others, something of yourself to your city.”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City

“I believe that feeling like a human, behaving like a human, responding like a human to others and to your surrounding environment is the key to living a fulfilled life in the city.”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City

“What did we do before Google Maps and Citymapper?”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City

“Our networks are extensive today, aided by the internet, social media and the increasingly transitory, nomadic lives we all live.”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City

“Has social media trickled into our physical lives to the extent that we are now happy to share a lot more than a newspaper article we’ve enjoyed?”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City

“the more human we all strive to be and to feel, the more humane our urban environments will be.”
― The School of Life, How to Live in the City