12 Most Innovative, Inspiring, and Unmissable TedTalks

• 
• Tweet
• Buffer
• Email

• Tweet
• Buffer
• Email

“We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we’re building here a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world’s most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other.” ~ TED “Ideas Worth Spreading”

Pretty awesome, right?

This is why I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE TEDTalks and believe them to be one of the best sources on the web for learning, leadership, and personal development. Where else do you have access to the world’s most inspiring, informative, ingenious and innovative people talking about how they are going to change the world?

Surfing the TED site is like walking into a giant candy store where everything looks and tastes delicious! You want to sample everything but know it will be too much all at once. Bite by bite you work your way through the possibilities until you discover the best of the best; the flavors you want to savor and take with you, celebrating the most amazing with all.

So, without farther ado, I share with you my most cherished discoveries. Each and every one of these 12 Most Innovative, Inspiring, and Unmissable TedTalks promises to tickle your taste buds and leave you with a sweet sense of excitement and possibility. Enjoy every morsel!

1. JR — Use art to turn the world inside out

A semi-anonymous French street artist, he uses his camera to show the world its true face by pasting photos of the human face across massive canvases. At TED2011, he makes his audacious TED Prize wish: to use art to turn the world inside out. After enjoying the talk, make sure you check out the insideoutproject.net.

2. Ben Zander — On music and passion

This talk will not only leave you with a new appreciation for classical music; it will renew in you with a beautiful sense of hope and optimism as watch Mr. Zander awakens the possibility in his students with the act of creating ‘shining eyes.’ One of my absolute favorites!

3. Randy Paush — Really achieving your childhood dream

Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch delivers a one-of-a-kind last lecture that made the world stop and pay attention to what matters most in lives. He taped this moving talk just months before he passed away from pancreatic cancer. Unmissable indeed!

4. Jill Bolte Taylor — Stroke of insight

In this moving talk, brain researcher Jill Bolte Taylor provides a first-person account of her own stroke and the experience of losing control of her bodily functions as well the functions of the left side of her brain. Instead of it being a painful or frightening experience, she said the stroke put her in a intense state of bliss and nirvana. Sharing this experience became her motivation for recovery and our motivation to count our blessings.

5. Sir Ken Robinson — Bring on the learning revolution

Sir Robinson explores what many believe to be true; formal education strangles rather than nurtures our students’ creative genius and potential.  This is his second TED talk about creativity in education; a follow up from his first TED appearance which has now been seen by over 4 million viewers. It is a must see for anyone who is passionate about changing our education system.

6. Tim Brown — On creativity and play

As one of the founders of the award-winning design firm Ideo, Tim speaks about the powerful relationship between creative thinking and play. Tim argues that a playful environment which relaxes natural inhibitions is more conducive to creative and useful ideas than the very “serious” environment you find in most companies. He makes the case (and I agree); we must give one another permission to play more often!

7. Brene Brown — The power of vulnerability

A key component of true intimacy is making yourself vulnerable to another person and letting them really see who you are. In this talk, you’ll learn how the ability to empathize, love, and share your personal vulnerabilities can not only bring you closer to another human but your humanity itself.

8. Elizabeth Gilbert — Author of Eat, Pray, Love

Elizabeth Gilbert examines the way society looks at artists and the way artists look at themselves in this TED talk. She feels that creative people should view their work as channeling God’s creative gift to them rather than as their own personal creative genius. And she hopes such a shift might prevent some of the madness and self-destruction that occurs in so many of our modern artists. Loved this talk and presentation!

9. Tony Robbins — Personal development author and speaker

Tony Robbins explains in his TED talk that when people fail to achieve something, the defining factor is a lack of resourcefulness. He adds that if people are resourceful enough — if they’re creative and determined enough — they’ll find a way to achieve what they’re after. A must watch!

10. Steven Johnson — Writer

One of my favorite writers delivered a fantastic talk at TED Global. It is based on his book Where Good Ideas Come From: A Natural History of Innovation, exploring the cross-pollination essential to ideation and creative thinking. The talk was later animated by the RSA for an even more delicious treat.

11. Chimamanda Adichie — The danger of a single story

Novelist Chimamanda Adichie talks about the danger of only knowing a single story about a particular culture and relates it to events that have happened throughout her life. Adichie tells the story of going to Mexico while the media was reporting on the immigration crisis and she felt embarrassed by her cultural bias and was amazed at the diversity of Mexican cultures she saw. She encourages us all to seek out a variety of stories about cultures and not just adhere to the one definitive story that is often told by the powerful of one’s own culture. Wise lessons for all in this powerful talk.

12. Dan Gilbert — Happiness expert

This psychology professor at Harvard demonstrates with wonderful stories, anecdotes, and research just how poor humans are at predicating and understanding happiness. This talk will surely make you think the next time you say to someone: Don’t worry, be happy! Enjoy, enjoy!

And don’t forget to check out the TEDx videos. TEDx was created in the spirit of TED’s mission, “ideas worth spreading.” The platform is designed to give communities, organizations and individuals the opportunity to stimulate dialogue through TED-like experiences at the local level. I recently had the privilege of speaking at a TEDx and have loved the local and global impact of the conversations it sparked.

Share your favorite TED experience below:
• Which talks do you savor?
• Which talks resonated?
• Which talks MUST be shared?

Featured image courtesy of AMagill licensed via Creative Commons.

Angela Maiers

http://angelamaiers.com

Angela Maiers is an award-winning educator, speaker, consultant and professional trainer known for her work in literacy, leadership and global communications. She is a consistently energized and recognized worldwide speaker greatly impacting leadership through not only the education field, but the international business community as well. Challenging educational philosophies and business ethics, Angela strives to achieve total synergy and unstoppable energy by reconstructing the thought process of many dated ideologies.