5 Top TEDTalks Students Must See

Recently, we published a blog post in an attempt to arm students with bucket loads of inspiration through some of Hollywood’s poignant films. Click here.
Well, we would like to continue this trend of inspiration with our blog post about TED Talks. Ultimately, TED Talks is another avenue that students should look to when in need of some motivation.
image of logo TED

image courtesy of Wikipedia.org

The inception of TED came from an architect/graphic designer by the name of Richard Saul Wurman. Founded in 1984, TED has evolved from delivering talks on technology and design to a more wider scope of topics including culture, science and academia.

Originally, TED Talks planned hosted conferences that took place across the United States. Before the turn of the 21st Century, those associated with the organisation recognised the potential that TED Talks could have on a global scale.
Today, as a hosted informal conference, TED takes place all around the world with speakers given a dedicated time of 18 minutes. Here, the speakers come from all walks of life, who share their experiences, opinions and ideas in some of the most captivating ways possible.
Uniquely, the speaker’s approach to their delivery is more of a storytelling style rather than the conventional way of what you might see at a common conference.
The idea of TED Talks is to engage and inspire everyone. The beautiful thing about this initiative is that it caters for every-single-person, where each person would identify or relate to some of the things the speaker talks about.
In other words, TED Talks has the power to inspire, as well as making you feel like you are not alone in the world with some of the battles you have/are facing.
So, we have decided to compile 5 Top TED Talks that student’s must-see. Some are funny, mainly inspiring and most informative.

”Try Something New for 30 Days” – Matt Cutts

First up, we have something nice and easy for you. This 3-minute long clip is enough to get your brain thinking and is known to ignite motivation to discover new things.
Matt Cutts (formerly Head of Web Spam (SEO) at Google) briefly talks about how he found himself in a bit of a rough patch and decided to do something about it. He goes on to discuss an experiment that involves the individual trying something new 30 days.
Matt advocates how this experiment, and this way of thinking, is a great way to enhance creativity, inspiration and self-confidence.

”Inside The Mind of A Master Procrastinator” – Tim Urban

This is definitely one to watch for those of you who can relate to the world of procrastination.
From the very start, Tim Urban’s ability to integrate informative ideas and humour is truly outstanding and will leave you wanting more.
Tim manages to break down the idea of procrastination with the aid of graphics combined with a bit of storytelling. He illuminates the struggles that procrastinators often face when the ‘Gratification Monkey’ decides to swoop in and take over the wheel.
A truly hilarious talk with plenty to learn from. It will certainly give you more understanding of how your mind really works!

”How To Succeed? Get More Sleep” – Arianna Huffington

A welcoming title for any student to see. Arianna Huffington, who happens to be the co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post, shares her thoughts about this idea of needing to do more to achieve more.
Arianna places emphasis on students, recognising that students have a particular affiliation to this way of thinking and acting.
With a clear message, Arianna reminds us that all we need to do is make one small change, like more sleep, and how this can fuel your road to success.

”The Fringe Benefits of Failure” – J. K. Rowling

Let’s be honest, when you have the mastermind behind Harry Potter delivering an uplifting speech, you want to tune in. And while this clip may not be directly related to the TED Talks platform, it serves a similar purpose.
As many of us would expect, J. K. Rowling opens up the speech with great wit and humour. Similar to Tim Urban’s speech on procrastination, J. K. Rowling delivers a thought-provoking speech about this idea of failure and how we should accept it.
The author especially reflects on how failure leads us down other pathways in our search for our destined success. After all, this is coming from a woman, who received plenty of rejections before her success emerged in the form of Harry Potter!

”The Power of Introverts – Susan Cain

Introverts of the world, Susan Cain has got you covered. The author delivers an insightful talk about introverts and how frequently they have compared off their counterparts, the extroverts.
Susan Cain doesn’t hide the fact that she is a proud introvert but she does raise the significance of introverts in our world. Notably, Susan illustrates how this idea of introverts is often a bit of a taboo topic that should not be the case.
Nevertheless, Susan perfectly describes why the character and traits of introverts are often linked to that of creativity and leadership.

You can find loads of useful and insightful TED Talks on Youtube. Alternatively, you can download the TED app on your mobile device.

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