Explore vulnerability, personal power and strength in these TEDTalks
Natalie Dean | Entertainment Editor
As the new year begins, lists of resolutions and affirmations are being crafted, big changes are being made and we all continue to adjust to our new normal. With content being created and released left and right across platforms, it can be hard to sort through all the options available. TEDTalks are well-known ⏤ having been hosted all across the world ⏤ with speakers who describe compelling and moving stories of their experiences. Here are some videos that may help provide some perspective on topics like vulnerability, gaining confidence and releasing fear while bravely moving forward.
1. “How not to take things personally?” by Fredrick Imbo. TEDxTalks. (March 4, 2020)
Looking to help grow people’s communication skills and support them in their experiences, Fredrick Imbo has embarked on his own journey of learning to not take things personally, after struggling with it in different situations both personally and professionally. In order to confront the ways in which he wanted to grow, he took a job as a referee and kept making meaningful changes along the way.
2. “To overcome your challenges, stop comparing yourself to others” by Dean Furness. TED. (June 8, 2020)
After Dean Furness lost the use of his legs in an accident, he had to adopt a new mindset that freed him from the restraints of comparison, which helped him get better day by day. Exploring new definitions of his “personal average” helped him reach his best when all judgment and comparison were released unconditionally.
3. “How to become your best when life gives you the worst” by Peter Sage. TEDxTalks. (July 15, 2019)
Peter Sage spent six months in one of the United Kingdom’s toughest and most violent jails as the only civil prisoner there. Through his experiences, he gained friends, countless stories and a national award for his work that improved the lives of prisoners. With his unique knack for storytelling, he guides people on how to get through some of the hardest times in life while staying authentic.
4. “Finding Home Through Poetry” by Najwa Zebian. TEDxTalks. (Nov. 29, 2016)
World traveler and poet Najwa Zebian uses her vivid language and spoken word poetry to describe her experience of growing up in many different countries, and how she often struggled to find a place where she felt fully at home. Through her captivating words and experiences, she redefines what a home is, and how to find belonging in the ways that matter most.
5. “The power of vulnerability” by Brene Brown. TED-Ed. (July 10, 2013)
In Brene Brown’s study of human connection, she goes one step further and explores how empathy, love and genuine connection shape our experiences as people. While on a journey that explored people’s humanity and inner workings, she also had to be vulnerable with herself in order to go further.
Contact the author at ndean17@wou.edu
