Back from vacation and back to TED.

10 Ways to Have a Better Conversation
Celeste Headlee
TEDx Creative Coast, April 2015
1. Be present. 2. Enter every conversation assuming you have something to learn. Be prepared to be amazed. 3. Ask open ended questions 4. Let ideas come and go in order to stay listening 5. Think of the conversation as “on the record”- be precise with what you claim 6. It’s not about you- do not self promote, do not presume your similar experience is their experience 7. Try not to repeat yourself 8. Forget the details, go for the big idea or emotion 9. Listen, listen, listen – if your mouth is open, you’re not learning 10. Be brief- be interested in other people

A Simple Way to Break a Bad Habit
Judson Brewer
TEDMED 2015 Palm Springs California, November 2015
Being mindful (curiously aware) helps us step out of our fear based habit patterns as we step into being. Mindfulness leads to disenchantment with the hurtful behavior which can lead to a transformation of the trigger, behavior, reward cycle.

Dive Into an Ocean Photographer’s World
Thomas Peschak
Mission Blue II Solomon Islands, October 2015
“The best way for me to effect change is to sell love.” Conservation Photographer Thomas Peschak fell in love with the beauty and importance of our oceans at a young age. Through his photographs, he encourages us to do the same. “You can’t love something and become a champion for it if you don’t know it exists.”

The Doubt Essential to Faith
Lesley Hazleton
TED Global 2013 Edinburgh Scotland, June 2013
Fascinating retelling of Mohamed’s reactions to receiving his first revelation of the Koran- doubt, fear, despair. “Abolish all doubt and what is left is not faith but absolute, heartless conviction…. Absolutism is the opposite of faith.”

Everyday Leadership
Drew Dudley
TEDx Toronto 2010, September 2010
“We need to get over our fear of how extraordinarily powerful we can be in each other’s lives. We need to get over it so we can move beyond it.” Leadership isn’t about changing the world, it’s about changing a person’s perception of what they’re capable of, how much they are loved, how valuable they are, how much influence they have for the greater good.

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I’m trying an experiment in 2016. Maybe you’d like to try it with me.

Here’s where I am
I’m tired of the spin. I’m tired of ideas, news, and entertainment really being one long sales pitch for profit or power.

I’m longing for creativity, curiosity, and inspiration. I’m in search of passionate people willing to speak to the truth and complexity of living with a heart of hope. I want to hear from authentic humans who are in the trenches working for the greater good.

I think I’ve found them in the TED community.

“TED is a global community, welcoming people from every discipline and culture who seek a deeper understanding of the world. We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and, ultimately, the world. On TED.com, we’re building a clearinghouse of free knowledge from the world’s most inspired thinkers — and a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other, both online and at TED and TEDx events around the world, all year long.”

TED’s been around for 30 years. I’ve heard about them and even watched a couple of talks, but I’ve never spent any concentrated time mining the good stuff. So….

Here’s the plan
Watch 5 enthusiastic, inspiring TED Talk presenters a week for a year.
Apply and share the goodness.