Before this year, I had never heard of TED Talks. It astonishes me that I went 20 years without hearing one. But once I started listening to them, I couldn’t stop. TED Talks bring different speakers from around the world to speak about any topic they wish and to share their ideas with others. You can view the thousands of Ted Talks online at ted.com about almost any subject you can think of.
Watching a few, I realized there were some things that I, and I bet a lot of other collegiettes, desperately needed to hear, especially from women. Here are a few of the TED Talks by some amazing women that will help you in difficult times that we all face:
When you have problems with motivation:
Sitting down to study for a test, going to work out, finding a good job: what do all of these things have in common? They take motivation. In Angela Lee Duckworth’s words, they take grit.
Quote to remember: “Grit is passion and perseverance for very long-term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality. Grit is living life like it’s a marathon, not a sprint.”
http://www.ted.com/talks/angela_lee_duckworth_the_key_to_success_grit.html
When you feel like you won’t get through something:
Everyone, and I mean everyone, will go through something in their life that feels like it will never end and it will never get better. Terrible things happen to everyone. The trick, as Stacey Kramer explains is, to see how those things may actually be gifts you never expected.
Quote to remember: “So the next time you’re faced with something that’s unexpected, unwanted and uncertain,consider that it just may be a gift.”
http://www.ted.com/talks/stacey_kramer_the_best_gift_i_ever_survived.html
When you have to tell someone something thats hard for you:
This video is a little long but Ash Beckham has one of the most empowering messages for any human being: you and everyone else has had to do something hard and it was awful. It was scary. But it was so necessary.
Quote to remember: “You may feel so very alone, but you’re not. And we know its hard, but we need you out here, no matter what your walls are made of.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSR4xuU07sc
When you want to break the rules:
Women know as well as anyone that there are “rules” for us. How we should dress, talk, walk, everything we do, society says, “There’s a rule for that.” Liza Donnelly doesn’t like those rules and she has a great idea how to start changing them.
Quote to remember: “Now if you don’t like these rules, and many of us don’t — I know I didn’t, and I still don’t, even though I follow them half the time, not quite aware that I’m following them — what better way than to change them [than] with humor?”
http://www.ted.com/talks/liza_donnelly_drawing_upon_humor_for_change.html
When you are going to talk politics (or anything else you might disagree on):
This is a tricky topic in college. Everyone has an opinion and everyone wants to talk about it. How do we talk about these things without totally offending our friends and acquaintances? Sally Kohn has a fresh new perspective on how to actually convince someone of our opinion.
Quote to remember: “We spend so much time talking past each other and not enough time talking through our disagreements, and if we can start to find compassion for one another, then we have a shot at building common ground.”
http://www.ted.com/talks/sally_kohn_let_s_try_emotional_correctness.html
When you’re forgetting what is important in life:
It happens to us all. We are so busy with school, work and activities that we forget what really matters. If this is happening to you, Candy Chang has some words you need to hear.
Quote to remember: “Two of the most valuable things we have are time and our relationships with other people. In our age of increasing distractions, it’s more important than ever to find ways to maintain perspective and remember that life is brief and tender.”
http://www.ted.com/talks/candy_chang_before_i_die_i_want_to.html