There’s no time like the new year to set personal and professional goals. Whether you’ve set your intentions or are struggling to define your resolutions, there’s no shortage of motivational books, podcasts, and vlogs designed to help boost your creativity, narrow your focus, and help you achieve your goals this year.
A great source of inspiration are the TED talks, which offer a broad range of powerful stories and innovative ideas in 18 minutes or less. TED stands for technology, entertainment, and design, but you will find inspiring and thought-provoking presentations from experts in every field.
Listed below are some of our favorite TED Talks, which focus on creativity, effective communication, and good business practices. Explore the playlist, get inspired, and share your favorites with us @ArtisanalLLC.
Whether you’re making a venture-capital pitch or planning a wedding toast, Julian Treasure shares the four cornerstones for powerful speech, for which he uses the acronym HAIL: honesty, authenticity, integrity, and love. Don’t miss the seven deadly sins of speaking, the value of silence, and valuable warm-up exercises to practice before important speaking engagements.
Manoush Zomorodi explains how boredom will ignite a network in your brain called “default mode” and give you the clarity needed to set goals. Zomorodi makes the case against constant connectivity and suggests that users self-regulate and embrace the lost art of spacing out - it can lead to your most brilliant ideas! Be sure to also check out her interview with TWiT.tv’s Megan Morrone on Triangulation Episode 285.
Don’t limit your earning potential! Pricing consultant Casey Brown argues that employers will never pay you what you’re worth, but rather pay you what you think you’re worth. However, you do have control over this, and Brown explains how to clearly define and communicate your value.
In this unique TED talk, Tim Leberecht describes the four principles for building great organizations in the age of AI and machine learning. He urges teams to create beauty - rise above what is necessary, create healthy work relationships within the team, face what’s in front of them, and continue to ask questions. Technological innovations are changing the workplace, but Leberecht highlights the importance of feeling at home in your organization and creating that feeling for others.
Adam Grant, an organizational psychologist and the author of Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World, shares the unexpected habits of “originals” and encourages employers to champion them as they drive change in the world. From time management to failure, Grant describes what sets creative thinkers apart from their peers.
Margaret Heffernan offers a radical approach to achieving positive results: rather than focusing on star employees who outperform others, organizations that focus on building cohesive teams achieve greater results. In building those relationships, you foster a culture of helpfulness where team members are open to receiving and offering help.
Author of Start With Why and Leaders Eat Last, Simon Sinek reveals how inspiring leaders and their organizations think, act, and communicate. With growing competition in every field, Sinek asserts that the key to success is clearly defining your Why. Customers aren’t buying what you do, but why you do it, and Sinek argues that great leaders begin with Why and have the ability to inspire those around them.
While this TED talk was recorded over a decade ago, serial entrepreneur and author of Angel Investing David S. Rose’s points are invaluable. He dissects the ten different characteristics you must convey for a successful pitch, noting that at the end of the day, you are the investment, so it’s imperative to sell yourself - your knowledge, your commitment, your leadership. From the pitch timeline to errors that will set you back, this TED talk will prepare you to walk into your pitch meeting confidently.
This refreshing and inspiring TED talk by Luvvie Ajayi, author of I’m Judging You: The Do-Better Manual, is a reflection on fear and the ways in which it keeps us from being who we really are. Ajayi invites us to speak our truth, especially when it’s difficult to do so. She shares three simple questions to ask yourself to determine whether to speak up. Don’t let fear take over this year; whatever you set your mind to do, do it. If you feel compelled to speak up, do so. And if fear creeps in, do it anyway.
