As consultants, we learn for a living. So, we recently asked our team members to submit their favorite TED talks that have given them new insights. From talks related directly to purpose and work, to those that expose the fine art of conversation, here are a collection of our favorite talks. The usual suspects are here: Adam Grant, Simon Sinek, Brené Brown, and you’ll find some surprises as well.
Be sure to catch Tim Urban’s glimpse inside the mind of a master procrastinator. Or Benjamin Zander’s talk on the transformative power of classical music. The stacking of seemingly disparate information and insight can have the most profound effect, so we compiled these talks here into a library of sorts that you can listen to juxtaposed. And, of course, we’ve already written about Shawn Achor and the Happiness Advantage at work — if you’ve not watched his TED talk below, it’s a must-see.
One of our team members offered her two favorite TED talks that dovetail together: Adam Grant’s discussion of the most surprising habits of original thinkers and Neil Blumenthal’s, CEO of Warby Parker, on disrupting a major industry’s status quo. “I appreciate and agree with both of their articulated points, specifically around thinking outside the box, re-energizing new perspectives, championing non-conformity, failing fast and trying again without hesitation. It’s about bright, encouraging, and dynamic abandonment in order to change the status quo. And it pushes me to be better in my work (or, at the very least, try to be!).”
Enjoy!
Do you have a favorite talk not listed here? Let us know in the comments.