Four TED Talks That Changed the World (Or Maybe Just Me)

Recently I received an email from a recruiter asking if I wanted to meet up during this year’s TED Conference. We had spoken briefly at a previous TED event but it was now obvious that he had a specific reason to want to meet up.

As CEO of Hightail (and a glutton for punishment), I attend a variety of different conferences every year, from tech expos and industry events to business seminars and international summits. Speaking with recruiters and sales people is part and parcel of the conference scene, but this time the idea of sitting down to hear a pitch felt inappropriate.

Before my first TED Conference, a friend described it as “a spa for your brain”. Now, I love technology and truly believe in the significance and value of the ideas and products generated in the world’s great tech centers. But as a Silicon Valley veteran of nearly 20 years, I know that we sometimes get caught up in the echo chamber and overestimate our own importance.

This is what I value most about attending TED. It’s a fantastic opportunity to get my head out from the tech world and see and hear from people who don’t necessarily think that a new productivity app is a very important thing and the only angry birds they care about are the ones they’ve spent months studying in some remote jungle. So when a recruiter tries to arrange a meeting that has an obvious business agenda, it seems against the spirit of TED.

I’m not naïve enough to believe that every individual giving a TED Talk is completely altruistic. I know that behind every 15 minutes of on-stage chat there may be a book on the shelf, a business to sell or a personal brand to promote. But at TED, ideas are in the spotlight while the sales pitch stays (mostly) silent in the wings. That’s why I loved getting out to Monterey and now Vancouver to hear about a whole world of interesting ideas and developments.

Obviously, the T in TED stands for Technology and I’ve seen some amazing tech-themed talks over the years, like the Elon Musk interview from last year. But my fondest TED memories (aside from Robin Williams entertaining the audience while the crew sorted out technical issues) tend to be those talks that opened my mind to thoughts and arenas well outside my immediate world. The off-stage pitch is that this new knowledge helps me be a better leader, but the spotlight remains on the ideas.

I’m looking forward to attending this year’s event and discovering new people doing interesting things beyond my usual circle. In the meantime, I’d like to share four of my favorite TED talks and what they meant to me. Hope you enjoy.

Doris Kearns Goodwin: Learning from past presidents

The historian uses the lives of Abraham Lincoln and Lyndon Johnson to show why ambition should drive you to change the world for the better and why you’ll never regret spending more time with your children.

Richard Preston: The giant trees

The writer speaks about his passion for the giant redwoods of Northern California. The rarely explored upper canopies were once thought to be deserted but in fact thrive with unique life forms. That such mysteries exist so close to the hubbub of the tech world fascinates me.

Deb Roy: The birth of a word

The MIT researcher placed video cameras and microphones in every room of his house to study how language developed in his newborn son. This one has real wow factor, both from a technology and big data perspective, but also during that amazing 40-second audio time-lapse of his son turning “gaa gaa” into “water”. Oh, and it ends with glorious “wow” of its own.

Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action

The author explains how Apple, Martin Luther King and the Wright Brothers succeeded where others didn’t by starting with why. Though I didn’t actually see this one in person, it’s an inspiring piece and certainly the Ted Talk I have shared the most with others.

Photo: James Duncan Davidson/TED, used under a Creative Commons license.