What you'll learn from this collection of passionate experts is incredible, and all of their insight is packed into less than 25 minutes per video. I hope you'll find these talks inspiring, informative and thought-provoking! They're arranged in alphabetical order by speakers first name because I could never pick my absolute favourite, they're all so good!
Amy Cuddy: Your body language shapes who you are
Arianna Huffington: How to succeed? Get more sleep
Andy Puddicombe: All it takes is 10 mindful minutes
Angela Lee Duckworth: The key to success? Grit
Brene Brown: The power of vulnerability
Daniel Amen: Change your brain, change your life
Elizabeth Gilbert: Your elusive creative genius
Eric Goodman: The unexpected physical consequences of technology
Goldie Hawn and Daniel Siegel: The power of mindfulness
Greg Wells: Sleep better, eat better, move better
Jill Bolte Taylor: My stroke of insight
John Ratey: The importance of movement
Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity?
Lissa Rankin: Is there scientific proof we can heal ourselves?
Matthieu Ricard: The habits of happiness
Maysoon Zayid: I got 99 problems... palsy is just one
Rick Hanson: Hardwiring happiness
Shawn Achor: The happy secret to better work
Susan Cain: The power of introverts
Temple Grandin: The world needs all kinds of minds
Tony Robbins: Why we do what we do
Did I miss any of your favourite TED Talks? Tweet me @LifeDelish!
Sleep, or a lack of it, has been on my radar lately. And when something is at the forefront of your consciousness, your reticular activating system serves to make you aware of information relating to that something. For me, the information has come in the form of some Globe and Mail articles, a vegan cookbook, and a TED talk. It’s so interesting when different angles on the same subject come together.
Brendan Brazier on Nutrition’s Influence on Sleep
I recently interviewed Brendan Brazier for GranvilleOnline.ca, and have been fascinated by what he has to say about sleep in his new book, Whole Foods to Thrive – part vegan cookbook, part healthy living guide, and part environmental action plan.
Brazier mentions how numerous studies emphasize how much sleep we need, but he argues that the quality of sleep is what we should be most concerned about, and that quality of sleep is directly related to our diet. One major source of stress is nutritional stress – up to 40% of overall stress, says Brazier – brought on by a diet that includes empty calories, processed foods, and other nasties.
High stress levels result in high cortisol levels, a hormone with many effects, including disrupting our delta-phase sleep – “the phase in which growth hormone is released, naturally triggering cellular repair and regeneration.” So one major way to improve sleep is to improve diet. Read more about Brazier's take diet and nutritional stress here.
Arianna Huffington Encourages Women to Sleep Their Way to the Top
Below is a great TED talk on sleep with Huffington Post co-founder Arianna Huffington. My favourite quote from the video:
“The way to a more productive, more inspired, more joyful life is getting enough sleep. And we women are going to lead the way in this new revolution, this new feminist issue – we are literally going to sleep our way to the top. Literally.”
Sleep Deprivation is a National Epidemic. And It’s Killing Us, Says The Globe and Mail
“Because sleep is when the body and especially the brain regenerate and repair themselves, sleeplessness has been identified as a factor in an endless list of afflictions, including hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, memory loss, bipolar disorder, reduced immunity, mood swings, impaired carbohydrate metabolism and increased heart-rate variability. Not to mention depression and substance abuse and the impairment of memory, self-expression and the ability to read emotions in others. Oh, and a hundred thousand motor-vehicle accidents a year” Read the whole Globe and Mail article here.
If you, like me, struggle with getting enough sleep, I hope you’ll find this information helpful. I’ve never been a good sleeper but there are a few rules I follow that usually have me counting more, and better quality, sheep.
Number one is not eating less than three hours before I got to bed. Sleeping is for repair and regeneration, not digestion, so it’s important that processing the food in your gut is not on your body’s night time to-do list.
Number two is reducing external stimulation as it gets closer to bed time. Bright lights, lively music, TV screens and computer monitors are things that should be avoided in at least the hour before hitting the sack.
And lastly, I like to do some easy reading once I’m all tucked in. By easy reading, I mean nothing too heavy or disturbing, and without any calls to action (I’ve restricted self-help books from my night time repertoire as they’re likely to have me itching to get out of bed and put their advice into action).
It’s no secret that answering the what-do-I-want-to-be-when-I-grow-up question has been a toughie for me. I’ve been an environmental educator, an aerobics instructor, the social director at a retirement home, and had my own personal training business as well as worked in a number of gyms and managed a sport and recreation facility. I’ve dropped out of teacher’s college and massage therapy school and I've auditioned to be a fitness expert on reality TV.
My epic quest for career contentment and fondness for non-fiction have gone hand in hand, and perusing the self-help section at the bookstore always gives me a rush. Maybe one of these books will contain the answers I’ve been seeking. Many have been stinkers, but the following three books have been truly helpful and insightful, and helped convince me that I wasn’t crazy to think I could (discover and) follow my dreams.
As I shared on my About page, I felt like a square peg in a world of round holes for an uncomfortably long period of time. Reading this book was like turning a corner and coming upon a field of happy, dancing square pegs eager to share the secrets of their success. Eikleberry breaks down the six basic personality types according to psychologist John Holland – Artistic, Social, Enterprising, Investigative, Realistic, Conventional – and further dissects the creative personality. She prompts and encourages the reader to discover the specifics of what their ideal career would look like and provides valuable tools to define or design that career by listing 25 categories that encompass 270 different creative occupations.
This is a brilliant book by a brilliant and very forward-thinking man. Sir Ken Robinson, an internationally respected educator, speaks on encouraging different types of intelligence with characteristic British wit. Robinson describes The Element as “the point at which natural talent meets personal passion.” And, he says, when people arrive there, “they feel most themselves, most inspired, and achieve at their highest levels.” Included are the stories of famous creatives such as Paul McCartney, Meg Ryan, Arianna Huffington, and choreographer Gillian Lynne. Robinson encourages the reader to think differently about intelligence and to discover themselves by finding their tribe: “For most people, a primary component of being in their Element is connecting with other people who share their passion and a desire to make the most of themselves through it.” Watch his TED Talk on creativity below.
As a follow-up to Goodman’s The Anti 9-to-5 Guide, My So-called Freelance Life provides a detailed map for navigating the freelance world. With 15 years behind her as a successful freelancer she brings weight to her advice on time management (especially when working from home), pursuing ideal clients, and shunning the “notion that artists have to starve” by creating a business plan. This book is easy to read, filled with knee-smacking humour, and leaves you with the hopeful epilogue “I Am Freelance (And So Can You!)”
