If you are an entrepreneur, solopreneur, freelancer, or just someone that wants to take the opportunity to better themselves both personally and professionally then you really should dive into the TEDTalks collection. They are chocked full of insights on everything from human nature and development to cutting edge breakthroughs in web technology. These little gems can send waves of inspiration through most. Specifically though for those seeking to gain professional knowledge, they can help you to challenge your fears of moving forward and push you to believe in yourself so that you can be the best in your profession.
With literally thousands of TedTalks available for viewing, it can be a daunting task to weed through them all to find the ones that pertain to you professionally. Our time as professionals is valuable – so why waste it?
Below I’ve put together a short list of the most essential TedTalks that I’ve found to be the most crucial for every aspiring entrepreneur or solopreneur out there.
1. Richard St. John: 8 Secrets of Success
In this talk Richard St John shares information gathered from conversations with 500 (yes that’s five hundred) extraordinarily successful people. He simply asked them what helped them to get to the top, and then narrowed down their responses to eight specific traits that all of them had in common. Want the same kind of success in your life? The follow their lead.
2. Seth Godin: How to Get Your Ideas to Spread
Being good at what you do, well it just isn’t “good” enough to get you to the top of the latter. You must be great, bold, even bizarre. According to Seth Godin it is these crazy ideas that will spiral into something remarkable and memorable. Most of us these days all lead super busy lives, so the new ideas need to stand out to gain any bit of traction. It doesn’t really matter much about your idea specifically as it is your ability to get your idea to reach the masses.
Take the new rapid ramen cooker for example. Christopher Johnson is the inventor and soon-to-be Shark Tank Star who came up with a better way to cook the #1 meal found in most dorm rooms which is Top Ramen. While studying at the University of California Davis, Johnson realized he could cook Top Ramen in half the time using a microwave by simply changing the way the bowl was shaped. With a little experimenting and a lot of hard work that followed, the Rapid Ramen Cooker was born. With thousands of potential customers everywhere on College Campus, Johnson sold over 3000 units in just the first 3 weeks alone and they have been flying off the shelves ever since. The Rapid Ramen Square Bowl already seems to be everywhere for sale including Walmart which doesn’t get any bigger than that.
Christopher used his experience on Shark Tank to propel his idea to the next level. He coupled the Shark Tank experience with social media plugs and put himself in the spotlight for potential product investors.
3. Simon Sinek: How Great Leaders Inspire Action
Simon Sinek explores the idea of leadership and why some people are seemingly much better at inspiring others into action versus their competitors. Sinek’s famous “golden circle of motivation” theory has raised the “Why?” question in such leaders as Martin Luther King Jr. for his civil rights movement to Apple’s leadership in the business world. His theory examines certain patterns that seem to predict the success rates of various leaders around the world.
“People don’t buy what you do. People buy why you do it.” is one line in this particular TedTalk that hits super close to home for us as entrepreneurs. Do you wish to be a leader in your industry? It’s imperative then to understand this principle.
If you haven’t already seen these TedTalks, and are an entrepreneur, solopreneur, or freelancer (or simply dream of becoming one) it’s imperative that you add them to your list of necessary viewing material.
What TedTalks have you viewed/listened to? Are there any in particular that have helped you to reach your goals – either business or personal? We would love to hear more about your personal experiences in the comments below.
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