Alan Black and TED Talks

This from my friend and colleague Dr. Alan Black http://www.cre8ng.com/ This week rather than an article that I have written I am sharing a list of 12 TED Talks I am recommending that you take time each day to listen to. Other People's Ideas Impact Creativity Reading ideas, listening to ideas in speeches, discussing ideas with and by other people, whether from the ancient past, recent past, current times can influence and spark our own creativity. This week let the ideas of 12 TED Talks impact your thinking and your mind in order to spark or respark you thinking. MONDAY Amy Tan on creativity Video on TED.com Novelist Amy Tan digs deep into the creative process, looking for hints of how hers evolved. http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/amy_tan_on_creativity.html Jeff Bezos: What matters more than your talents Video on TED.com In this Princeton University graduation address, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos makes the case that our character is reflected not in the gifts we're endowed with at birth, but by the choices we make ov... http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/jeff_bezos_gifts_vs_choices.html TUESDAY Stefan Sagmeister: The power of time off Video on TED.com Every seven years, designer Stefan Sagmeister closes his New York studio for a yearlong sabbatical to rejuvenate and refresh their creative outlook. He explains the often overlooked value of time o... http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/stefan_sagmeister_the_power_of_time_off.html Milton Glaser on using design to make ideas new Video on TED.com From the TED archives: The legendary graphic designer Milton Glaser dives deep into a new painting inspired by Piero della Francesca. From here, he muses on what makes a convincing poster, by break... http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/milton_glaser_on_using_design_to_make_ideas_new.html WEDNESDAY Scott McCloud on comics Video on TED.com In this unmissable look at the magic of comics, Scott McCloud bends the presentation format into a cartoon-like experience, where colorful diversions whiz through childhood fascinations and imagine... http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/scott_mccloud_on_comics.html Moshe Safdie on building uniqueness Video on TED.com Looking back over his long career, architect Moshe Safdie delves into four of his design projects and explains how he labored to make each one truly unique for its site and its users. http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/moshe_safdie_on_building_uniqueness.html THURSDAY The Creative Spark Video channel on TED.com How are we inspired? Where might our imaginations take us? What does creativity look like in its wildest form? These clever, invigorating speakers plumb the wellspring of inventio... http://www.ted.com/themes/the_creative_spark.html Tales of Invention Video channel on TED.com TED has always loved a good creation story. No matter the scale -- kitchen, continent, or solar system -- invention grants us access to the frontiers of our understanding. Legendary designer Phi... http://www.ted.com/themes/tales_of_invention.html FRIDAY Tom Wujec Profile on TED.com Tom Wujec studies how we share and absorb information. He's an innovative practitioner of business visualization -- using design and technology to help groups solve problems and understand ideas. H... http://www.ted.com/speakers/tom_wujec.html Derek Sivers Profile on TED.com Through his new project, MuckWork, Derek Sivers wants to lessen the burdens (and boredom) of creative people. http://www.ted.com/speakers/derek_sivers.html EXTRA Elizabeth Gilbert Profile on TED.com The author of Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert has thought long and hard about some large topics. Her next fascination: genius, and how we ruin it. http://www.ted.com/speakers/elizabeth_gilbert.html Elizabeth Gilbert on nurturing creativity Video on TED.com Elizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses -- and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person "being" a genius, all of us "have" a genius. It'... http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html