TED TALKS

TED TALKS INSPIRATION

THE FUTURE OF BRANDING 

TALAYA WALLER

Did you know the average employee has ten times the amount of followers as their company on social media? In a post-recession economy where innovation continues to disrupt the way we do business, corporations have turned to personal branding to help build consumer trust. In this engaging and insightful talk, personal branding expert Dr. Talaya Waller discusses the power that is unleashed when corporations and consumers alike develop brands that are authentic and personal.

Dr. Waller is an award-winning marketing scholar and international speaker whose mission is to help leaders share their story, leverage their expertise and make a positive impact on society. As founder and CEO of Waller & Company, Dr. Waller works with executives, entrepreneurs, and public figures from a variety of industries in the U.S. and abroad to develop awareness and credibility for their brand. She is featured in publications such as Forbes, Fast Company, The Huffington Post, Business Insider, and The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Dr. Talaya Waller is an international personal branding consultant, speaker, and award-winning research scholar. Her consultancy helps thought-leaders build influence and credibility for their personal brand. Dr. Waller’s mission is to help people share their story, leverage expertise, and make a positive impact on society. She has a Doctorate in Business Administration with a concentration in Leadership and is presently researching personal branding. Dr. Waller has an online presence of over 35,000 followers and is published in Forbes, Fast Company, and The Chronicle of Higher Education. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.

WHY YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO PEOPLE YOU DISAGREE WITH 

Zachery R. Wood 

We get stronger, not weaker, by engaging with ideas and people we disagree with, says Zachary R. Wood. In an important talk about finding common ground, Wood makes the case that we can build empathy and gain understanding by engaging tactfully and thoughtfully with controversial ideas and unfamiliar perspectives. "Tuning out opposing viewpoints doesn't make them go away," Wood says. "To achieve progress in the face of adversity, we need a genuine commitment to gaining a deeper understanding of humanity."

INTERACTIVE BEAUTY  BY DESIGN

In graphic design, Marian Bantjes says, throwing your individuality into a project is heresy. She explains how she built her career doing just that, bringing her signature delicate illustrations to storefronts, valentines and even genetic diagrams.

WHY YOU SHOULD MAKE USELESS THINGS

SIMONE GIERTZ

In this joyful, heartfelt talk featuring demos of her wonderfully wacky creations, Simone Giertz shares her craft: making useless robots. Her inventions -- designed to chop vegetables, cut hair, apply lipstick and more -- rarely (if ever) succeed, and that's the point. "The true beauty of making useless things [is] this acknowledgment that you don't always know what the best answer is," Giertz says. "It turns off that voice in your head that tells you that you know exactly how the world works. Maybe a toothbrush helmet isn't the answer, but at least you're asking the question."