5 Insanely Profound TED Talks to Help You Become Better at Communication

While recently visiting one of my cousins, I had the lovely opportunity to spend some time with her almost one-year old son. I don’t know if you are one of those people who loves playing with kids, but I definitely am! There is something so refreshing about spending time with children. But while we were busy tossing a ball at each other, in his tiny, kid voice, my nephew called out something. Something that, to me, sounded like utter gibberish. But the next minute, there was my cousin, rushing into the room with her kid’s meal, informing me that he had asked for it!

I was amazed by this! It was almost like they had their own secret language to communicate in. And it is not just them. I have seen so many parents have their own ‘secret language’ with their kids, so many spouses who have code words for specific purposes that they communicate with each other in, and even dog owners with a ‘special’ set of endearments only for their pet (Yes, I definitely know someone who does this!).

Which brings to the central theme of today’s article: Communication. In 2016, LinkedIn conducted a survey of 291 hiring managers in the U.S. and published a list of Top 10 Most In-Demand Soft Skills. Any guesses for which skill topped the list? Yup, you guessed it right! Communication.

So why is communication so important, you ask? Why, in recent times, has communication become one of the most sought-after skills in many professions? There are a lot of ways in which communication plays a crucial role in our modern lives. And it is also an important part of the ingredient of Life Résumé called Professional Skills or Life Skills.

If you want to read about the various ingredients of building a kickass Life Résumé, you can find the articles here: Part I and Part II.

And if you’re new to this website and want to know what the hell this Life Résumé is, please click here.

Importance of Communication

As a species that prides itself on being social, communication has been a vital part of our lives for millenniums. In fact, communication skills are what distinguished us as a species and is what sets us apart from so many other creatures that have walked on this beautiful planet. It has been our ability to convey to each other thoughts, messages and ideologies, that has worked wonders for humankind.

While most of us learn how to speak in the first couple of years of our lives, there are many aspects of human behaviour that play a role in making us better communicators. For effective communication, not only is it necessary for you to be an effective speaker but also an effective listener. Communication is a very dynamic process which is a shared experience between two or more people and is complete only when the intended meaning is conveyed to the recipient.

And whether you like it or not, everything that you do in your day-to-day, is driven by communication. Right from ordering your groceries to having a successful or not-so-successful marriage, a lot is driven by your communication skills. So why not find a way to hone those skills?

Learning through our own experiences is, of course one of the best forms of learning. But today, in 2019, there are so many different ways and sources to learn from. One of the most effective ways, for me, has been watching TED Talks. If you want to know what TED Talks really are and how do they operate you can find the details here.

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5 TED Talks to Crack the Code of Communication

I have been really wanting to write an article on communication and different ways in which you can improve yours. But, instead of writing, I thought, why not listen to the experts drill down various aspects of it. Because, if I were to write an article myself, it would surely have a major influence from all of these spectacular speakers.

Here are the 5 TED Talks that will change the way you think about effective communication:

How to Read People

Whenever anyone has asked me the question, “If you were to choose a superpower, what would it be?”, I have always, without a doubt said ‘Mindreading’! And Lynne Franklin tells you exactly how to do that in 12 minutes. This has been one of the most interesting TED Talks I have watched and I have learnt so much about the people around me. Interestingly, it also gives you an insight into how you can deal with different kinds of people and how you can make them agree with you. 

How to Speak So That People Will Listen

This is a very to-the-point talk that gets into the technicalities of effective speaking. In this short 10-minute talk, Julian Treasure talks about the seven deadly sins of speaking, the seven habits that you need to avoid to become an effective speaker. He then goes on to talk about the four habits you need to follow so that people will want to listen to you. And in the end, he wraps it up beautifully with a few exercises that focus on how you can train your toolbox, your voice.

How Your Body Language Affects Everything That You Do

In this very powerful talk, Amy Cuddy talks about how your body language can shape what you think and feel. One of the best parts of this talk is when Amy digs into the idea of high-power and low-power poses. It is mind-boggling to see how just using different poses can influence various human abilities like risk tolerance and can lead to a significant change in your hormone levels. The most important take-away from this talk is that your body language not only influences how others perceive and communicate with you, it also influences how you perceive and communicate with yourself.

The Art of Asking

In this very unusual talk, Amanda Palmer shares her story of how she went from ‘making people pay for music’ to just ‘letting people pay for music’. This is not one of your conventional talks on communication but it drives a very fundamental point about connection, trust and the art of asking. Even though this talk mostly addresses artists, I think the principles she talks about can very easily be used in any walk of life.

How to Truly Connect

When you watch this TED Talk by Brené Brown, most of you are going to think that this has nothing to do with communication at all! And you would be right. This talk is not about communication, it is about that one factor that can help you make or break a connection. And I believe connection is truly fundamental if you want to be an effective communicator. This is a very powerful talk that touches so many crucial aspects of leading a whole-hearted life. It is humorous, informative and presents a very unique perspective on vulnerability.

These are some of the most influential TED Talks I have heard so far on becoming kickass communicators. Are there any others that you have heard and that have majorly influenced how you look at the art of communication? Please let me know in the comments.

We are now at a point in this journey of Life Résumé, where we are starting to dig deeper into each of the ingredients and how we can work towards making our own kickass Life Résumé. We will subsequently be talking more about the ingredients and habits and also how we can incorporate some of these techniques into our lives. Until then, keep learning, keep growing!

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Photo by Vidar Nordli-Mathisen on Unsplash