This past November (11/7/2015), I had the incredible opportunity to give my own TEDx talk at TEDxNormal. My talk, titled “The Importance of Being an Unselfish Storyteller,” gave insight to the importance of sharing secrets and struggles unselfishly to help others. It’s one of the many forms of storytelling that I feel is often overlooked, as I have overlooked it dozens if not hundreds or thousands of times in my life. I begin the talk by giving an example of a regretful memory of a time where I didn’t share a story that could’ve made a difference. Instead of inspiring someone else, I selfishly kept to myself.
I’m inspired by stories and believe in the power of storytelling. Since giving my own talk on one aspect of storytelling, I’ve been watching every talk I can find on the subject from fellow TEDx speakers. Here are my favorite 9 quotes I’ve found from TEDx speeches along with links to their talks. Please take some time to watch these great talks if interested in diving deeper.
“Even if people stare at me, at least they’re looking, and I have the opportunity to tell them my story.” – Marina Morris, “Sixty Second Story,” TEDxOaklandUniversity
“Story lets us carve our initials in the wet cement of this moment.” – Phil Kaye, “Why We Tell Stories,” TEDxMiddlebury
“Sometimes, the best stories don’t come from being the loudest person in the room, but instead, from saying nothing at all.” – Kim Behrens Kaufman, “What a Grandma’s Experience Taught Me About Storytelling,” TEDxNormal
“What makes us unique, what makes us amazing, and what makes us connect is our story.” – Emad Rahim, “Tell Me Your Story: Empathy to Combat Social Violence,” TEDxAlbany
“In the end, you’re the author…Do not let anyone write your story. Write your own story.” – Jorge R. Gutierrez, “Every picture tells a story -- The Book of Life,” TEDxKids@SMU
“You’re going to tell yourself stories anyway, so why not tell yourself the good ones?” – Jodie Rogers, “The Stories We Tell Ourselves,” TEDxBerkleeValencia
“We think in story because story provides a context for the facts so we can make sense of them.” – Lisa Cron, “Wired for Story,” TEDxFurmanU
“Story was more crucial to our evolution than our opposable thumbs because all opposable thumbs did was let us hang on. It was story that told us what to hang on to.” – Lisa Cron, “Wired for Story,” TEDxFurmanU
“We may not be able to control everything that happens to us, but we can always control the story we tell around it, and choose to seek beauty even in the ugliest situations.” – Jo Harvey, “Rewriting The Story Of My Addiction,” TEDxUniversityofNevada