[Music]
[Applause]
I’m here so I want to tell you a story
there’s an old librarian that lives in
my head I like to call her Ethel
her job is to tend to decades of
memories and file them away
appropriately in the event that I should
need to recall this information again in
the future
Ethel is very good at both filing and
retrieving unless it comes to people’s
names and birthdays huh you with me
yeah sometimes it takes dearest Ethel a
hot minute to run to the back to recall
what it is I need and she does not much
care that I should probably remember my
dates name before I go to say good night
that’s a true story
so while Ethel’s rummaging around in the
back I’m there to fill space with
awkward caveman-like noises like some of
us are aware of our own Ethel’s but not
many of us these incredible little
lightning-fast brain librarians that
recall precise information out of a near
infinite archive of data stored in our
head now usually we retrieve thoughts
very automatically and haphazardly but
today I am here to facilitate a unique
experience I call mindful metacognition
where we will mindfully observe the
curious retrieval process of our Ethel’s
and the curious way our mind attaches
thoughts emotions and memories to a word
I will show you how one word can spark
in your mind a thousand pictures
now one would assume that because a word
has a clear definition that it means the
same thing to everyone but that’s not
entirely true let’s take for instance
the words I love you I’m sorry and I
promise would you say that those words
have the same meaning and value to
everyone no it’s because of our life
experience that words have different
connotations for all of us let’s go a
little bit further with this idea and
explore the term high-schooler
recall you all just recalled something
explore the term high school now we all
know what this word means
but what we recall what Ethel recalls
when we hear this word is something
different altogether
now this variations of this technique
were once used by Freud called free
association or word association now
maybe you have fond memories of high
school and you recall lovely things
great memories like you’re popular and
you’re voted prom king like me or or
maybe you were bullied and you have less
fond memories of the Piranha tank they
call an educational institution also
like me or maybe as a result you’re very
confused about all your feelings and
have a very expensive therapist like me
but either way what we associate with
the word is completely different based
on our own unique life experiences so
let’s try to create a mindful
metacognitive experience that is to say
thinking about our thinking but
mindfully in a similar way that a
magician pulls a rabbit out of a hat
I’m gonna pull completely random
thoughts from your subconscious and put
them on replay for you in your conscious
mind now just observe what Ethel brings
up for you a thought a memory
a feeling even a physical reaction an
opinion and remember you can’t get this
wrong if nothing comes up for you at all
don’t panic it doesn’t mean you’re Ethel
is dead or broken just be mindful and
observe whatever it is that comes up for
you don’t dismiss a thought no matter
how trivial no matter how foolish just
receive what Ethel has to offer you so
let’s try this relax your shoulders take
a deep breath that one’s for me but you
can have one too now I want you to
downcast your eyes or close them
altogether just listen for the sake of
mindfulness novelty and curiosity to see
what your Ethel pulls up for you happy
place
phobia
mother
bully
x-ray
first kiss
marriage
hardest goodbye
big mistake
Trump Oh what did that pull you out well
welcome back everyone now I know that I
think of a card game I used to play with
my grandma when I hear the word Trump
but you all went somewhere else I think
Ethel brought up for you laughter and
shot your eyes up to me right away how
interesting is that thanks Ethel now
through this process of mindful
metacognition I have shown you how one
word can spark in your mind a thousand
stories but I proposed to you today is
this why not share in exchange these
stories in my own life I’ve been gun
using word prompts to create interesting
deep rich conversation just curious to
find out what other people’s Ethel’s
brought up for them the theme of today’s
TEDx talks is wait what try using this
as a prompt with your fellow TEDx
delegates and see what moment from their
lives or listen to what moment even from
today comes up for them thank you
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
I’m here so I want to tell you a story
there’s an old librarian that lives in
my head I like to call her Ethel
her job is to tend to decades of
memories and file them away
appropriately in the event that I should
need to recall this information again in
the future
Ethel is very good at both filing and
retrieving unless it comes to people’s
names and birthdays huh you with me
yeah sometimes it takes dearest Ethel a
hot minute to run to the back to recall
what it is I need and she does not much
care that I should probably remember my
dates name before I go to say good night
that’s a true story
so while Ethel’s rummaging around in the
back I’m there to fill space with
awkward caveman-like noises like some of
us are aware of our own Ethel’s but not
many of us these incredible little
lightning-fast brain librarians that
recall precise information out of a near
infinite archive of data stored in our
head now usually we retrieve thoughts
very automatically and haphazardly but
today I am here to facilitate a unique
experience I call mindful metacognition
where we will mindfully observe the
curious retrieval process of our Ethel’s
and the curious way our mind attaches
thoughts emotions and memories to a word
I will show you how one word can spark
in your mind a thousand pictures
now one would assume that because a word
has a clear definition that it means the
same thing to everyone but that’s not
entirely true let’s take for instance
the words I love you I’m sorry and I
promise would you say that those words
have the same meaning and value to
everyone no it’s because of our life
experience that words have different
connotations for all of us let’s go a
little bit further with this idea and
explore the term high-schooler
recall you all just recalled something
explore the term high school now we all
know what this word means
but what we recall what Ethel recalls
when we hear this word is something
different altogether
now this variations of this technique
were once used by Freud called free
association or word association now
maybe you have fond memories of high
school and you recall lovely things
great memories like you’re popular and
you’re voted prom king like me or or
maybe you were bullied and you have less
fond memories of the Piranha tank they
call an educational institution also
like me or maybe as a result you’re very
confused about all your feelings and
have a very expensive therapist like me
but either way what we associate with
the word is completely different based
on our own unique life experiences so
let’s try to create a mindful
metacognitive experience that is to say
thinking about our thinking but
mindfully in a similar way that a
magician pulls a rabbit out of a hat
I’m gonna pull completely random
thoughts from your subconscious and put
them on replay for you in your conscious
mind now just observe what Ethel brings
up for you a thought a memory
a feeling even a physical reaction an
opinion and remember you can’t get this
wrong if nothing comes up for you at all
don’t panic it doesn’t mean you’re Ethel
is dead or broken just be mindful and
observe whatever it is that comes up for
you don’t dismiss a thought no matter
how trivial no matter how foolish just
receive what Ethel has to offer you so
let’s try this relax your shoulders take
a deep breath that one’s for me but you
can have one too now I want you to
downcast your eyes or close them
altogether just listen for the sake of
mindfulness novelty and curiosity to see
what your Ethel pulls up for you happy
place
phobia
mother
bully
x-ray
first kiss
marriage
hardest goodbye
big mistake
Trump Oh what did that pull you out well
welcome back everyone now I know that I
think of a card game I used to play with
my grandma when I hear the word Trump
but you all went somewhere else I think
Ethel brought up for you laughter and
shot your eyes up to me right away how
interesting is that thanks Ethel now
through this process of mindful
metacognition I have shown you how one
word can spark in your mind a thousand
stories but I proposed to you today is
this why not share in exchange these
stories in my own life I’ve been gun
using word prompts to create interesting
deep rich conversation just curious to
find out what other people’s Ethel’s
brought up for them the theme of today’s
TEDx talks is wait what try using this
as a prompt with your fellow TEDx
delegates and see what moment from their
lives or listen to what moment even from
today comes up for them thank you
[Applause]
[Music]
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