can a chicken nugget changed the world
my first job when I was 16 was in
McDonald’s and my career is pretty much
gone downhill since then but I showed a
flair for cleaning toilets and pretty
soon I was promoted to the chicken
station now on the chicken station I was
responsible for the chicken nuggets and
what I would do with the boxes of six
chicken nuggets is I would put in an
extra nugget I would put in seven
nuggets and then I would watch peeking
out from the kitchen as a person opened
it and had that first nugget and that
second nugget and somewhere around the
third nugget they would notice and they
would look around suspiciously as if
they were gonna get caught and then they
would realize that this was their lucky
day they were being smart upon by the
big guy upstairs Ronald McDonald and
this was significant this was a sign
this was a symbol that today should be
the day they took that leap they should
move across the country to follow their
dreams they should quit their job and
start their own business they should
propose to the woman of their dreams I
dread to think how many children were
conceived because of my nuggets
it’s ridiculous isn’t it this idea that
something so small could have such an
impact on someone’s life let me read you
this letter that I saw floating around
that someone wrote into a local
newspaper in the UK thank you to the man
who gave me 20 P in the car park at West
Middlesex Hospital last Tuesday morning
when I found myself short for parking
thanks to you I was able to see my
father alive for the last time he died
that afternoon these days I don’t work
at McDonald’s I work with a lot of
nonprofits helping them to share their
story helping them to raise more money
one of the organization’s I worked with
worked with survivors of sexual abuse
people who were abused as children who
were now adults and they help them
through the legal system to get some
sort of justice and they help them
through therapy to cope with this
terrible thing that had happened to them
one of the clients was a farmer and he
told his therapist that sometimes he
still thought about what had happened to
him and this darkness inside of him
every once in a while it would rise up
and overcome him and he would start to
have the most horrible thoughts of how
he could possibly escape it and his
therapist said what do you need and he
said I just need you there with me at
those times to tell me I’m okay so do
you know what she did this amazing super
fantastic therapist she wrote on a
little bit of paper you’re okay and he
kept it in his pocket and every time
that darkness rose up inside of him he
took it out and read those two simple
words you’re okay when I think back over
my life and the ups and downs and
dealing with the death of loved ones and
dealing with depression dealing with the
hard times it isn’t grand gestures that
got me through it and helped me and
helped me survive and kept me here today
it was the little things it was the hugs
and cuddles
it was the text messages six months
later to check if I was okay it was the
cops at E in bed
it was the lasagnas when I couldn’t cook
for myself do you have those moments in
your life do you remember the people the
friends the families the strangers who
did something small for you and it saved
you it changed the course of your life
it had a huge impact on you and they
probably don’t even remember it do you
ever stop to think of the number of
people that you’ve done that for that
you don’t remember and they still think
of you every once a while because you
changed their lives these Nuggets these
Nuggets of love that we can put out
there they’re huge you do them when you
think of it and when you feel a little
bit brave because they’re the right
thing to do
but it’s more than that they’re good for
you research shows that they reduce your
anxiety levels by being kind to other
people in those minor ways they make you
happier over time they lower your blood
pressure pleasure pressure
they make you live longer by being kind
and if you don’t care about your health
if you only care about money until we
smash this capitalist society then
they’re good for business they’re good
for your career the interview panel
remembers you through those nuggets of
love you keep more customers more people
buy your stuff if they’re given that wow
factor that little treat that little bit
extra that they weren’t expecting I use
in myself
I teach nonprofits I teach charities to
write thank-you letters that surprise
people that delight people thank you
letters that they put in their fridge
and show other people and cause them to
donate more without even asking I do it
as well as an Airbnb host I rent out my
apartment when I’m not there right now
there’s possibly some people going
through my underwear
hopefully and what I leave for them I
leave for them cans of Guinness because
they come to Ireland and that’s what
they want and they’re delighted because
there’s cans again is sitting on the
table for them and they all give me good
reviews and they also me a text message
to say thanks so much for the free
Guinness free you’ll paying for it but
you know the best thing about these
nuggets these little des lighters well I
tell you the super amazing thing about
them they’re easy they’re accessible any
of us can do them you might be a loser
in a twerp like me you might have no
talents you might have dropped out of
college you might have so much emotional
baggage that you’re probably really
gonna die alone but you can still do
these things you have to make a
conscious effort to give these nuggets
of love these delight us to other people
I try and manufacture them every day I
wave at tour buses I stop and ask
tourists if they need help with
directions
I compliment more I say I love your hat
you’re beautiful I love you
I pay for people behind me when I go
through toll booths and you can do the
same every day you have that power in
every action and every action you have
the power to change someone’s life in
TED talks we talk about changing the
world these grand schemes these grand
ideas they’re gonna change the world but
I have to be honest I don’t think I can
change the world and I’m not entirely
convinced anyone in this room can change
the world but you can change someone’s
world you can change someone’s world
right after I shut up speaking you can
take out your phone you can send a
two-sentence text message that is going
to cause this emotional explosion in
someone’s brain
and it’s gonna change the course of
their lives and give them power and give
them inspiration and give them hope and
save them from whatever is they’re going
through you have that power it’s inside
of you it’s simmering it’s waiting to
boil over but you have to consciously do
it you have to make a decision each and
every day through every action through
every interaction will I offer this
nugget will I pay someone’s parking will
I tell someone you’re okay will I ask
what do you need you have that in you
but will you use it
my first job when I was 16 was in
McDonald’s and my career is pretty much
gone downhill since then but I showed a
flair for cleaning toilets and pretty
soon I was promoted to the chicken
station now on the chicken station I was
responsible for the chicken nuggets and
what I would do with the boxes of six
chicken nuggets is I would put in an
extra nugget I would put in seven
nuggets and then I would watch peeking
out from the kitchen as a person opened
it and had that first nugget and that
second nugget and somewhere around the
third nugget they would notice and they
would look around suspiciously as if
they were gonna get caught and then they
would realize that this was their lucky
day they were being smart upon by the
big guy upstairs Ronald McDonald and
this was significant this was a sign
this was a symbol that today should be
the day they took that leap they should
move across the country to follow their
dreams they should quit their job and
start their own business they should
propose to the woman of their dreams I
dread to think how many children were
conceived because of my nuggets
it’s ridiculous isn’t it this idea that
something so small could have such an
impact on someone’s life let me read you
this letter that I saw floating around
that someone wrote into a local
newspaper in the UK thank you to the man
who gave me 20 P in the car park at West
Middlesex Hospital last Tuesday morning
when I found myself short for parking
thanks to you I was able to see my
father alive for the last time he died
that afternoon these days I don’t work
at McDonald’s I work with a lot of
nonprofits helping them to share their
story helping them to raise more money
one of the organization’s I worked with
worked with survivors of sexual abuse
people who were abused as children who
were now adults and they help them
through the legal system to get some
sort of justice and they help them
through therapy to cope with this
terrible thing that had happened to them
one of the clients was a farmer and he
told his therapist that sometimes he
still thought about what had happened to
him and this darkness inside of him
every once in a while it would rise up
and overcome him and he would start to
have the most horrible thoughts of how
he could possibly escape it and his
therapist said what do you need and he
said I just need you there with me at
those times to tell me I’m okay so do
you know what she did this amazing super
fantastic therapist she wrote on a
little bit of paper you’re okay and he
kept it in his pocket and every time
that darkness rose up inside of him he
took it out and read those two simple
words you’re okay when I think back over
my life and the ups and downs and
dealing with the death of loved ones and
dealing with depression dealing with the
hard times it isn’t grand gestures that
got me through it and helped me and
helped me survive and kept me here today
it was the little things it was the hugs
and cuddles
it was the text messages six months
later to check if I was okay it was the
cops at E in bed
it was the lasagnas when I couldn’t cook
for myself do you have those moments in
your life do you remember the people the
friends the families the strangers who
did something small for you and it saved
you it changed the course of your life
it had a huge impact on you and they
probably don’t even remember it do you
ever stop to think of the number of
people that you’ve done that for that
you don’t remember and they still think
of you every once a while because you
changed their lives these Nuggets these
Nuggets of love that we can put out
there they’re huge you do them when you
think of it and when you feel a little
bit brave because they’re the right
thing to do
but it’s more than that they’re good for
you research shows that they reduce your
anxiety levels by being kind to other
people in those minor ways they make you
happier over time they lower your blood
pressure pleasure pressure
they make you live longer by being kind
and if you don’t care about your health
if you only care about money until we
smash this capitalist society then
they’re good for business they’re good
for your career the interview panel
remembers you through those nuggets of
love you keep more customers more people
buy your stuff if they’re given that wow
factor that little treat that little bit
extra that they weren’t expecting I use
in myself
I teach nonprofits I teach charities to
write thank-you letters that surprise
people that delight people thank you
letters that they put in their fridge
and show other people and cause them to
donate more without even asking I do it
as well as an Airbnb host I rent out my
apartment when I’m not there right now
there’s possibly some people going
through my underwear
hopefully and what I leave for them I
leave for them cans of Guinness because
they come to Ireland and that’s what
they want and they’re delighted because
there’s cans again is sitting on the
table for them and they all give me good
reviews and they also me a text message
to say thanks so much for the free
Guinness free you’ll paying for it but
you know the best thing about these
nuggets these little des lighters well I
tell you the super amazing thing about
them they’re easy they’re accessible any
of us can do them you might be a loser
in a twerp like me you might have no
talents you might have dropped out of
college you might have so much emotional
baggage that you’re probably really
gonna die alone but you can still do
these things you have to make a
conscious effort to give these nuggets
of love these delight us to other people
I try and manufacture them every day I
wave at tour buses I stop and ask
tourists if they need help with
directions
I compliment more I say I love your hat
you’re beautiful I love you
I pay for people behind me when I go
through toll booths and you can do the
same every day you have that power in
every action and every action you have
the power to change someone’s life in
TED talks we talk about changing the
world these grand schemes these grand
ideas they’re gonna change the world but
I have to be honest I don’t think I can
change the world and I’m not entirely
convinced anyone in this room can change
the world but you can change someone’s
world you can change someone’s world
right after I shut up speaking you can
take out your phone you can send a
two-sentence text message that is going
to cause this emotional explosion in
someone’s brain
and it’s gonna change the course of
their lives and give them power and give
them inspiration and give them hope and
save them from whatever is they’re going
through you have that power it’s inside
of you it’s simmering it’s waiting to
boil over but you have to consciously do
it you have to make a decision each and
every day through every action through
every interaction will I offer this
nugget will I pay someone’s parking will
I tell someone you’re okay will I ask
what do you need you have that in you
but will you use it
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