What’s the first TEDTalk that made director of content Kelly Stoetzel cry? In a new interview on the website Womenetics, Stoetzel reveals the first TED speaker who got her choked up — surgeon Sherwin Nuland, who spoke at TED2003.
“[Nuland] made himself really vulnerable on the stage. He talked about something that his colleagues didn’t know about — that he had suffered from depression so severe that he became catatonic and had undergone electroshock therapy to heal. It made me cry,” she tells the site. “I thought, ‘This is the weirdest thing, I’m at a conference and I’m crying — I don’t know if I love that or hate that!’”
What’s the first TEDTalk that made you teary eyed? Share in the comments.
Joseph Gendron commented on Aug 5 2012
he cried? lol… loser
Lisa Van Gemert commented on Aug 3 2012
Ken Robinson’s “How Schools Kill Creativity” has become synonymous with TED, but before it was famous, I watched it in stunned fascination – finally someone with power was singing my song. As an educator and parent, it was transformative, empowering, and career-changing for me. It gave me the incentive to call Mensa and say, “Would you be interested in having a full-time gifted youth specialist?” Someday, I’ll meet him and thank him in person.
Tom Rielly commented on Aug 3 2012
This is my favorite TED Talk of all time, for all the same reasons. I’ll never forget the “Sixth Sense” twist at the end of the talk, when the audience’s bodies shuddered, and we all got chills as we realized the import of his words. Still one of the gold standards for me.
Ben Tanen commented on Aug 3 2012
By the way guys, this was from 2001.
Mr. Wurman’s oft-repeated charge to the speakers was “be vulnerable”. It produced some amazing and moving results of which Dr. Nuland’s talk was undoubtedly the most profound.
-Ben