TED Talk Tuesday #195 – Finding success in the shadows of your fears

Watching TED Talks is a popular pastime at CN&CO. We visit TED.com regularly to clear our heads, have a laugh or get inspired. TED Talks open our minds, spark new ways of thinking and can lead to some very interesting conversations. Each week we pick a favourite and publish it on a Tuesday (more often than not), because we like how “TED Talk Tuesday” sounds. It’s also a way that the CN&CO team play their part on spreading ideas and helping to make the world a better place. This week’s talk is posted by Francois. Here’s why she chose it:

So, here’s the tea, sis: I H-A-T-E ROLLERCOASTERS! I don’t like them. I’m not here for them. I am anxiety stricken and shooked whenever people share their experiences of them, and every time I’ve visited theme parks- when I hear the screams of abject terror from the people on the rides (obviously to them it’s screams of joy) I feel the faintest of faint… Like, for reals, on occasion I even see spots and I break out in a cold sweat. But, I digress… Point is: of the many fears I have- rollercoaster: TOP 3, mama.

Now, to digress even further, I follow Grammy-nominated popstar Kesha (formerly known as Ke$ha, or as the principal on Glee calls her KE-DOLLAR-SIGN-HA) on the ‘gram… And I was delighted to see via her stories that she did a ‘motivational performance’ for TED. So, let’s get into it…

Kesha, looking ridiculously stunning in red (TED red that is), kicks-off her talk with bluntly stating: “I can’t tell you how to not be afraid, but I can tell you that I’ve experienced how to not be defined by my fears”.  The talk goes on with Kesha giving us a glimpse into her life in the limelight and how she faced her fears while living in the public eye over the last decade. Through the years she struggled with her own demons: from substance abuse to numb the trauma of being sexually assaulted by record producer Dr. Luke and going through a very public court case that was settled mid-2019.  Suffice to say, Kesha has risen from all of this darkness triumphantly with a message that unapologetically screams that her trauma nor her fears will define her narrative and the latter is clearly demonstrated as she delivers a powerful performance of “Shadow,” a song about courageously choosing positivity even when others are throwing shade.

Now, to tie this back to the intro of my own fears, i.e. rollercoasters, I think 2020 has been the ULTIMATE rollercoaster, a rollercoaster that (like any ‘normal’ rollercoaster to me) did not create a feeling of thrill or excitement. Nope, the 2020 rollercoaster instilled absolute abject terror in all of us and, like any rollercoaster, the whole world was just strapped in and we had to go on this ride with no clear idea of where it will take us, not knowing how many ups & down, swings and swerves we will go through… Shucks… We still don’t. But, 2020 has been a journey that will go down in history as a time of disconnected connectedness, of certain uncertainty, and having a fear of a monster that we can’t see and the unknown valleys of terror it lures us in.

Although, however scary 2020 was, and however frightening the future of this rollercoaster remains to be, Kesha made a powerful statement in her talk that resonated and made me review the 2020 ride thus far. In relation to her fears, facing them and conquering them, Kesha states that “I think what makes a successful person is not being fearless, but pushing through the things that scare you the most.” And that, right there, is the take-away I would like to leave you with. I think 2020 has effected majority of the human race on some level or another and presented us with unprecedented situations of struggles and trauma that has instilled widespread fear. But, we are presented daily with stories of hope and success that has sprouted from the dark dips of this ride. And even as CN&CO events, at the beginning of this ride we were plunged into the abys with no safety net or ‘get-off-the-ride-free’ card. We had to face the fear of the unknown as we journeyed on this rocky rollercoaster we call live and, however frightening, you have to try and find joy and success in the shadows.

[Speaking of shadows, watch the TED talk with Kesha and see her perform her hit single ‘Shadow’.]