Have You Met My Personal Trainer TED?

Heard of TED? It's my new personal trainer. As many of you know by now, I have given up being buff ever again for something of a bit more imaginative nature. Never let it be said that I have anything against good health habits; I still enjoy a refreshing round of yoga, a walk, or whatever wii game bids me to try it out. But when  it comes to "working out" on a regular basis, I'm leaning more in favor of ideas over action.

And so here's where my favorite personal trainer comes into play: TED. As some of you caught in the first paragraph, TED is not a he--TED is an it. TED actually stands for Technology, Education, and Design. It started off as a conference, grew into a huge conference, and now, thankfully, the rest of us have the chance of being a part of this remarkable meeting of the minds through the Internets--hallelujah!

Google the letters TED, and you will be bombarded by a plethora of free and highly engaging 18 minute talks by some of the smartest and most insightful people you'll ever hear or see. These people come from every conceivable corner of the world and every conceivable background. Their talks are sensible, humorous, and most of the time, sublime. I can learn more from the "classroom" of TED in an hour on various topics than I could by reading 4 or 5 newspapers. And, even though 18 minutes certainly isn't going to cover any topic of value in such a short time, it will give you a catalyst to learn more and  to start the search for more detail on a topic of interest.

There is an excellent article in the magazine Fast Company  (http://fastcompany.com) entitled "How TED Became the New Harvard". It's definitely worth the read to get a good introduction to TED. If that doesn't seem pleasing to you, then just go to You Tube and, in the search, type in TED talks. You will be pleased with your results from which to choose.

How does this fit in with 50 Adventures at 50? Every time I tune in to a TED talk, I am transformed by the imaginative way that fellow humans can deliver information. I literally have an adventure with every TED talk I hear; it makes me want to be a more effective person in the world.

If that's not an adventure, I don't know what is...