TED Talk Podcast Reviews

     So today I am again talking about something that is not related to my blog, but I think it is pretty cool. If you have not listened to TED talks before, you should definitely check it out. I want to review a few podcasts I listened to personally, but if you have some free time I would check some of these out, they are pretty interesting.
     The first podcast I want to review is a podcast about success. There are five great talks including some topics of smiling for success, having grit and reframing success. My personal favorite topic given here is from Tony Robbins. He is a life-coach who has helped people become very successful in their life. My favorite part of his talk was about the ability to choose. He talks about choice and how we all have the opportunity to choose. I thought that was really awesome, because when we get in the day grind it sometimes feel really hard to change. But Tony Robbins has helped people by giving them this insight that they can choice. It is their own choice everyday. Here's a link if you want to check it out: http://www.npr.org/2013/10/25/240777690/success?showDate=2014-03-21
     Another interesting podcast talks about being happy. It mentions many different topics, like success that can bring happiness into your life. There are two parts, among many other aspects of the talks, that I really enjoyed. One of those aspects was given by Pharrell, an artist who recently released a song that gained massive popularity called Happy. They ask him what the secret to happiness is. He says that the way to be happy is to put things into perspective. If you can look at life in a happy way, and be appreciative for life, you will be happy. Likewise, a monk named David Steindl-Rast. He talks about something awesome: being grateful. He mentions a something great I had never contemplated quite in the way he said it before. He talked about how you are not happy and then grateful, you would be grateful and then you will be happy. This is a pretty amazing idea, but it just makes sense too! Here is a link if you want to check it out: http://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/267185371/simply-happy?showDate=2014-02-14
     The last podcast hour I want to review was about disruptive leaders. They are all interesting talks to listen to, but I really liked a talk that is about changing peoples lives. Drew Dudley talks about an experience when he helped this girl on her first day of college feel in place through a pretty funny, but kind act. He completely forgot what he did, but then later she came up to him and told him how much that moment meant to her. Essentially he said, to be effective leaders, we need to have those nice moments when we can help other people in an great way. If you want to check it out, here's a link: http://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/261084166/disruptive-leadership?showDate=2014-01-17
    Anyways, that's it for my blog today. Thanks for reading!

For an English class at BYU I had the opportunity to read a New York times article about the role of women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Although I did not agree with all of the points mentioned in the article, I do find parts of it interesting to read about. For example, the article mentions some view points of sister missionaries serving. They talk about what they see as their roles in the church, family and profession. This really brought some new insights I had not thought of before. Anyways, here is a link to the article. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/02/us/a-growing-role-for-mormon-women.html?_r=1 If you have time, this is something interesting to check out.

Youth Activites

One of the best part of growing up in my community was the youth activities. Some of these activities span from playing sports, learning about how to tie knots, going canyoneering, making lunches for the homeless, learning how to be physically fit, going to youth conference, playing games  and going to the new Macy's to get Kong cones. Each of these activities were fun in their own way, but they were more than that. They helped us as youth get to know each other and form a bond. I can personally say I do not think I would have been friends with some of the people in my ward had I not spent time that one-two hour time every week with them. This went on from age twelve to high school graduation. This bond meant a lot, and it sometimes it was even tested. Our summer trips for young men's usually consisted of canyoneering. In these canyons we would often have to repel down some tall rock face. This was usually nerve racking, but it would be even more nerve racking if you did not trust the person that was belaying. The person belaying has the most important job, as they literally hold the life of the person repelling in their hands. When the person repelling stepped off of the ledge they had to put their trust in that person. It was like a trust test, but instead of falling and hitting the ground from five feet, you fall one-hundred plus feet if your partner isn't paying attention. That being said everything generally went fine and people did the job they were supposed to. Experiences like these always built trust within our group. It built a unity and a feeling of being a part of something. For these reason the youth activities were some of my favorite experiences growing up and I would not trade them for anything.

God Grew Tired of Us

So this post doesn't really go with my blog topic, but I still think it is beneficial to talk about. I just watched a documentary on Hulu called God Grew Tired of Us. This documentary shows the life of three lost boys from Sudan in Africa. These boys were a lucky few from their camp of lost boys that were given the opportunity to come to America. They experience new and different things in America, such as electricity, Christmas decorations, and apartment buildings. They find various jobs so they can support themselves, and when possible, send money home to their families and Sudan brothers and sisters. Even though the jobs are laborious and often mundane, they continue to work and do the best with what they have. Near the end of the documentary, one of the boys is reacquainted with his mother who he has not seen in the last seventeen years. You can see their pure joy when they meet together again. The joy of family. All three boys at the end of the movie are going to college, as well as two boys giving back directly to their community through the creation of a non-profit organization and other various efforts. The lost boys are an inspiration of how courage, love and determination can help you live the fullest life possible. If you have not seen this documentary I highly suggest it, especially as it is free on Hulu.