Urfaan Sadid: How has TED-Ed helped you push yourself outside your comfort zone?

My name is Urfaan Sadid, I am an 11th grade student in Calgary at Western Canada High School, and this is my first year doing Encounters TEDEd. I want to be an entrepreneur in the future, and am passionate about economics, banking, and other kinds of infrastructure that make the world go round. I’m very proud to be one of the Sponsors and Merchandise Leads for this years conference.

Joining the Encounters TEDEd Club has been one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my life. As a member, I have been pushed out of my comfort zone, challenged to think critically and deeply reflect on new and interesting ideas. This club has not only helped me grow as an individual but also opened new doors of knowledge that I would have never thought of exploring before.

My journey in Encounters TED Ed began with my interest in economics, which I envisioned as the centre-piece of my talk. As I started researching, I was struck by the way economics could explain so much about human behaviour, and how human behaviour could explain so much about economics.. This led me to explore a new realm of study, which I hadn't previously held much interest in: psychology.

As I continued to work on my talk, I found myself getting more and more interested in psychology. I read articles and watched videos on the subject. I became fascinated by how our brains work, how we make decisions, and how we interact with each other, particularly on the concept of greed. I started to see the connections between ethics, economics and psychology, and how they could be used to explain complex social phenomena, and potentially be leveraged for a solution to wealth disparity.

The Encounters TEDEd club helped me develop a deeper understanding of these subjects. In addition to doing research, I had to learn how to communicate my ideas effectively. Developing a TEDEd Student Talk was like nothing I had ever done before. This was a new and unique way of sharing an idea, rather than trying to convince others of something, which was what I was used to given my background in debate.

Throughout the term, I learned how to take a complex idea and break it down into manageable pieces. I had to think about how to make my talk engaging, interesting and connect it to my learning, how to use visuals and imagery to help explain my ideas, and how to use language that was accessible to everyone. I had to learn how to be a good storyteller, and how to connect with my audience on an emotional level.

All of this was incredibly challenging, but it was also incredibly rewarding. I learned so much about myself, the world around me, and how it is all connected to my faith. I learned how to be a better communicator, how to think critically, and how to deeply reflect on new and interesting ideas. How to navigate this rich and complex world with an equally rich and complex worldview. These are skills and tools that will serve me well in whatever I do in the future.

Being a part of the Encounters TEDEd club has not only helped me grow as an individual but has also given me a community of like-minded individuals who are passionate about learning and sharing ideas. We challenge each other, support each other, and encourage each other to be the best that we can be. I’ve had an absolute blast so far, and cannot wait for the conference!