The Power to Design a Life You Love | Hassan Akmal | TEDxColumbiaUniversity

TEDx Talks21 minutes read

Define success on your terms, pursue fulfillment over superficial achievements, and prioritize resilience, purpose, and love to master life and career challenges. Embrace a mindset of self-confidence, positivity, and gratitude to navigate adversity and find true happiness and fulfillment in your journey.

Insights

  • Take control of your destiny and design your life to avoid external influences dictating it; personal success should be defined based on genuine desires rather than societal expectations.
  • Financial success has limits on its impact on emotional well-being, and resilience, focus, purpose, love, and gratitude are crucial for life mastery, as demonstrated by various individuals like Mohammed Bosdak, Andrea Bocelli, and Alan and Adrian from Havencrest Castle.

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Recent questions

  • How can I take control of my destiny?

    Design your life to avoid external influence.

  • How does financial success impact emotional well-being?

    Financial success affects emotional well-being up to a certain income threshold.

  • What is the key to mastering life and career challenges?

    Resilience is essential for overcoming challenges.

  • What is the importance of focus in career and life mastery?

    Focus aligns your vision with your purpose.

  • How can I find fulfillment in life?

    Discover your "ikigai" or reason for being.

Related videos

Summary

00:00

"Define Success, Design Life, Find Purpose"

  • Design your own life to avoid others dictating it; take control of your destiny.
  • Success is subjective; question if your definition aligns with your true desires.
  • Success doesn't guarantee happiness; a life-threatening experience altered this perception.
  • Pursuing success relentlessly can lead to emptiness despite achievements.
  • Financial success impacts emotional well-being up to a certain income threshold.
  • Depression can affect even successful individuals; defining personal success is crucial.
  • Success alone isn't life's purpose; fulfillment and happiness are deeper goals.
  • Resilience is key to mastering life and career challenges; trust your strength.
  • Focus is essential for career and life mastery; align your vision with your purpose.
  • Purpose is crucial for a fulfilling life; discover your "ikigai" or reason for being.

20:16

"Love, Music, and Calligraphy: A Journey"

  • Mohammed Bosdak, a calligrapher and musician from Istanbul, Turkey, balanced his love for calligraphy and music by saving money for instruments and playing with other musicians in Istanbul.
  • The Kanun, a descendant of the Egyptian harp, has been integral to Arabic music since the 10th century, with Bosdak finding balance and fulfillment in both calligraphy and music.
  • Andrea Bocelli, the blind opera singer, emphasizes the importance of love in career and life mastery, stating that singing provides a sense of light-heartedness and freedom.
  • Alan and Adrian, who built Havencrest Castle, lived by the motto "Semper Nos," meaning "always us," showcasing a love story that transcends life and teaches to make love a process, not just an outcome.
  • The final secret to career and life mastery lies in mindset, as demonstrated by the author's father's teachings on self-confidence and positivity, even in the face of adversity, emphasizing resilience, focus, purpose, love, and gratitude.
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