TED Radio Hour

Approaches to life: Improvise, pivot or plan

38 snips
Sep 19, 2025
Reggie Watts, a comedic genius and musical improviser, dazzles with insights on improvisation and the spontaneity of creativity. Sonia Vallabh shares her heart-wrenching pivot from law to biomedical research after a family tragedy, focusing on combating genetic prion disease. Conservationist Kristine McDivitt Tompkins reveals her strategic approach to creating national parks in Chile and Argentina, showcasing the power of planned conservation. Together, they explore the art of making significant life choices, whether to improvise, pivot, or meticulously plan.
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INSIGHT

Improv As A Method Of Awareness

  • Reggie Watts treats life as improvisation, layering repeated motifs and recontextualizing sound and meaning.
  • Improvisation, for him, is a method of awareness that reframes situations and expands possibilities.
ADVICE

Treat Small Choices As Practice

  • Notice everyday choices as improvisation and treat them as mini experiments in presence.
  • Use mindful tweaks to make mundane actions feel playful and expand your sense of agency.
ANECDOTE

A Sudden, Unexplained Decline

  • Sonia Vallabh recounts her mom's sudden decline from unexplained weight loss to confusion and loss of function.
  • The rapid progression shattered normal medical explanations and began a devastating diagnostic mystery.
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