What if your emotions weren’t obstacles to overcome but messages to be understood?In this illuminating and heartfelt talk, Dr. Joi Madison invites us to reconnect with the wisdom that lives within our bodies. Through personal reflection and insight, she explores how modern society often praises intellect while dismissing emotion and how that disconnection silences one of our most powerful forms of intelligence.Dr. Joi reveals that emotions are not weaknesses or distractions; they are data. By honoring our feelings rather than judging them, we open the door to deeper self-awareness, collective healing, and authentic leadership.Watch this talk to rediscover what your body already knows and learn how feeling deeply can be the most intelligent act of all. Dr. Joi K. Madison is an international coach, consultant, and speaker whose impact spans at least four continents. With a background in biomechanics, as a collegiate All-American athlete and the former owner of functional fitness company Eat.Sleep.Sweat., Dr. Joi’s methods for mastering emotional intelligence and enhancing emotional well-being highlight and value the importance of the mind-body connection. Her signature coaching programs provide self-guided online courses which promote socio-emotional skills. In 2020, Dr. Joi further solidified her role as an educator, becoming a graduate professor in the Department of Marriage and Family Therapy at The Chicago School where he taught Diversity in Psychotherapy as well as Assessments in Marriage and Family Therapy. In her role as Program Manager for Sisters Mentally Mobilized at the California Black Women’s Health Project, Dr. Joi was responsible for the design and implementation of curriculum related to increasing awareness, decreasing stigma, and promoting advocacy around issues impacting and impeding the mental well-being of Black women and girls across the state of California. In the Fall of 2021, Dr. Joi began an ongoing collaborative effort with SEIU United Healthcare Workers union to create a mental and emotional wellness curriculum centering and serving the needs of over 120,000 healthcare workers. Dr. Joi previously served on the board of Color the Water, a non-profit organization intent on reclaiming the history of, and representing diversity in, surf culture through lessons, education, and media. She continues to seek opportunities to innovate and serve in an effort to contribute to a society which prioritizes the well-being of its citizens. Through curiosity, creativity, and community, she uses every medium at her disposal to elaborate on ideas about how to define, assess, and prioritize wellness, for all. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx