What if failure wasn’t the opposite of success, but the pathway to it? In this insightful and deeply personal talk, Sahana Praveen Bhandari challenges the fear of failure and flips the narrative. Through real-life reflections and raw honesty, she unpacks the idea of “failing ”forward”—learning to embrace setbacks, grow through them, and use them as stepping stones toward something greater. Sahana Praveen Bhandari is a distinguished alumna of Abu Dhabi Indian School, where her tenure as Head Girl and recognition as Student of the Year marked the early emergence of her leadership potential. She went on to earn her engineering degree from the prestigious NITK Surathkal, once again graduating with the Student of the Year honor—a testament to her consistent excellence.Today, she brings that same drive to her role as a Risk Advisor at Deloitte, where she merges sharp analytical acumen with a deep-seated desire to create meaningful impact. A passionate youth advocate, Sahana has raised her voice on global stages—ranking 4th among 500 delegates at the Global Young Leaders Conference in the U.S., and receiving accolades such as the Sheikh Hamdan Excellence Award and ADNOC’s Outstanding Intellectual Award. Most recently, she served as a Youth Parliamentarian at the 2025 Viksit Bharat State-level session at Karnataka’s Vidhana Soudha, representing the Dakshina Kannada district. 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
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- 12:21The SITT Test : Are you really thinking freely? | Miriam Haart | TEDxAndoverWhat does it really mean to think freely? In this eye-opening TEDx talk Miriam shares her powerful story of growing up in a world shaped by rigid ideology - where even wearing shorts or asking questions came at a cost. But when she finally broke free, she discovered something unexpected: dogmatic thinking exists everywhere, even in places that claim to value freedom and open-mindedness. To help others recognize the hidden forces that shape their thoughts, she introduces The SITT Test - a framework built on Social Pressure, Insularity, and Two-Dimensional Thought. Through personal experience and cultural insight, she challenges us all to ask: Are we truly thinking for ourselves—or simply absorbing what we’re told? Her message is a call to action: embrace the 3 Cs—Courage, Curiosity, and Compromise—and start sitting with ideas instead of silencing them. Miriam Haart stars in the award-nominated top 10 hit series, ‘My Unorthodox Life’ on Netflix. Miriam is a founder, software engineer and social influencer with more than 400K followers across her platforms, recently featured on Time Out Mag for her work. Her podcast, Faking It, has gained significant popularity. Her content involves female-tech leadership, LGBT rights , and Jewish and Middle Eastern Activism. Miriam was a lecturer and graduate in Computer Science from Stanford University. She taught a class on Virtual Reality Development. Miriam has built over 10 iOS apps, some of which she’s won awards for. Miriam is an iCenter Fellow Recipient in Middle Eastern Studies. As well as a recipient of the Z-Fellowship and the Tel Aviv Institute Fellowship. 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
