We’re taught that the more we achieve, the happier we’ll be—but what if the opposite is true? In this TEDx talk, Meghan French Dunbar reveals why our traditional definition of success is making so many of us miserable, and how we can rewrite the script to find true fulfillment instead. https://www.meghanfrenchdunbar.com/ #TEDxSanDiego, #TEDx #Success #Business #Fullfillment Meghan French Dunbar is an author, entrepreneur, business journalist, and instigator whose work revolves around making business better for everyone. Her work has touched the lives of over a million people worldwide, including the first nationally distributed print magazine in the U.S. focusing on impact-driven business, Conscious Company Magazine. She writes for leading business outlets like Inc., Business Chief, and Forbes, and leads executive workshops for major brands like Coach, Kate Spade, Leonard Green, and Charter Next Generation. She lives in Boulder, CO, with her husband, Scott, and kiddos, Jack and Atty. You can find more about her at meghanfrenchdunbar.com 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

What if your scars aren’t flaws to hide, but proof of your power? In this talk, Catherine Hampel dismantles the myth of perfection and shows how the marks of survival become your greatest weapon. Are you ready to wear your own scars? www.linkedin.com/in/catherinehampel#TEDxSanDiego #TEDx #ScarPower #WearYourScars #Resilience #Cancer #BRCAGene, #Genetics Catherine is a healthcare leader, connector, and storyteller with 20+ years of experience transforming complex systems in academic medicine. As Chief Administrative Officer for UCLA Psychiatry and a 2024 Presidential Leadership Scholar, she brings heart and strategy to every space she leads.She's held senior leadership roles at UCLA, UCSD, and UPMC, taught health policy and management at UCLA, Pitt, and Cal State San Marcos. She has degrees from Carnegie Mellon and UCLA, where she also completed an administrative fellowship.Her PLS project, Connecting Minds, is a peer support initiative for college-aged students navigating loneliness, trauma, or loss. Rooted in lived experience, it fosters healing, connection, and self-encouragement.A Pittsburgh native turned California girl, she enjoys weightlifting, running, and is a proud mom of two. She believes commitment isn't always about what you stand to gain, but sometimes what you're prepared to lose. 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

We’ve all been told not to “make it awkward.” But what if it is that moment of awkwardness that sparks change? In this talk, Deb Liu shares how a lifetime of being dismissed and underestimated taught her that speaking up, even when it feels uncomfortable, rewrites the story of who gets to lead.With humor and honesty, she challenges us to reclaim those moments of discomfort and turn them into power. The next time you’re edged out or overlooked, don’t shrink. Step forward. Make it awkward.Website: www.debliu.com LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/deborahliu Instagram: instagram.com/debliu_ Threads: threads.net/debliu_ Substack: debliu.substack.com #TEDxSanDiego #TEDx #Women #awkward #Communication #Business Deb Liu is a seasoned tech executive, author, and advocate for women in leadership. Most recently President and CEO of Ancestry, she previously spent over a decade at Meta, where she created Facebook Marketplace and led Facebook Pay, the mobile ad network, and the games business. She also held product leadership roles at PayPal and eBay. Deb serves on the boards of Intuit and Duke’s Pratt School of Engineering and is a seed investor and advisor to startups. She is the founder of Women in Product, a nonprofit with 30,000+ members, and a member of the Committee of 100 and Gold House’s A100 list of impactful Asian Americans. Deb holds a BSE from Duke and an MBA from Stanford. She is the author of Take Back Your Power: 10 New Rules for Women at Work and shares weekly insights in her newsletter, Perspectives. She lives in California with her husband and three children. www.debliu.com 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

What if the greatest pressure you face isn’t from the deadlines, expectations, or competition around you, but from within? In this inspiring TEDxSanDiego talk, leadership & self-mastery coach Ari Pereira shares her powerful journey from panic attacks to inner peace, revealing how presence can transform pressure into strength and inner-peace https://www.aripereira.com/ & https://linktr.ee/Ari_Pereira/#TEDxSanDiego #TEDx #TEDxSpeaker #mindfulness #attention #discipline #presence #kungfu #women Ari Pereira is a leadership and self-mastery coach, speaker, and author who helps entrepreneurs, leaders, and high performers build resilience, prevent burnout, and achieve sustainable results. With an MBA and studies in Neuroscience, Mindfulness, and Positive Psychology, she blends academic expertise, corporate experience, Kung Fu discipline, and mind-body practices to enhance performance under pressure. Her journey from panic attacks to inner peace fuels her mission: helping others transform stress into focus, pressure into resilience, and chaos into calm.Ari created the AID framework and the Stress to Badass program, delivering practical tools and measurable outcomes in clarity, confidence, and high performance. Rooted in Brazil, shaped in the U.S., and inspired by Eastern practices, she brings an international perspective, guiding individuals and organizations worldwide to embody presence and create meaningful change.https://www.aripereira.com/ https://linktr.ee/Ari_Pereira/ 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

Discover the most overlooked virtue to improve your life and relationships. Journalist and curiosity maven David Suissa will share his three secret gifts that will make Curiosity your new Superpower. #TEDxSanDiego #TEDx #Curiosity #Superpower #relationships #Life Born in Morocco, David Suissa grew up in Montreal, graduated from McGill, started a marketing career at Procter and Gamble, moved into advertising, opened his own shop in LA that grew to 190 employees, sold the company to pivot to his first love: journalism. David, has been writing a weekly column for past 18 years at Jewish Journal and having the meaningful time of his life. jewishjournal.com 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

Tara Setmayer is co-founder of the award-winning Seneca Project, a women-led messaging and content organization defending democracy and women’s rights.With over 30 years of political experience, she is a nationally recognized commentator, former CNN and ABC News contributor, guest host on The View, keynote speaker, and Resident Scholar at UVA’s Center for Politics. A former Harvard Institute of Politics Fellow, Tara champions speaking truth to power in the face of extremism.Setmayer offers a clarion call to reject apathy and embrace speaking truth as a radical act. Imagine a society where standing up for what’s right is taught, expected, and rewarded. In a culture drowning in deceit and cowardice, she challenges us to see neutrality as unsafe and truth as revolutionary.When it's time to choose, will you stand up or stand by? Tara Setmayer is Co-Founder and CEO of The Seneca Project,A former CNN political commentator, contributor to ABC News and former GOP Communications Director on Capitol Hill, Tara currently serves as a University of Virginia, Center for Politics, Resident Scholar. In collaboration with the Center for Politics, she narrated the Emmy nominated 3-part documentary, Dismantling Democracy. Prior to joining UVA, she was named a Resident Fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics.Today, she regularly appears as an on-air commentator on MSNBC and various other news outlets in the US and abroad.Setmayer has also been a frequent guest host on ABC’s The View and has several appearances on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher. 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