it changes
how you interact
with others. But you have to be willing to
watch what’s going on in your brain. You
have to observe instead of engage with
your emotional circuitry.”
To help her audiences understand,
Taylor shares scenarios that are germane
to a particular audience; for example,
a boss walking into your office, a child
entering the room, or a conversation with
your spouse.
“I give very basic information,” she
says. “And I relate it to the brain in a way
that’s relevant to my audience.”
“The beauty of what I do
is: I’m about the brain,” she
says. “It’s not about my brain.
It’s about our brain. Everybody
has a brain, and they all want to
get theirs to work better.”
Taylor loves the topics she speaks
about, and her audiences notice.
“It’s fascinating. I have a great time,”
she says. “And if I’m having a great time,
they’re having a great time.”
And how do they thank her? With
hugs and love, she says.
“It turns into a big love-fest,” she
says with a smile. “People are willing to
open their hearts, which is really their
right brains.”
What’s Next?
While the year following her TED talk
was consumed with speaking events,
Taylor now makes sure she has down-
time. Her board of directors helps limit
her speaking engagements in consider-
ation for her health and well-being.
“Every decision we make on the board
is not based on money. It’s about how
my message gets translated and how
can I make a shift in the people who are
there to receive it,” she says. “When that
happens, I feel like I did my job. And they
feel fulfilled.”
When she’s not speaking, Taylor is
writing and working on a brain-centered
research project. Plus, she’s working with
director Ron Howard on creating a film
about her life. She’s optimistic he’ll help
communicate her message to an even
wider audience in a beautiful, artistic way.
“When you really embrace the wonder
of what you are as a living being, there’s a
beautiful lightness … it’s love,” she says.
“That, I think, is the best part for me.”
The insight
boils down
to the fact that deep
inside my right hemi-
sphere, which is
always turned on and
always running, there
is the experience of a
universal peace that
connects me to my
fellow human beings.
She helps her audiences explore how
they think and feel, and how they react
to life’s circumstances. She reminds us
all that we have power over our
own minds.
Consider the emotions of
sadness, grief or even fear.
These are intense human
emotions that are beautiful
experiences, Taylor says.
“Because I look at myself as
a collection of circuits that are
performing these types of pro-
cesses, I respect them,” she
explains. “I may just not want
to experience them at the
moment they come online. I
might allow them to envelop
me, and then I allow them
to pass beyond me. And I go
back to being joyful.”
Everyone can make
this choice.
“I try to help people realize
they have that power,” she says. “When
people are willing to take that control,
Different Messages
for Different Audiences
Taylor presents to a variety of audiences,
customizing her talk for each.
For example, when a government
organization invites her to talk about
stroke, they want to hear her personal
story. But a group of medical school
students or members of a neurological
rehabilitation organization are more
interested in the topic of compassion
in medicine.
When preparing to present to a group
of neonatal specialists, she saw an incredible opportunity.
“I get to tell them what it’s like to be
born in a world where nothing makes
any sense,” she explains. “They get to
hear it through the voice of someone
who has been there. They get to hear
what I needed in order to make sense of
the world.”
And because Taylor is known for
her work in exploring the right side
of the brain and finding control
and inner peace, this is a frequently
requested presentation.
Stephanie R. Conner is a writer and editor who finds hope, inspiration and insight in Dr. Taylor’s story. She can be reached at Stephanie@
TheActiveVoice.com.
