Turning Struggles into Opportunities, Transcending Social Expectations, and Other Underdeveloped TED Talk Ideas Bound to Go Awry

Idea #1: On Picking 3 Passions Out of Plenty — Why?

“Find three hobbies you love: one to make you money, one to keep you in shape, and one to be creative.”

You’ve probably heard that saying.

But there’s something wrong with it. It enforces the idea that we have to have at least three separate “worlds” we operate in. Each occupies a different aspect of our necessities — financial stability, a creative outlet, physical health etc. But why do they need to be separate?

It also emphasizes that we need to find one passion, just one, for our career.

Before we even reach adulthood, we’re expected to have a plan for our future. That’s how the education system is built. You do all your “exploring” in middle and high school and apply to colleges and majors by the age of 18. It’s especially the case in the competitive, fast-paced, dream-driven Silicon Valley, where high school students are encouraged to think and plan far in advance. Where we’re taught to believe that it’s bad to not know what our plan is. Where starting college as an undecided major is often hit-or-miss. And lastly, where, despite that pressure on us to know it all, we’re devalued as members of society because we supposedly don’t know it all. For some people, it all works out. But it doesn’t for everyone. It didn’t for me.

I grew up playing hopscotch — everyday would find me in those same, chalk-enclosed boxes. After graduating from the concrete, I played hopscotch with career interests. Obsessed with the show Cosmos (and correspondingly, the idol Heil Degrasse Tyson, I envisioned myself as an aerospace engineer. Yet having aced linear algebra, I became convinced I’d make a meticulous mathematician. However, I soon realized that the rigidity of most STEM classes was stifling. Eventually, I discovered code and realized that there was no end to its applications in other fields that inspire me — from activism to design, engineering to government, and psychology to math.

I found a road that connected to every other road that had ever been in my line of vision. For example, I pursued activism from the approach and mindset of a designer and developer. As a Youth Commissioner working in city government, I launched a website to provide resources and opportunities for local teens to succeed. On the side, I began creating a social platform to strengthen the community of women in STEM. Creating personable user interfaces that balance aesthetics with utility and purpose felt a lot like art.

I combined my various interests, creating a fusion that I liked more than any individually.

By combining multiple interests, we create a thousand different possibilities — there’s always something new to do and learn.

Steve Jobs didn’t just settle for making computers. He dabbled in the music tech industry and then combined it with computers.

Elon Musk didn’t just settle for making electric cars. He helped revolutionize energy storage in everything from electric vehicles to residential homes. He acquired a solar company even though it was a “weird” thing for an EV company to do.

Now, some people are structured thinkers. They know exactly what their goal is and they know exactly how to get there. But there are others of us who don’t. Who’ve been conditioned to think that we don’t know what we’re doing, even though the reality is that we want to do it all.

We shouldn’t need to pick one passion out of many and deem it a worthy sacrifice. We should instead remain open-minded and flexible. We should make a way to explore all our interests and seek experience that transcends the implied limits of disciplines and social norms.

Let’s start celebrating organic, creative, and flexible thinking just as much as we celebrate structured plans and goals.

Idea #2: Struggle Breeds Opportunity

I am a proud Pakistani and Muslim woman. I’m also a proud first-generation American. I was born and raised as both. The two are not mutually exclusive, despite the difficulties and pressures I’ve faced. Growing up, I struggled to forge my identity.

As a first-generation American, I felt like a tourist in my motherland, Pakistan. Even as an American, I felt alienated due to prejudice in America. Thus, I found myself caught between two worlds. It was hard sticking true to my ideals and values. Everything I saw in the media, in society, tempted me to question myself and my background. It made me reclusive and hesitant to open up to people.

But I realized eventually that I didn’t need to find a place I belong. I just needed to find myself so that I could make a place I belong.

So I did. I went on a deep dive through the teachings of Islam and the history of the Muslim community. I asked my parents everything they knew about our origins and researched gaps that they couldn’t fill. I unearthed things that school and media don’t tell us about — like the Golden Age of Muslim Spain (Al-Andalus), which I wrote a report on. I scoured studies conducted with Muslim-American teens, covering topics like the effect of society on their psychological and personality development. Then I wrote a research report about that, empowered by my newfound knowledge. Knowing I wasn’t alone in my struggles. More proud than I ever had because my religion and culture were much more than what society saw them as.

I also found ways to express my story — a story paralleled by millions. I talked about it in my circles, the community. I created artwork inspired by my experiences and observations. I tried to inspire others like me. As I did so, I learned to embrace my identity — struggles and scars, and all.

There’s something beautiful that arises from every struggle, and that is opportunity. Not just an opportunity for self-development, but also an opportunity to break social expectations and raise awareness.

If you can’t find a place you belong, make one by finding yourself.