Science & Technology

Thinking about DEATH may actually be the key to living your best LIFE #TEDTalks

Published

1 year ago

March 28, 2025

As a death doula, or someone who supports dying people and their loved ones, Alua Arthur spends a lot of time thinking about the end of life. In a profound talk that examines our brief, perfectly human time on this planet, she asks us to look at our lives through the lens of our deaths in seeking to answer the question: “What must I do to be at peace with myself so that I may live presently and die gracefully?” Watch her full talk here:

Related Topics:featured TED TED Talk TED Talks TEDTalk TEDTalks

Up Next

The Science Behind Dramatically Better Conversations | Charles Duhigg | TED

Don't Miss

Apple’s Vision for Siri is Linked to Siri’s Vision | One More Thing

24 Comments

@enochkambangukalimbwe8099

March 28, 2025 at 5:04 pm

Making peace 🕊️ with death has honestly been one of the life changing things that have happened to me 🙌🏽🔥

Reply
@Paperclip718

March 28, 2025 at 5:05 pm

Amén

Reply
@AlexisChoquette

March 28, 2025 at 5:07 pm

Death is the evolution of life so your right

Reply
@nspirationaltreasure

March 28, 2025 at 5:07 pm

💜🧡

Reply
@MrNsoe

March 28, 2025 at 5:09 pm

Try it while u suffering or being sick, ir when u about to go night night

Reply
- @jmsl_910
  
  March 28, 2025 at 8:50 pm
  
  try??
  
  Reply
@Nifey_spoony

March 28, 2025 at 5:22 pm

Eh, I’d rather maladaptively claw onto life since there’s nothing after it…

Reply
- @deborahburroughs8905
  
  March 28, 2025 at 5:33 pm
  
  Oh please don’t think that! You are so wrong and it’s a wonderful!
  
  Reply
- @Nifey_spoony
  
  March 28, 2025 at 6:46 pm
  
  @ I hope you’re right🤞
  
  Reply
@oz.bready

March 28, 2025 at 5:46 pm

ELEVATION IS KEY !!!🔮

Reply
@TacereMors

March 28, 2025 at 5:59 pm

I know what I am going to die of…”LIVING”…😊

Reply
@RoelCandaele

March 28, 2025 at 6:10 pm

The real gift is yourself and your personality 😘💓🫶

Reply
@MrsLadyPerez

March 28, 2025 at 6:39 pm

My dad was the only person that I could talk about death so openly with and it really helped me deal with his death when the time came. Am I still a bit afraid to die? Yes. But I find comfort in the fact that my dad also found comfort in transitioning to the other side. I miss talking with him about death.. death is beautiful ❤

Reply
@sacredgeometry

March 28, 2025 at 6:45 pm

I disagree. I did all the thinking about death I needed to do as a child. It took about 5 minutes. I realised death is inevitable and unavoidable.

What more is there to think about. Why would I waste any more of my life thinking about something I have no control over.

Reply
- @pattycake1939
  
  March 31, 2025 at 6:28 pm
  
  I think you have a point.
  But I believe she is simply talking about realizing death is enviable and then make peace with that fact.
  Only then can we say we have lived life well.
  Best to you ❤
  
  Reply
@HUMANITY6868

March 28, 2025 at 7:48 pm

Thank you for supporting us TED 😊😊

Reply
@godbearxd

March 28, 2025 at 8:32 pm

The more I thought about it the less scary it became. I’m still not as at peace as I want to be, but the fact it’s getting better gives me hope. 🙏🏾

Reply
@jmsl_910

March 28, 2025 at 8:49 pm

i love life & i’m not at all afraid of death

i am afraid of dementia & for that reason hope i don’t live too much longer…

Reply
@gillbates21

March 28, 2025 at 11:00 pm

can’t agree with this viewpoint

Reply
@LBJC

March 28, 2025 at 11:21 pm

Cecil the silver sovereign said it seven times

Reply
@ToniWasHere

March 29, 2025 at 1:57 am

🌿🌸🌱

Reply
@totalfreedom45

March 29, 2025 at 2:00 am

_In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you._ ―Attributed to Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha)
Alua, you have the right approach. Death and life are the two sides of the same coin.
*_Without love and sense of humor there is unhappiness and life is meaningless._* 💕☮🌎🌌

Reply
@gameguru1488

March 29, 2025 at 5:13 am

TED has become a stand-up.

Reply
@gracioussunchild9877

March 29, 2025 at 9:53 am

The colonization perspective is soooo weird…

Reply

Science & Technology

The VC Backing the American Dream with Manan Mehta, Unshackled Ventures

Immigrant founders have built some of the world’s most valuable companies, but many still face barriers that make it harder to get a startup off the ground. Visa restrictions, limited access to friends-and-family capital, shallow networks, and a venture industry built around pattern matching can keep promising founders from getting funded before they have a…

Published

19 hours ago

August 13, 2026

CYBER TECH TV

In this episode of Build Mode () , host Isabelle Johannesen sits down with Manan Mehta, co-founder and managing partner of Unshackled Ventures, () to talk about why he believes immigrant founders represent one of venture capital’s biggest overlooked opportunities. Manan breaks down how Unshackled built an investment model designed to help founders navigate immigration barriers, why traditional VC pattern matching causes investors to miss potential outliers, and how his team evaluates founders at day zero—often before they have a product, customers, or traction. He also explains why the structural gaps that make some founders harder to fund may be exactly where investors should be looking for outsized returns.

They get into:

•

The four structural barriers immigrant founders face when starting companies in the U.S.

•

How Unshackled Ventures helps founders navigate visas while building their startups

•

Why VC’s reliance on pattern matching can cause investors to miss outlier founders

•

How Manan evaluates founders before they have a product, customers, or traction

•

The IQ, AQ, EQ, and SQ framework Unshackled uses to evaluate founder potential

•

Why resilience, lived experience, and a founder’s relationship to the problem can matter more than a polished pitch

•

Why structural gaps can create some of the biggest opportunities for investors

•

How founders without traditional networks can find alternative paths to early capital

•

Why founders should understand their personal “why” instead of trying to fit the traditional VC mold

Subscribe to Build Mode on Apple Podcasts () , Spotify () , or wherever you like to listen () . And watch the full videos on YouTube () . New episodes of Build Mode () drop every Thursday.

Chapters:

00:00 – Why VCs Miss Outlier Founders

01:45 – Why Manan Mehta Founded Unshackled Ventures

04:15 – The Problem With VC Pattern Matching

06:15 – The Friends-and-Family Gap for Immigrant Founders

08:18 – How Unshackled Helps Founders Navigate Visas

10:40 – Building a Startup in Today’s Immigration Environment

12:19 – Solving One of Unshackled’s Hardest Immigration Cases

14:39 – What the U.S. Stands to Lose16:59 – Raising Unshackled’s First Venture Funds

19:40 – Can You Start a Company on an H-1B Visa?

22:13 – How to Evaluate a Founder at Day Zero

28:30 – Measuring IQ, AQ, EQ, and SQ

30:26 – How Fear Drives VC Pattern Matching

33:01 – Why Structural Gaps Create Outlier Opportunities

35:14 – Finding Startup Capital Outside Traditional VC

38:09 – Why Founders Need to Understand Their “Why”

Hosted by Isabelle Johannesen. Produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience development led by Morgan Little. Special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.

Science & Technology

The High Risk, High Reward Model of Backing Immigrant Founders l Build Mode

Published

20 hours ago

August 13, 2026

CYBER TECH TV

In this episode of Build Mode, host Isabelle Johannesen sits down with Manan Mehta, co-founder and managing partner of Unshackled Ventures, to talk about why he believes immigrant founders represent one of venture capital’s biggest overlooked opportunities. Manan breaks down how Unshackled built an investment model designed to help founders navigate immigration barriers, why traditional VC pattern matching causes investors to miss potential outliers, and how his team evaluates founders at day zero—often before they have a product, customers, or traction. He also explains why the structural gaps that make some founders harder to fund may be exactly where investors should be looking for outsized returns.

Subscribe to Build Mode:
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
Wherever you like to listen
New episodes of Build Mode drop every Thursday.

Chapters:
00:00 – Why VCs Miss Outlier Founders
01:45 – Why Manan Mehta Founded Unshackled Ventures
04:15 – The Problem With VC Pattern Matching
06:15 – The Friends-and-Family Gap for Immigrant Founders
08:18 – How Unshackled Helps Founders Navigate Visas
10:40 – Building a Startup in Today’s Immigration Environment
12:19 – Solving One of Unshackled’s Hardest Immigration Cases
14:39 – What the U.S. Stands to Lose
16:59 – Raising Unshackled’s First Venture Funds
19:40 – Can You Start a Company on an H-1B Visa?
22:13 – How to Evaluate a Founder at Day Zero
28:30 – Measuring IQ, AQ, EQ, and SQ
30:26 – How Fear Drives VC Pattern Matching
33:01 – Why Structural Gaps Create Outlier Opportunities
35:14 – Finding Startup Capital Outside Traditional VC
38:09 – Why Founders Need to Understand Their “Why”

Hosted by Isabelle Johannesen. Produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience development led by Morgan Little. Special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.

Science & Technology

Hands-on With Google’s New Pixel 11 Devices

Get a hands-on look at Google’s new Pixel 11 lineup, from the more durable Pro Fold, an updated new camera bar, and of course, a push for Gemini AI features.

Published

20 hours ago

August 13, 2026

CYBER TECH TV

Get a hands-on look at Google’s new Pixel 11 lineup, from the more durable Pro Fold, an updated new camera bar, and of course, a push for Gemini AI features.