2025 Theme:
Discipline for Passion
"If you have a dream, fight for it. There's a discipline for passion. It's not about how many times you get rejected, or you fall down, or you're beaten up. It's about how many times you stand up, are brave, and you keep on going."
- Lady Gaga (91st Academy Awards, February 24, 2019)
When: January 14-17th (Exact Date TBD)
Where: Van Metre Hall Auditorium
(3351 Fairfax Dr, Arlington, VA 22201)
Speakers:
Theme Rationale
In the past three years, the world has struggled with tribulations, stress, and regret, but as we recede from the pandemic, we rethought what we once took for granted. We redirected our attention to what matters most and established a new mindset in our lives. People worldwide have used their time in quarantine to cultivate new, unique passions, autodidactically taking action to the fullest extent to improve themselves and chase their dreams. However, maintaining the consistency necessary to continually improve one's passion during trying times can seem impossible.
Discipline allows us to focus ourselves on what is most important. Discipline reminds us why the goals are worth pursuing and matter, even when we're rejected, beaten up, or have fallen down. It takes courage and discipline to confront obstacles and persevere, even when the path is nebulous.
There is a broad scope of what passions one pursues and how and why one chases them. From researching commercial aviation's impact on running the world's economy or the role of folktales in preserving indigenous cultures for future generations, TED's mission is to share ideas worth spreading. We host TEDxGeorgeMasonU to celebrate the innovative ideas from rich, diverse perspectives that each Patriot at GMU has to offer.
We hope the unique ideas presented in TEDxGeorgeMasonU will spark a new revelation and inspire you to ponder your passion and means of cultivating it. What ends are you willing to meet for your goals? What is your discipline for passion?