One of my favorite TED talks is by former NFL player Emmanuel Acho and it is titled “Why you should stop setting goals (yes, really)”. I found this TED talk recently and I found it very intriguing just based on the title alone.

The title of the TED talk is rather odd as it goes completely against an idea that is bound to society, setting goals. Acho re-emphasizes this at the start of his speech and manages to spin this title into a meaningful story and idea. Acho discusses his drive to be drafted in the top 3 rounds of the NFL draft, and how his overtraining for this goal resulted in him injuring himself, leading to him failing to achieve his goal.

Acho’s delivery throughout the story is spot-on, with him effectively keeping the audience entertained and focused on his message. Acho also uses images, such as NFL Combine pictures of his 40-yard dash, that show the story that he is telling, further painting an image in the audience’s head of the narrative he is creating. After discussing his failure, Acho defines a goal and why people set goals. He debunks a common belief that people who set written goals are more successful than people without them. Acho masterfully takes these discussions on goals and goal-setting and discusses how these practices only set an individual up for failure. Acho then transitions to how goal-setting undermines unlimited possibility with him instead proposing that people should try and be a little better at what they want to do on a day-to-day basis. Acho then closes the speech with a strong and meaningful line, where he states that in successfully achieving a goal there is a penalty for setting that goal in the first place.

Acho’s dialogue, delivery, and visuals are far superior to what would be expected from an ordinary speech. He goes above and beyond in all three, even combining them at points to really drive home points to the audience. By maintaining this throughout his presentation, Emmanuel Acho was able to change an audience’s initial negative thoughts on ending goal-setting to a more positive outlook on the message.

Sources:

Acho, Emmanuel. “Why You Should Stop Setting Goals (Yes, Really).” TED, TED Conferences, Apr. 2023, www.ted.com/talks/emmanuel_acho_why_you_should_stop_setting_goals_yes_really/transcript.