5 TED Talks That Will Completely Refresh Your Outlook on Love

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With the way life has been around the world lately, it wouldn’t hurt for us to add more love to the mix. From war, poverty, famine and the fight for human rights, the Burt Bacharach classic, “What The World Needs Now is Love” has never been more certifiable.

Considered one of the most essential components to our life, love is the basis of all things good and beautiful in our world, and true love is a real motivator for purpose and perspective.

While February is known famously as the month that celebrates love in all its manifestations, it’s also just the second month of the new year, which means if you feel a bit polarized in your goals and love life, it’s time to really pick yourself up. We all love indulging in our plans of Netflix and ice cream, but it’s important to recognize that in all its various forms, love is a central part of the human experience and deserves more attention.

One of the best ways to refresh your look on love is by surrounding yourself with it. We’re not talking fancy 50 step programs or self-help books that promise to mend your love life. We mean broadening your mind with the click of a button to help you to see past your own life, in exchange for one chock full of meaning, purpose and of course, widen perspective.

Love is not simple. In many ways, it is a whole other beast in the motions of life. But TED Talks are helpful tools as they share short, powerful nuggets of wisdom we have all come to love and appreciate. With numerous speakers spreading ideas on a variety of subjects, it’s time to explore some of our favorites minds discussing the subject of love to open your mind, bring awareness and make you a more loving person too.

Amy Webb: “How I hacked online dating”

Today, online dating has become an increasingly popular way for users to find love. But along the way of happy love stories and hashtag weddings, there are users who don’t reel in the rewards of virtual encounters. Down on her luck with the online dating pool, digital strategist, Amy Webb approached it from a data perspective and discovered a way to create the “super profile.”

Andrew Solomon: “Love, no matter what”

Love and relationships aren’t easy, and no one knows this better than parents. In this quietly moving TED Talk, writer Andrew Solomon shares what he learned from talking to dozens of parents and asking them how they maintain their unconditional love for their children, no matter how they are born or grow up to be.

Stefana Broadbent: “How the internet enables intimacy”

While so many of us are worried that the internet and social media is actually a deterrent for relationships, tech anthropologist and cognitive scientist, Stefana Broadbent argues that the digital atmosphere is a capable way of cultivating deeper relationships. From IM to texting, Broadbent shares in her interesting TED Talk that the internet and social media have the power to bring love across barriers like distance and workplace rules. Not to mention, can actually help you to form deep, personal and intimate relationships.

Helen Fisher: “Why we love, why we cheat”

Infidelity is something so many of us have a hard time confronting. After all, it is much better to live with your eyes closed than acknowledge the pain felt from a cheating partner. In her enlightening TED Talk, anthropologist and love expert, Helen Fisher dives deep into what love means in our society. From covering the origins to how it has evolved, Fisher looks at how love affects our brain and why we decide to cheat in the first place.

Hannah Brencher: “Love letters to strangers”

These days, we’re lucky if we get a phone call from our lover than a quick emoji-filled text. But it wasn’t that long ago that people actually used to take time out from their day to express their real feelings in letters. While some might turn to blogging or email writing to get their point in love across, letter enthusiast, Hannah Brencher found writing letters as a natural reaction and thought to write them for strangers by leaving them in places. The act soon went on to become a global initiative, The World Needs More Love Letters, which rushes handwritten letters to those in need of a boost. This TED Talk is as heartwarming as it is inspiring.

What is one of your favorite TED Talks on the subject of love? Share with us in the comments below.