The first video TED Talk I watched was How I Held My Breath for 17 minutes by David Blaine. David Blaine is a magician who has performed on many famous Las Vegas stages and has completed stunts such as burying himself alive and living in a glass bubble for several months. He has a passion for completing tasks that others claim to be impossible, and admits he loves to prove people wrong.
One task that David Blaine wanted to accomplish was to beat the world record for breath holding. When he went to a doctor and asked him how long he could hold his breath was 2 minutes. When he asked the doctor how he could hold it longer the doctor said that he was a magician and instead of actually doing it he should just pretend. He tried crazy things like stuffing down a re-breather, breathing liquid and even considered surgically inserting a tube to allow him to reuse oxygen.
After all of these things failed David Blaine decided to just to do it. He learned how to meditate underwater and practiced vigilantly. He brought his heart rate down to half the normal rate and ate an extremely healthy diet which led to a significant weight loss. He tried to break the record twice. The first time he failed on television. He says that is was because his nerves got the better of him which brought his heart rate up. But the second time he was successful holding his breath for 17 minutes and breaking the old world record.
I think that David Blaine's main idea is about working for success and accomplishing the impossible. He put his blood sweat and tears into breaking the world record an accomplished his goal. David Blaine's ability to hold his breath was considered impossible by doctors from around the world.
His message of accomplishing the impossible is an important one and it strikes me at a personal level. Some of the goals that I want to accomplish in my life seem impossible sometimes. But David Blaine's message of doing things that others seem impossible inspires me to prove others wrong.
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