Communication changes you and the world | Prof. Norihiko Takeuchi | TEDxSapporo

Prof. Norihiko Takeuchi shares his idea worth spreading at Sapporo City, Japan that Japanese people should change and communicate more. He states "communication changes you and the world."

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences.

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

Thank you very much for coming.

Are you ready to listen to me?

Audience: Yes.

Very good.

Japanese people should change.

According to an overseas survey

conducted to 1,000 passengers on planes,

45% of them have experiences

of meeting people, meeting somebody,

which means they talked with new people.

30% have met at least one person

on the ground.

8% have had some kind of relationship.

Isn't this a bigger percentage
than you think?

I often find myself and my partners,

the only people talking around us.

I sometimes feel that they are missing

their precious chances.

People next to you may be interesting,

very interesting

or you may have mutual acquaintances.

We often feel that we live
in a small world, don't we?

I think Japanese people
should be more open-minded;

although we are told
not to talk with strangers,

it doesn't always work.

If your neighbors seem to be bored,

why don't you talk to them
and enjoy communication?

Why did I choose the topic?

Communication changes you and the world.

Once you get new ideas and knowledge

through your communication,

you are not the person you used to be.

You have been affected by communication,

and you have changed.

It might be a very slight change,

but change is change.

At the same time,

you may exchange your partners,

you may change your partners.

In some cases, you can affect
others a lot through communication.

If someone is seeking
what they want to do,

you may be able to give them some hints.

Once you and your partner have changed,

the world is not the one it used to be.

Of course, you can change yourself

by reading books and magazines

by studying, by practicing sports and art.

That's fine.

However, once you experience

the joy of communication,

you may want to talk with your neighbors.

If you want to change the world,

you can write books,

you can make movies,

make new smartphone applications,

make new IT tools, and so on.

In such ways, you can change
the world on a large scale.

However, they're not the only ways
to change the world.

You can talk with people in person.

What you do affects people and the world.

Communication changes you and the world.

Thank you very much.

(Applause)