Welcome to the spirit of the times.

The TED conference is my personal escape pod. I’ve been attending that conference since the last one that was held in Monterey (2008). Someone once described it as "gymnastic for the brains." That description always makes me smile, but for those who attend it, they know that it is about so much more. The TED conference affects me at the cellular level. I’m not being overly dramatic. When was the last time that you attended a conference that you thought about on a daily basis? I think about the event, speakers and people I connect with over there on a daily basis. No joke. There is one other event that holds that same, special place in my heart, and it is: Google Zeitgeist. Google Zeitgeist is a private event (only five hundred attendees that are, primarily, Google‘s best partners). There are no sales pitches and little-to-no hallway chatter about what Google can do to grow your business. Google positions this conference as a "thank you." I’m not sure how it happens, but they are very gracious to invite me to be an attendee. I’ve been going for years, and I can best describe the content as, "TED with more of a business twist."

Google Zeitgeist happened this week.

I flew to Phoenix (via Chicago) this past Sunday night and stayed until the end of it (Tuesday after lunch). My head is still spinning (and it’s not from the 100+ degree weather). I’m always leery of sharing anything about the event in my social channels (granted, I do post some pictures to Facebook and Instagram), because I’m doing my best to be present in the moment. To take notes. To even spend some time alone with my thoughts. To think about what I learned, and how to apply it to the business of Twist Image, to our clients… and to myself. I feel, somewhat, silly even trying to write about it post-event. It’s all mush right now, as it stews around and slow cooks between my earholes. Because it’s a private/invite-only event, I’m also cautious to share anything online that was supposed to stay "in the room." (afterall, I do want to be invited back ;).

Let’s share some Google Zeitgeist.

I subscribe to the Zeitgeist Minds YouTube channel, where they often post the talks from previous events. Just now, I noticed a whole bunch of this week’s presentations were already posted online. So, the first thing you should do, is to subscribe to the Google Zeitgeist Minds YouTube Channel. The next thing you should do, is watch the following sessions that really inspired me.

Here’s just a little tickle of Google Zeitgeist: