Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson just gave an absolutely epic TED talk about his determination to succeed in life. Along with his life in Iron Maiden, Dickinson spoke about his business ventures and how, in retrospect, he views his battle with cancer as a gift.
Dickinson explored his talking points in an 18-minute TEDx Malmö Talk . After discussing his green energy ventures and selling over 30 million pints of Trooper , he offered some advice for when life goes terribly wrong.
“What happens when things go terribly wrong? Imagine you’re sailing into the future and, suddenly, the world hits its breaking point. It just happened. So, what happens when you think, ‘We’re on an unsinkable ship. Why do I need to bother figuring out how the lifeboats work?’” he said.
The artist further explains that it's not about thinking about what can't be done, but rather about what actions and decisions can be taken that will make things better in an emergency.
From his perspective, when things are "out of the ordinary," those are the most important moments to have extraordinary ideas. In this way, when the situation returns to what it originally was, the ideas become apparent.
“I had cancer five years ago. It was very difficult during the first week to think of it as a gift, but in retrospect, it was. When I had cancer, I didn't intend to check out so soon. I realized it was a possibility, but I can't change that outcome. What can I do? I can make a plan for the future. Let's start the process of learning to fly a 747. I'll take basic lessons, lay the groundwork. Let's assume I can do that, because I flew a 747 on tour after I recovered from cancer,” he pointed out.
Bruce concluded his lecture by sharing the inspiration he draws from Winston Churchill . “I won’t even bother talking about his many flaws… I’ll tell you one thing you can take from this man: having stubborn determination when it matters. When it mattered to the whole world, he confronted a nasty man with a toothbrush mustache. He stood up against him, it must be said, some people in the system, many people who were in his own government. He fought alone and inspired a nation to stand alone against the monster that divided continental Europe and that would have divided the world. Determination.”
Watch Bruce Dickinson's full TED Talk in the video below:
