The Art of Reading Minds | Oz Pearlman | TED

0:04 I am billed as the world's greatest mind reader.

0:07 But guess what?

0:08 I can't read minds.

0:10 What I can do is read people.

0:14 And people ask a question all the time, which is,

0:17 “Were you born with this?” And the answer is no, of course not.

0:21 Absolutely not.

0:22 I do not possess any supernatural powers.

0:26 I am not a psychic.

0:28 This is a learnable skill that I feel anyone could do,

0:32 but I've applied for about roughly

0:35 three decades at reverse-engineering the human mind.

0:39 If I know how you think, I know what you think.

0:42 And I want to ask each and every one of you in this room a question.

0:46 But before we do, take a deep breath in.

0:48 Take a deep breath in.

0:50 Exhale out and close your eyes.

0:53 A little zen mode, OK.

0:55 I see the people with trust issues,

0:56 eyes wide open, holding their wallets and phones.

0:59 Fellow New Yorkers.

1:01 (Laughter) Here is my question.

1:04 If you could have dinner, hypothetical, with someone famous, right?

1:08 Some of you have heard this question already, I didn't invent it,

1:11 I love asking people, someone famous,

1:13 dead or alive, past or present, man, woman, whatever.

1:16 I like to ask people, who would that person be for you?

1:18 It’s fascinating, everyone’s different,

1:20 and if you've already done it, open your eyes.

1:22 Some of you have done it, some of you are quick,

1:24 I see nods, I see people that are decisive.

1:26 If you haven't, you always need a deadline for creativity.

1:29 Three, two, one, crunch time, open your eyes.

1:31 Everyone out there, give me a big clap over your head if you

1:34 can see your person in your mind's eye, give me a big clap.

1:37 (Claps) One more big clap.

1:41 Notice the technique.

1:42 Elbows locked on this man.

1:44 Michael Phelps would have been jealous of that streamline.

1:47 Stand up, please.

1:48 Introduce yourself.

1:51 Person: I'm Ian.

1:52 OP: Ian, question for you.

1:54 Before you walked in this room and sat down,

1:56 did you have any idea who I was or what I was going to do?

1:59 Ian: No, actually, sorry.

2:00 OP: OK, that's cool, nobody reads the agenda.

2:03 Totally fine.

2:05 Give me another clap.

2:07 I like that, right here, you not only clap, but threw in a little belly dance.

2:11 I reward extra credit.

2:13 She's hiding her name tag.

2:15 She's like, "I'm giving the mentalist nothing." What is your name?

2:18 Person: Oh, hi, I'm Nanjera.

2:19 OP: Nanjera?

2:20 Stand up please.

2:21 Did I say that correctly, Nanjera?

2:23 Wonderful.

2:24 Give me another clap.

2:26 One more clap.

2:28 This man and I just locked eyes.

2:31 When we made eye contact, he closed his eyes tightly.

2:36 (Laughter) As if activating a camouflage shield where if he doesn't see me,

2:42 would I still see him?

2:43 I still see you, Jeff Johnson, stand up, please.

2:46 Give all three helpers a round of applause.

2:48 (Applause) Notice the question and the way it was phrased.

2:55 Dead or alive?

2:56 Fifty-fifty, like flipping a coin.

2:59 All three of you, please.

3:00 I don't read minds, I'm telling you the truth.

3:02 I read people.

3:04 Try not to react.

3:05 If the person you thought of is alive,

3:07 then their heart is beating in their chest,

3:09 the room is getting warm, like the blood flowing through their veins,

3:12 they're happy, smiling, alive, warming up.

3:14 Cold?

3:15 You feel a shiver down your neck.

3:17 Clear cut, 100 percent, Jeff Johnson, your person is alive and well, am I right?

3:22 JJ: You're right.

3:23 OP: The boisterous smile, the effervescence, 100 percent,

3:26 versus Ian, dead guy vibes written all over this guy.

3:28 Is it a dead guy?

3:30 Ian: Yeah.

3:31 OP: Classic Ian, classic.

3:33 (Laughter) Ian, focus on this— Also,

3:38 the lingering hands in pockets, always indicator of another guy.

3:41 Guy-to-guy interaction.

3:42 Is it a guy?

3:43 Ian: Yes.

3:44 OP: Of course it is.

3:45 If it's a female, hands in front of the crotch, I don't know why.

3:49 (Laughter) A few of you are going to get home,

3:55 and you see your husband like this, and you're like,

3:57 "Who is she?" (Laughter) Ian, think of his first name, think of his last name.

4:03 First name, last name.

4:05 Come back to me.

4:06 The first name, try to count the letters.

4:08 This doesn't make sense.

4:10 Listen to me.

4:11 This doesn't make sense.

4:12 He was confused when I asked about the last name.

4:15 He tried to shield it, but I saw it.

4:17 Why was he confused?

4:18 Then I asked the first name, count the letters.

4:20 It was too long.

4:22 Sit down if it's Alexander the Great.

4:24 Ian: What?

4:25 (Laughter and scattered applause) You don't

4:30 have to hold the applause inside, TED.

4:32 You can let it out.

4:33 (Applause and cheers) You've seen a taste of what I do.

4:43 And this is used primarily for the purpose of entertainment.

4:46 But what I'd like to show you now is

4:48 how you could apply the principles of my craft,

4:51 which is known as mentalism, to your everyday lives.

4:54 At home, at work, in your relationships.

4:56 How would guessing a celebrity out of a stranger's mind help you?

5:00 Well, frankly, it really can't.

5:02 (Laughter) But I have a situation,

5:05 a scenario where knowing someone's name would be incredibly valuable.

5:09 Let me paint a portrait.

5:11 You're at a party, you're at a work event, you've walked up to somebody new,

5:15 you've looked them in the eye, shaken their hands,

5:17 introduced yourselves to each other, and right at that moment,

5:20 you realize that you have completely forgotten the person's

5:25 name who just told it to you one second ago.

5:28 Raise your hand if you can share this experience.

5:31 You raise your hand, too, you liar.

5:33 She's like, "Not me, not me." I want to give you a superpower,

5:39 from this day forward, where you will never,

5:41 ever forget the name of someone you just met.

5:44 Ever.

5:45 And how am I going to do this?

5:46 Using, can you guess?

5:47 Shampoo.

5:49 Didn't see that one coming, did you?

5:51 The back of every bottle of shampoo is a masterclass in brilliant marketing.

5:55 Three words in the instructions: lather, rinse, repeat.

5:59 Lather, makes your hair smell good; rinse makes it clean;

6:02 repeat— we've got to sell some product.

6:05 I want to repurpose that catchphrase that each and every one of you

6:09 will remember and take with you for the rest of your days.

6:12 Listen.

6:12 Repeat.

6:13 Reply.

6:13 Say it with me, listen, repeat, reply.

6:16 Listen sounds like the most obvious thing in the world.

6:19 Of course, listen to the name.

6:20 But that's where most of you falter.

6:22 At the moment the person tells you the name, you are actually not listening.

6:26 You are thinking about what you're going to say back.

6:29 Do I know this person or what am I going to say next?

6:31 Or a million other thoughts that pop into your head.

6:33 It's not a memory issue.

6:35 You didn't forget the name, you never knew it.

6:37 Imagine I give you a twig and I tell you,

6:41 write my name in the sand at the beach.

6:43 And you try with the twig.

6:44 First wave washes it away.

6:46 But if I give you a thick branch, you carve it in.

6:49 You repeat those letters.

6:50 It's going to take a whole lot of waves until there's no trace.

6:53 So here's what each of you is going to do.

6:55 When you meet the next person, make your mind a blank for all of two seconds.

6:59 When they say their name, truly listen.

7:01 And now repeat.

7:03 Everybody say it with me, repeat.

7:05 We are going to say their name twice back to them, right?

7:08 Ashley, is that right?

7:10 Great to meet you Ashley.

7:12 This serves two purposes.

7:13 One, it kind of repetitively ingrains it in our memory.

7:17 Second, you know how to pronounce it correctly.

7:19 Nanjera?

7:19 Am I saying that right, Nanjera?

7:21 See, there was a reason I did that.

7:23 Third, third: reply.

7:26 Listen, repeat?

7:27 Reply.

7:28 Reply is where we fully cement the name in.

7:30 Here is how we do that, I'll give you three examples.

7:33 First one, a compliment.

7:34 Everyone loves a good compliment, right?

7:36 "Ashley, those earrings, I love those earrings,

7:38 Ashley." Now she's Ashley with the earrings.

7:40 A visual indicator.

7:42 Next up, spelling.

7:44 "Do you spell that Ashley with an EIGH or with an EY?

7:48 EY, of course, that's the right spelling,

7:50 Ashley, I knew." Or, third, a personal connection.

7:54 "Ashley, that's so funny.

7:55 My cousin’s married to Ashley.” Is my cousin really married to Ashley?

7:59 Absolutely not, I'm a total liar.

8:00 (Laughter) But none of you will forget the name Ashley.

8:06 And neither will I.

8:07 And neither will we forget Nanjera, after I said her name multiple times.

8:12 Nanjera, I think— again, rouging of the cheeks, little sweat.

8:16 Your person is alive also.

8:18 Nanjera: Correct.

8:19 OP: Now, what I do in my profession is I take

8:22 things that appear to have limitless possibilities and break them down.

8:26 People that are famous, there are several, kind of, categories.

8:29 I'm going to say them quickly, you don't have to nod,

8:32 but we had a conqueror, let's call it a historical figure.

8:35 We have singers, movie stars, athletes,

8:37 comedians, politicians, already registered a hit.

8:40 Too funny you did this.

8:41 Alright.

8:43 Shouldn't have smiled, tighten it up, Nanjera.

8:45 (Laughter) Three days ago, I did a show in Dallas, Texas.

8:57 Dallas, Texas.

8:58 And the last person standing thought of a singer.

9:01 It's always singers where this happens.

9:04 I got his singer correct and he didn't sit down.

9:07 And do you know what he said to me?

9:09 I go, you know, why isn't he sitting down?

9:11 He goes, "Oh yeah?

9:12 What song am I thinking of?" (Laughter) I'm like, buddy, this is not Netflix.

9:18 (Laughter) Always singers.

9:24 Tell us all, who, in your mind, is sitting across from you, having dinner?

9:30 You're on the edge of your seat.

9:31 What's their name?

9:32 Nanjera: Bob Dylan.

9:36 OP: I couldn't hear you.

9:37 Nanjera: Bob Dylan.

9:39 OP: Can I ask you a question?

9:40 I always like this.

9:41 Everyone, listen to me.

9:42 I call this the grass is greener approach.

9:44 I can always see it when someone's eyes shift.

9:46 She goes, "Mm, I like Bob Dylan,

9:48 but I actually had someone else in my mind." You thought of someone else.

9:51 It's in the back of your head, but you just shifted.

9:54 Can you tell me— Folks— (Laughter) This is not my first rodeo.

10:00 (Laughter) Who was the first person you thought of?

10:06 (Laughter) Tell us.

10:11 Nanjera: Trevor Noah.

10:12 OP: Ooh.

10:13 It's not a singer.

10:14 Ooh.

10:16 Don't ever doubt me again, TED, don't you ever doubt me again.

10:22 (Applause and cheers) Jeff.

10:31 Do you know what the most common question I get at the end of a show is?

10:35 Other than, of course, "How do you do it," is,

10:38 "Aren't you afraid of getting it wrong?" That's what I get asked,

10:42 because people understand that there is risk involved in what I do.

10:45 This is not sleight-of-hand card tricks that work every time.

10:48 And so the answer is, yeah, of course, of course I am.

10:51 You know what?

10:52 Because what's fascinating to me is people can feel the element of risk.

10:56 And I think the number one factor in success,

11:00 both on stage and in every facet of my life,

11:02 is an unshakable belief that it will work.

11:05 It's self-fulfilling.

11:06 And in this case, it's not a belief that I'm going to guess your person.

11:09 Been there, done that.

11:12 I don't plateau, Jeff, I peak.

11:15 So I am not going to read your mind.

11:18 I want to empower someone in this room to do it instead.

11:22 This Frisbee— (Laughter) Was purchased on Amazon Prime,

11:28 free two-day shipping, 87 cents.

11:31 It has a 1.5-star review.

11:33 (Laughter) This is literally the worst Frisbee in the world.

11:37 (Laughter) Please, sir, grab that.

11:40 Tell me your first name.

11:41 Person: Dylan.

11:42 OP: That's correct.

11:44 (Laughter) Stand up, Dylan.

11:47 The Frisbee is made out of mesh, everybody.

11:49 Which means if it hits you in the face, it will not hurt.

11:51 But it will hurt your pride if this goes viral on TED Talks later.

11:54 Everyone hands up in defensive posture.

11:56 Dylan, close your eyes so you can't even try to aim this piece of junk.

12:00 Throw it.

12:01 Someone catch.

12:02 Give it a throw, please go.

12:03 Oh, my God, is that far?

12:05 Mike runner, run, run, run.

12:06 Stand up, stand up!

12:08 (Applause) Please stand up.

12:12 What is your name?

12:14 Did you say Brett?

12:16 Person: Yeah, Brett.

12:17 OP: Have you ever met or spoken a word to Jeff Johnson before?

12:21 Brett: I actually haven't.

12:22 OP: OK, maybe more networking at the next breakout session.

12:25 (Laughter) Please, Brett, come on up.

12:28 Give him a huge round of applause, make your way up, Brett.

12:32 Two Ts, I like the way you roll, Brett.

12:35 Not going to forget that name, are you now?

12:39 Pleasure to meet you, sir.

12:40 Brett, I’m bringing you front and center.

12:44 Let's adjust this to the height my wife wishes I had.

12:47 (Laughter) She is watching this now live and saying "That's true." Brett,

12:52 here's what you're going to do.

12:54 I'm going to ask you in a moment— Have

12:57 you ever spoken to me a word in your life?

12:59 Brett: I haven't.

13:00 OP: He seemed happy about that, that was weird.

13:03 I'm going to ask him in a moment to close his eyes.

13:07 You need to believe it in order to achieve it.

13:10 When you close your eyes, I am going to ask Jeff to uncap a marker.

13:14 And you're going to write the person.

13:15 Very important, Jeff, you thought of one person, is that correct?

13:19 Jeff: That's right.

13:20 OP: Because, you know, Nanjera is like, having dinner.

13:22 She's like, load it up, let's get a six top.

13:25 Brett, close your eyes.

13:28 His eyes are closed.

13:29 Brett, keep your eyes closed.

13:32 Jeff, open up your marker, please.

13:34 As big as you can, so we can't see it,

13:37 write down the first and last name of the person

13:40 you are imagining sitting down to dinner with.

13:43 Brett, open your eyes.

13:46 You have to believe it in order to achieve it.

13:48 Look, not into his eyes, look into his soul.

13:50 And when I snap my fingers, tell him, who is he having dinner with?

13:54 Brett: Barack Obama.

13:55 OP: Turn it around!

13:56 Show everybody, show everybody.

13:59 (Cheers and applause) Thank you, Brett.

14:06 (Cheers and applause) I am Oz Pearlman, thank you very much, everybody.