Ideas worth spreading

My journey to thank all the people responsible for my morning coffee

3,422,358 views |

A.J. Jacobs |

TED Salon: Brightline Initiative

• June 2018

Author A.J. Jacobs embarked on a quest with a deceptively simple idea at its heart: to personally thank every person who helped make his morning cup of coffee. More than one thousand "thank yous" later, Jacobs reflects on the globe-trotting journey that ensued -- and shares the life-altering wisdom he picked up along the way. "I discovered that my coffee would not be possible without hundreds of people I take for granted," Jacobs says.

Author A.J. Jacobs embarked on a quest with a deceptively simple idea at its heart: to personally thank every person who helped make his morning cup of coffee. More than one thousand "thank yous" later, Jacobs reflects on the globe-trotting journey that ensued -- and shares the life-altering wisdom he picked up along the way. "I discovered that my coffee would not be possible without hundreds of people I take for granted," Jacobs says.

This talk was presented at a TED Salon event given in partnership with Brightline Initiative. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

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About the speaker

A.J. Jacobs

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Immersing himself in alternate lifestyles and hilarious experiments (usually with himself as the guinea pig), writer A.J. Jacobs tests the limits of behavior, customs, culture -- and reports back on the wisdom and practical knowledge he's gained.

Mark Pendergrast | Basic Books, 2010 | Book

Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How it Transformed our World

An excellent history of coffee and how it impacts everything in our lives — the economy, the environment and intellectual history. Here's one highlight — when Pope Clement gave coffee his official blessing: "Why, this Satan's drink is so delicious ... we shall fool Satan by baptizing it and making it a truly Christian beverage."

Janice Kaplan | Dutton, 2016 | Book

The Gratitude Diaries: How a Year Looking on the Bright Side Can Transform Your Life

The author chronicles her year trying to increase her gratitude using wisdom both modern and ancient. For instance, Epicurus's advice: "Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not."

William MacAskill | Avery, 2016 | Book

Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Make a Difference

In my book and TED Talk, I argue that being grateful makes you want to help others. MacAskill, a philosopher professor at Oxford and fellow TED speaker, is a great guide on how to help as smartly and effectively as possible. The heart meets the brain, Moneyball meets charity.

Adam Grant | Penguin Books, 2014 | Book

Give and Take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success

A great book on how being a mensch can actually be good for business. (Note: I’m told by Jewish scholars that "mensch" is actually gender-neutral, so it applies to everyone.) In my book Thanks a Thousand, I talk about Grant's section on the "responsibility bias." This is the cognitive bias that makes us give credit to individuals instead of teams. This is a grave error, in my opinion. It encourages the quest for individual glory, when in reality almost everything good is the result of teamwork.

David DeSteno | Eamon Dolan/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018 | Book

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Psychologist David Desteno examines the science of gratitude. One key point: gratitude is good for your own happiness, but also makes you more pro-social and more generous.

James Salzman | The Overlook Press, 2013 | Book

Drinking Water: A History

The author — a professor of law and environmental policy at Duke University — examines the history and current politics of clean water. An eye-opening look at how much we take water for granted.

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This talk was presented at a TED Salon event given in partnership with Brightline Initiative. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Read more about TED Salons.