Finding Success Through Failure

Simone Giertz gives a funny and heartfelt talk on why you should make useless things and act on the random thoughts that we think of. Giertz creates a plethora of wacky inventions, from robots that are programmed to cut vegetables, cut hair, brush your teeth, or even apply makeup. She drives the path down redefining what it means to succeed and that when she creates, she focuses on failure. This concept allows one to acknowledge that the best answer is unknown and it can't be accurately measured by all means.

Driven by her overachieving childhood, she was often overwhelmed with the pressures she put on herself. Giertz educated herself in hardware when her interest in building robots grew and her enthusiasm silenced her performance anxiety. She explains that through the process of all the inventions she created and growth that took place, she realized the joy and humility that gets lost in the field of engineering. Her experimental play in her work highlights a true beauty of a vague correct answer and silencing the voice in our heads that tells you that you know exactly how the world is supposed to work.