Julieanne O'Connor, Award-Winning Author, Actor & Strategist Speaks up about Living a Life Fulfilled in her new TEDxYakima Talk "ALIVE AND COUNTING"

LOS ANGELES, April 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Committed to putting "RELATE" back into RELATIONSHIPS, Ms. O'Connor encourages acceptance, tolerance, and kindness to strangers as keys to living an extraordinary life. Understanding that imperfection is in all of us and that compassion is a driver for joy, Julieanne O'Connor's TEDx talk "Alive and Counting" will surely inspire people to reconsider their daily perspective. The talk, which was given February 2nd, 2017 at TEDxYakima, an independently organized event licensed by TED, is now available online on the TEDx YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuVhMpDiEHA.

Known for her candid speaking style, Ms. O'Connor admits that giving a TEDx talk was one of the more self-induced stressful times of her life, having had a short time to prepare for the talk that's expected to potentially make an impact on the world.

"It's a lot of pressure if you think too hard about it," says Ms. O'Connor.

Ms. O'Connor chose a topic which might at first repel many, the topic of death. However, after careful consideration and exploration of the subject, she felt it would be a gift to address the theme. Ms. O'Connor is immensely grateful to the TEDxYakima team for selecting her talk for their venue.

"Did you know that it has been shown that people become happier with age, all the way up to death?" Ms. O'Connor says. "It is speculated that this is due to a shift from 'doing' to 'being' as well as that of connecting more with one's existing community, rather than always further trying to expand it. It has also been shown that some people have this realization earlier in life, when faced with near-death experiences or certain other profound events in their lives, proving it's likely less about age and more about perspective."

Despite having never set out to be an author, Ms. O'Connor is currently working on her 3rd book, Spelling It Out for Your Funeral. She is also the author of Spelling It Out for Your Man and Spelling It Out for Your Career, both with five star reviews and available anywhere books are sold. Proceeds from 2017 book sales will be donated to the SIO Dream Fund scholarship (http://www.spellingitout.com/sio/).

For more on Julieanne O'Connor visit http://spellingitout.com.

For interviews or to book Ms. O'Connor to speak at an event, Julieanne O'Connor can be contacted at http://www.spellingitout.com/contact/.

About TEDx, x = independently organized event
In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized. (Subject to certain rules and regulations.)

About TED
TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or fewer) delivered by today's leading thinkers and doers. Many of these talks are given at TED's annual conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, and made available, free, on TED.com. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Monica Lewinsky, Philippe Starck, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Sal Khan and Daniel Kahneman. TED's open and free initiatives for spreading ideas include TED.com, where new TED Talk videos are posted daily; the Open Translation Project, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as translations from thousands of volunteers worldwide; the educational initiative TED-Ed; the annual million-dollar TED Prize, which funds exceptional individuals with a "wish," or idea, to create change in the world; TEDx, which provides licenses to thousands of individuals and groups who host local, self-organized TED-style events around the world; and the TED Fellows program, which selects innovators from around the globe to amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities.

SOURCE Julieanne O'Connor