Nick Seaver is a dad, commuter, and busy professional who once upon a time, in the land before children, saved up a bit of money, stepped away from a busy professional life, put all his belongings into storage, and spent 18 months in the Rocky Mountains with his wife, in full time silent retreat, as part of the first major scientific study on meditation. Why would anyone do this? What does silence and solitude do to the mind? What were the challenges? Benefits? Is there anything that can be brought down from the mountains and into our busy, engaged lives?

Nick Seaver focuses on direct private investments at Ziff Capital
Partners where he feels fortunate to work with a group of terrific, purposeinspired companies. Formerly, he was the CEO of Thanyapura, a destination resort offering programs through its Olympicclass sports training center, meditation center, integrative health center, and affiliated International Baccalaureate school. Once upon a time (2007), Nick and his wife participated in The Shamatha Project, the first major scientific study on meditation.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx