The Power of Seduction in Our Everyday Lives: Chen Lizra at TEDxVancouver

A look at seduction with special reference to Cuba. The speaker claims that using seduction appropriately can lead to better self-confidence with all of its benefits.

(Latin American Music)

(Applause)
(Music)

(Music)

Man: I'm just going to be
in the green room in the back

if you really want to talk
about some, after you're done.

Chen Lizra: Just give me the clicker.

Man: OK. Got your clicker here.

Thank you.

Whoo!

Man: Really?

CL: I guess you
don't need coffee now, do you?

Man: Well, right.

CL: My name is Chen Lizra.

I'm a dancer, author
and an entrepreneur.

I started my talk
with a seductive dance

because I want you
to first feel the seduction,

to get you -- kind of -- to gut level.

I'm fascinated with seduction, but
not just with the dance and the movements,

but also with how you can bring it
in a practical way into day-to-day life.

Since 2005, I've been travelling
back and forth to Cuba

in order to train with
the best professional dancers.

This is when I first started seeing
seduction as a valuable life skill.

I'm so fascinated with seduction,

but mostly because it's such
a playful fun thing.

I truly believe that everyone has
the power to seduce in them,

we just need to unleash it.

And I also believe that
we need to develop this skill

from a very young age,
so it can help us

become a lot more successful in life.

So let's examine seduction for a second,

and let's take a look
at our perception of seduction,

what it all means.

When we first hear
the word "seduction",

we have a lot of misconceptions.

The word has been sexualized
so many times

that we can't even imagine it
as a positive skillset.

We typically associate seduction
with something negative,

because we consider it the less honest
or acceptable form of influence.

People who are easily seduced

to some degree feel
manipulated into the situation.

When we think of gender roles,
it's not even a question

that men are permitted
a lot more freedom than women to seduce.

And when we think
of work and seduction,

we merely go to sleeping your way
to the top and being unprofessional.

You know how people say,
some people say that money's bad,

but the money itself is not bad, right?

It comes down to
money gives you power,

and power can be used
for good and for bad;

it comes down to who you are inside.

Seduction is exactly the same,

it comes down to your DNA
and what you choose to do with it.

I choose to make seduction classy,

and to add to it my sense
of loyalty and integrity.

Seduction is really about
your untapped power

that you're not using,
that you want to unleash.

Would we tell superman
not to stop a bullet?

Or a doctor not to save a life?

But, of course, not.

Seduction is about charm,
connection, vulnerability, pride,

self-confidence and appeal.

I'm one of those lucky ones,
that gets to go to Cuba all the time.

And I've been observing
this culture for a very long time,

seeing how aware they seem to be
of their seductive powers.

You can say that in many ways,

Cuba has been like
a seduction laboratory for me,

where I get to study seduction
and understand how they use it better.

But it's not like Cubans
are the only people in the world

that understand
how to use seduction, right?

You can experience it
in other countries in the world:

in Israel, in Brazil and the Dominicans
and many other countries.

And yet in Cuba I found
a combination of things,

a very unique
combination of things,

that I haven't found yet
anywhere else in the world,

and I'll speak about
some of them today.

And you'll probably agree
with me when I say

that the chances of finding
this kind of seduction out in the open

in North America
is pretty close to slim, right?

I truly believe that we can learn
a valuable life lesson

from Cubans about life and seduction.

And having said that, if we were
to try and take seduction

and break it into some kind of a formula,
what would that look like?

One: desire --
start taking notes!

Desire means knowing
what you want

and then having
the willingness to go after it.

In Cuba, rumba is the game of seduction
between the man and the woman.

The woman is the flirty hen
and the guy is the seductive rooster.

The woman uses her body to seduce the men
to say, "Want it? Come and get it."

The guy on the other hand
will use his body

to demonstrate his masculinity.

He'll try to decoy her.
Boom!

Launching an attack.
(Laughter)

He's trying to pecker her
and get her pregnant.

She'll notice the attack,
she'll block it,

she'll mock him
for not succeeding,

and she'll go,
"Didn't make it. Try again."

Cubans interact on the streets everyday,
as if they're playing the game of rumba.

They keep a tension, a sexy tension,
always alive.

It's like,
you could almost have it, but not.

But if you only tried, then maybe.

(Laughter)

Keeping the "maybe" alive is the skill
of presenting potential possibilities

and then fuelling them with desire.

It's about learning
where the emotional buttons are,

and then triggering them.

When there is real desire,
even if it's hidden,

it's possible to lure it out.

But you really got to get
what the other person is missing,

and then give it to them.

And when it's done right,
it's virtually impossible to say "no" to.

Number two: confidence.

Strong self-confidence
is essential for seduction;

without it you can't go after
what you want.

Our self-image is formed
at a very young age

and is deeply affected
by our environment.

Cubans praise their kids
from a very young age

to feel confident and stunning
in their own bodies,

because they recognize this
is a very valuable life skill.

You'll see them at the pool at the hotel,
the music is like blasting,

they're grinding to the music,
and the little ones

are grinding right beside them,
and they'll turn to them and say,

"Que lindo!" or "Que linda eres!"
-- "You're so beautiful!"

Add to this that in Cuba
there is no advertising,

because it's a communist country,

so there's nothing
that distorts the body image.

Cubans, not like us, are not affected

by the media to try and think
that they need a perfect body.

Instead their self-image is formed
out of how stunning

the environment makes them feel,
and how much love they get at home.

As a result of all of this,

Cubans grow up feeling intense pride
and self-confidence,

no matter what body type
or shape they might have.

And it's this kind of self-confidence
that leads later on

to how you present yourself
in all areas of your life

and how you succeed.

Body language.

When you walk
on the streets of Havana,

guys and girls check each other out,
in the open, all the time.

They're not trying to hide it.

And guys call after women
with "Linda!", "Preciosa!"

And women respond with
how they hold their bodies,

and how they accentuate
their curves when they walk,

because they know
they're being noticed and admired,

and they like it.

It makes it really easy
to seduce and be seduced,

because you know
what the other person is feeling.

Seduction also shows up
in the tone of your voice,

the kind of look you give,
what you say and how you say it,

and at times,
even adding a little touch.

Body language is
very important for seduction

because it communicates
to the other person

what you want.

Number four: arousal.

To effectively seduce someone

there has to be an activation
of the arousal,

waking up in them
the desire to give you what you want

and luring it out.

But first, you have to connect
and interact with the other person,

if not, then how will you
get to their heart?

And for seduction to really work,

you have to give it
your undivided attention, in a moment.

One of the most charming things
that I've noticed about Cuban men,

is how they to go after what they want
completely fearless of the consequences

of getting hurt or getting rejected.

They will seduce a woman over and over,
making her feel desired and special,

even after she said "no"
a couple of times,

slowly sneaking into her heart
and waking up that desire.

In a "no" there was a "maybe"
turns into a "yes".

That's damn sexy.

This fearlessness of failure
is a profoundly powerful capability

that I've noticed in some
of the most seductive people

that I've ever met.

But they can do this

because they've developed
their intuitions so much,

that they can easily distinguish
between a "no" that means a "no",

and a "no" that means "maybe",

because the last thing you want to do
is not accept a "no" that means a "no".

So what I really want you to get

is that everyone has
the power to seduce in them.

The trick is to learn
how to use it and when.

Seduction is a skill
no matter how you look at it.

You can call it: wooing, persuading,

winning someone over,
charming, it doesn't really matter.

But what it is, is really
about using all of the elements

that I talked about here in the talk,
which is one: desire, two: confidence,

three: body language, four: arousal,

to build the connection
that gets you what you want.

It's also important to remember
that seduction is not a science,

but an art, and that's the beauty of it,
it comes from the heart.

And like any art,
it can definitely be taught.

But to fully gain self-expression in it,
you have to take the time to master it,

and make it your own.

My hope is that you will see seduction

as a valuable life skill,
as I've learned to.

Because so many people
lose that childlike attitude

as they grow into adulthood,
and something's missing.

And wouldn't the world be
a better place if we didn't.

I really believe that seduction
leads to self-confidence,

and self-confidence leads to success
in all areas of your life.

Master seduction and you can have
anything that you want in life.

Anything.

I did get a TED Talk, didn't I?

(Laughter)

Thank you.

(Applause)