[APPLAUSE]

ANDREW HORN: Hey, Google.

Can you guys hear me?

AUDIENCE: Yeah.

ANDREW HORN: We're on.

Rock and roll.

Hi, guys.

Welcome.

Awesome.

So as you can see, we're here to talk about human connection

in the digital age.

Thank you guys for taking the time to be here.

So I want to start by thanking you all, because being

at Google, I know that you could be

getting a massage for free, lunch for free, haircut

for free.

A lot of other things, but you're here with me,

and that makes me happy.

And so what I want to promise you before we dig in today

is that we're not just going to talk about human connection.

We're actually going to talk about how

to connect in a digital age.

And so my goal is that you guys walk out of here

with tangible techniques that you

can use to connect with the people you want

and the people that you want to know.

How's that sound?

AUDIENCE: Good.

AUDIENCE: Great.

ANDREW HORN: Rock and roll.

So you guys, before we dig in, this talk

is going to be broken up into three specific sections.

So stories about how I was able to take this deep yearning

for connections, curiosity about relationships,

turn it into this business that has helped 100,000

people to give what we think is the most meaningful gift

in the world.

We're going to talk about stats.

How do strong social ties and relationships affect our brains

and affect our bodies?

And we're going to talk about tangible takeaways.

So how we can actually communicate to connect.

So those are those three components.

And before we start, it's always nice to actually establish,

what is human connection?

And my favorite definition is this one by Brene Brown.

"I define connection as energy that exists between people when

they feel seen, and heard, and valued;

and when they can give and receive without judgment;

and when they derive strength and sustenance

from the relationship."

A beautiful articulation of that energy

that exists between two people when we feel connected.

And at Tribute, we've actually broken that down even further.

So we've created a construct that

can allow people to evaluate the depth of their relationships,

that which they have an abundance of, that which

they're really seeking.

And we call that AVS.

So AVS is a mutual feeling of A, appreciation,

mutual recognition of the other person.

Do you see that person?

Do you appreciate who they are?

Needs to exist for human connection.

Second, vulnerability.

Can I be honest with this person?

Can I be truthful with this person?

Can I be fully myself with this person?

Vulnerability is the bridge to connection.

Next is support, and support's a beautiful thing.

And the way you think about it in human connection

is a natural call to support and be supported.

And so these are the three components

that we can break down when human connection truly exists.

An easy way to evaluate your friendships, as well as

those new relationships that you're adding depth to.

That's our definition of human connection.

So we all know that human connection

is important to experience, to have fun, to magnify joy.

But I also want to introduce you to why we should really

care about our social ties, our relationships.

And to do that, I'm going to introduce you to a guy

named Dr. Robert Waldinger.

So Dr. Waldinger did the longest study on happiness

in our history.

It's a 75-year longitudinal study of 750 people.

When they released his research, he gave this famous TED Talk.

And also, as I was perusing through the results

of that research, there was one statement

that they literally highlighted and bolded

to emphasize its importance.

And that statement was this.

"The clearest message we got from this study

is that good relationships keep us happier and healthier.

Period.

Good relationships keep us happier and healthier.

Period."

So from this research, we can assume

that strong social ties, investing in our relationships,

is probably the smartest investment we can

make in our overall happiness.

But it goes beyond just happiness.

What about our health?

What about our brains?

What about our bodies?

So recent research also shows, people

who have strong social ties, the medical term

to connotate relationships, have longer lives, stronger

immune systems, literally higher levels of white blood cells

to fight off disease, lower levels of stress and anxiety,

and they're less likely to dive into bad habits

like smoking or drinking.

An alarming study I recently ran into said this.

Having weak social ties is as harmful to ongoing health

as being an alcoholic and twice as harmful as obesity."

So again, when we have weak social ties,

it's not just a detriment to our happiness.

It's a detriment to our health and our mental well-being.

So it's something that we need to care about.

And so now I want to tell you guys a little bit about how

I got into this line of work, how

I was able to study human connection,

start businesses that are bolstering relationships

and gratitude in the world, and started

when I was 10 years old.

The first job I can remember is selling these books

in a back of a room for my mom.

My mom's an eight-time published author.

She talks about communication, networking, articulating

the value of your ideas.

So this thread of communicating to connect

was something that was ingrained in me at a very young age.

And so one of the common threads through my childhood

was sports.

It was how I connected, playing basketball, football,

and lacrosse.

Right before I graduated, I was enlightened

to the power of adaptive athletics,

helping young people with disabilities

to unite with their peers through sports.

And that inspired me to start dreams

for Kids DC, a community that brought kids together

to play all these incredible things you see up here.

Water skiing, outdoor adventures, hockey, lacrosse.

Using sport as a facilitator of human connection.

Then I got really interested in tech,

and I started to look at bigger problems affecting

the people with disabilities in their community.

And so we built Ability List, an online platform

that allows people with disabilities

to share the resources they know about and that they need.

So again, building community with an online platform.

So this passion for connection, this curiosity

about communication took a step up to the next level

when I was 27 years old, and it all started with a gift.

So my fiance Miki is in the back of the room right now,

and on my 27th birthday, she took me out

to dinner in Brooklyn where we live.

We come back to our apartment, and I'll always

remember that I swing the door open, thinking that we're

going to have a low-key night.

Then there's a silence.

And then three, two, one, all these people jump out.

She had planned this incredible surprise party.

So I'm hanging out with all of our favorite people

in the apartment.

Halfway through the party, Miki jumps up on a chair

and she yells, (YELLING) everyone in the living room!

So everyone runs into the living room.

She sits me right in the back, and she had

rented this projection screen.

So she puts it up on the wall.

I have no idea what's going on, and I would soon find out.

So Miki had taken the time to reach out

to 25 of my closest friends and all my family members.

She asked each one of them to submit a one-minute video