Baya Voce on the Cure for the Loneliness Epidemic

Famous Failures

Baya Voce has produced “magic touch” experiences ranging from two-person rituals to elaborate 1,000+-person immersive-theater productions. Whether 20-person Jeffersonian-style dinners or high-end finance conferences at Lincoln Center (and everything in between), Baya’s focus is engineering unforgettable moments.

With more than 4 million views, her TEDx talk on loneliness is one of the most-viewed of all time. She has been featured by Forbes, ABC, Fox, MTV, and SXSW for her perspective on experience design and human connection.

Sign up for Baya’s newsletter on her website https://bayavoce.com/, and follow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/baya_voce

In this episode Baya and I discuss:

• How being on the Real World flung Baya into a canyon of loneliness
• What advice Baya would give her 21-year-old Real World self
• The invisible public health crisis Baya is happy to see getting more attention
• How feeling alone at gatherings led Baya to a career in experience design
• What business event planners get wrong
• How Baya cultivates a high emotional response from her guests in designing experiences
• The importance of turning your event into a story
• What you should think about if you’re moving your real world event online

Resources mentioned

• Real World: Brooklyn
• Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
• Lost Connections: Why You’re Depressed and How to Find Hope by Johann Hari
• 1 in 3 U.S. Adults Are Lonely, Survey Shows by AARP
• The Nuclear Family Was a Mistake by David Brooks
• Hitch
• Hero’s Journey
• The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters by Priya Parker