The world is moving faster than ever, but Phoenix surgeon and author Dr. Emilio Justo believes the most important decisions in life often happen in the moments when everything appears to stop.
On April 12, 2026, Dr. Justo will take the stage at TEDxASU, the independently organized TEDx event themed “Innovation for the Future,” to deliver a talk titled “The Most Dangerous Skill in the Modern World Is Speed.” Drawing on decades of experience operating in spaces measured in millimeters, Dr. Justo will make a case that the cultural obsession with speed is quietly eroding judgment, leadership and even relationships.
The event will take place from 9 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Delta Hotels at Marriott Phoenix-Mesa, located at 200 N Centennial Way in Mesa. Dr. Justo is the second speaker for the event, taking to the stage at approximately 9:15 a.m. Tickets are now available to the public and can be purchased at www.eventbrite.com/e/tedxasu-tickets-1985410079995.
A renowned ophthalmologist, cosmetic surgeon, entrepreneur and two-time TEDx speaker, Dr. Justo has built a career in a profession where precision matters more than pace. In the operating room, Dr. Justo explains, the moment that looks like hesitation to an outside observer is often the moment that protects a patient’s vision.
“The world celebrates speed, but speed often removes the space where judgment lives,” Dr. Justo says. “In surgery, the most important moment is the pause before the incision. That pause is not hesitation. It is responsibility. When we bring that same discipline into our decisions, our leadership and our relationships, we begin to live with clarity instead of impulse.”
Dr. Justo’s philosophy did not originate in a lecture hall or a boardroom. It began decades earlier when his family fled Cuba with little more than two suitcases and uncertainty. Growing up as an immigrant in the United States, Dr. Justo learned early that discipline, patience and careful decision-making were not inspirational slogans but tools for survival. Those lessons carried Dr. Justo through medical school at age 23, the building of a thriving Arizona surgical practice and ultimately onto international stages where Dr. Justo now speaks about leadership, focus and the power of restraint.
Dr. Justo will explore several key ideas, including:
- Decision-making: Why speed narrows perspective and increases the risk of costly mistakes in medicine, business and everyday life.
- Precision: How the deliberate pause allows experience, judgment and responsibility to guide better outcomes.
- Perspective: How Dr. Justo’s early life and family journey from Cuba shaped his philosophy of patience and long-term thinking.
- Leadership: Why the leaders who learn to pause while others rush may ultimately build the most durable success.
TEDxASU will bring together a diverse lineup of thinkers, innovators and creators from across disciplines to explore ideas shaping the future. The program is designed to spark new conversations and challenge conventional thinking, placing voices like Dr. Justo’s alongside other speakers pushing the boundaries of science, entrepreneurship, technology and culture.
In a world increasingly defined by notifications, urgency and constant motion, Dr. Justo believes the most radical act may simply be learning when to stop.
“The pause is where judgment lives,” Dr. Justo says. “It’s where leadership begins.”
Learn more about Dr. Justo at dremiliojusto.com.
More information and tickets are available at ted.com/tedx/events/67650 and www.eventbrite.com/e/tedxasu-tickets-1985410079995.
