With the pandemic highlighting the prevalence of mental health struggles, employers and employees are becoming increasingly aware of the reciprocal relationship between work and mental well-being.
The mental well-being of employees is shaped by their working conditions, and the success of every business is impacted by the well-being of its employees. Depression and anxiety cost the global economy around $1trillion per year in lost productivity, and as many of the below speakers’ work has shown, there is a direct increase in innovation, engagement and performance in the workplace when employees are happy.
Listed below are London Speaker Bureau’s top ten mental health speakers. These speakers both shed light on the intricacies of the mind and suggest tangible ways of improving the happiness and mental well-being of employees. With World Mental Health Week recently reminding us that depression is the most widespread health ailment in the world, it has never been more imperative to engage in these issues.
Felicity Aston
Explorer, Scientist and Author
A climate scientist, polar explorer and expedition leader, Felicity Aston MBE is the only woman in the world to have skied across Antarctica alone.
Felicity has spoken about the profound loneliness she experienced traversing Antarctica. For 59 days, Felicity saw no one: not even another life form. Following the pandemic, her tactics for dealing with this isolation, and her insights on reintegrating with society have resonated with many.
Felicity reflects on her expeditions as both physical and psychological journeys. She believes great achievements require mental resilience over any innate outstanding capacity. Her motto ‘just get out the tent,’ encapsulates her personal battle in Antarctica to face, every morning, the -50°C climate outside her tent, and the perseverance we must all call upon in moments of adversity.
Silvia Garcia
Former Coca-Cola Global Director of Happiness, Marketing and Communication
As Coca-Cola’s former international marketing director, and its Happiness Institute president, Silvia Garcia is a leading expert in how positive and negative emotions influence consumer and employee decisions.
Silvia developed the first scientific index of happiness at work and has used it to prove that increasing employees’ happiness translates into brands and products that gain immediate consumer love. She offers clear strategies and insights on increasing sales, attracting customers and building happier, more profitable businesses.
Silvia is one of the top worldwide leaders on happiness at work and, as such, she is annually invited by the United Nations to discuss the state of happiness in the world.
Ruby wax
Former entertainer, now an expert on psychology, human behaviour and communication
Ruby Wax is both an established comedian and a qualified cognitive therapy expert. Expertly blending neuroscience, mindfulness and comedy, she has authored 3 best-selling books: Sane New World, A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled, and How to be Human.
Ruby built her comedy career first as an actress with the Royal Shakespeare Company, and then as a writer, interviewer and comedian with the BBC, working on scripts for cult classics such as Absolutely Fabulous.
Driven by her own struggle with bipolar, Ruby attained her Master’s degree in Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy from Oxford University in 2013, later gaining an MA in Psychotherapy and Counselling, and becoming a Visiting Professor in the School of Mental Health Nursing at the University of Surrey.
Bruce Daisley
Former European Vice President of Twitter and Expert on Work Culture
After eight years as Twitter’s European Vice President, Bruce has become a leading voice on happiness in the workplace and blends actionable insight with neuroscientific wisdom.
His book on improving work culture, ‘The Joy of Work’, was the Sunday Times number one business bestseller in spring 2019 as well as runner-up in the CMI Management Book of the Year Awards.
His second book ‘Eat Sleep, Work Repeat’, is a manifesto for an era overwhelmed with work pressures and was written as a follow-up to his chart-topping, Apple number one, business podcast where he interviews psychologists, neuroscientists and workplace experts to understand how we can improve our jobs.
Sophie Bostock
Sleep Evangelist
Dr Sophie Bostock is the sleep scientist helping millions of people improve their health, happiness and performance by unlocking the secrets of sleep and circadian rhythms.
After her research into how positive emotions protect against work stress and heart disease revealed sleep to be the unexpected hero, Dr Bostock has worked with leading scientists around the world, including at the University of Oxford’s Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute, to investigate the link between sleep and workplace well-being.
She spent 5 years as Innovation Lead at Big Health, growing the start-up into a thriving digital medicine company, and she has been awarded an NHS Innovation Accelerator Fellowship for her work on Sleepio.com, the online sleep improvement programme which helps millions of NHS patients.
Paul McKenna
Hypnotist, behavioural scientist and international best-selling author of self-help books
Paul McKenna is the world’s leading hypnotherapist. His self-help books are international best-sellers, with ‘I Can Make You Thin’ being the best-selling self-help book in UK history.
His iconic television shows on hypnosis, neuro-linguistic programming, weight loss, motivation and Zen meditation have shown viewers around the world how scientific psychological techniques can be used to make dramatic and captivating changes in people’s lives.
In his drive to help those suffering from PTSD, severe trauma, extreme pain and high levels of emotional distress, Paul has partnered with Dr Ronal Ruden and Dr Stephen Ruden to psycho-sensory therapies that target the Amygdala region of the brain.
Malene Rydahl
Expert in Well-Being and Performance in Companies, Senior Advisor at Boston Consulting Group (BCG)
Malene Rydahl is the best-selling author who harnessed the secrets of Denmark, the world’s happiest nation and translated them into business strategies.
After 18 years in the corporate world, including as EMEA Director of Corporate Communication for Hyatt, Malene discovered 87% of employees are disengaged with what they do. She left her executive position and became the world’s leading expert on corporate well-being.
Her books show that happiness improves engagement, innovation and workplace performance. Her first, ‘Happy as a Dane,’ won France’s 2014 Most Optimistic Book award and explores why Danish employees so excel. Her second, ‘Le Bonheur sans illusions,’ addresses overcoming disillusionment, and her latest, ‘Je te réponds…moi non plus,’ tackles communication in the digital era.
Dr Julia Shaw
Memory Scientist, Criminal Psychologist, Co Founder, Sexual Harassment App, Spot
Dr Julia Shaw is the memory scientist and criminal psychologist whose ground-breaking research showed tactics used by law enforcement can cause people to create false memories.
In 2017, she applied the findings of this study to her start-up Spot which helps employees report workplace harassment and discrimination and assists organizations in building safer, more inclusive workplaces that nurture the wellbeing of their employees.
Her work is often featured on TV, radio, in print, and online. She is the co-host of the BBC Sounds podcast “Bad People,” and consults as an expert on legal cases, particularly cases involving historical allegations.
Dr Deepak Chopra
Expert in the field of mind-body healing and an acclaimed author on the subject of alternative medicine
From yoga to visualisation, Deepak Chopra is the face of mind-body healing.
He introduced Ayurvedic techniques and Vedanta philosophies to the Western world, popularising alternative medicine and the understanding that physical and mental health impact one another.
He is the founder of the humanitarian- and wellness-oriented Chopra Foundation, an integrative medicine physician, and the author of over ninety books on the matter. He has taught at medical schools including Harvard, Tufts University, and Boston University, and was Chief of Staff at the New England Memorial Hospital (NEMH).
Mo Gawdat
Former Chief Business Officer at Google’s [X]
Mo Gawdat is the former Chief Business Officer at Google’s engineering innovation lab [X] who applies algorithmic thinking to the question of happiness.
As CBO, Gawdat has helped [X] lead a series of technological breakthroughs including self-driving cars, Project Loon, and Google Brain. The lab’s high performance is often attributed to its operating models which are focused on innovation and progress, and which can be applied outside as well as inside the lab.
Inspired by and dedicated to his son Ali Gawdat who died in 2014, Gawdat authored ‘Solve for Happy: Engineering Your Path to Joy.’ The book outlines how the brain takes in and processes joy and sadness and provides methods for managing and preventing disappointment.
For more information on any of these mental health speakers & experts, or to enquire about having them as your next speaker or adviser, please contact us below
