Meet Amanda, our Research Lead!

Meet Amanda Wallis , our curious thought leader in psychological wellbeing. Amanda leads the research programme at Umbrella, and is fascinated by the "why" of human behaviour. At its core, Amanda's work is devoted to helping understand and support people to engage in behaviours they want to be doing.

We asked Amanda some questions to get to know her better and we're sharing them with you!

Question 1: Behind the scenes: describe your typical working day

• Our Umbrella research team are all about building bridges between the world of "research" and "practice". You'll find us poring over journal articles and analysing complex datasets one day, and writing up practical tips and learning resources the next. We're stoked to keep Umbrella's mahi closely in sync with the evidence of "what works" and helping find new ways for organisations to support wellbeing at work.

Question 2: What does wellbeing mean to you?

• Scientific definitions aside (that's a whole other conversation!), wellbeing means feeling good and feeling able to be my best self in the moment.

Question 3: What's your favourite recovery strategy?

• Fresh air and nature are my go-to! Usually that means going for a walk somewhere with "green" or "blue" spaces but even a quick nip outside can help during a busy day.

Question 4: What do you enjoy most about working at Umbrella?

• The opportunity to put research at the centre of my work, and to see it used everyday by colleagues, organisations and leaders who are committed to healthier work. And being part of such a wicked cool team!

Question 5: How do you boost positive emotions at work and in life?

• By being intentional with my "people time" - whether that's joining our team quiz, giving my international friends a call to catch up, or booking time to go back to Palmerston North and pester my family.

Question 6: Are you a cat or a dog person?

• Both!!