DR. KRISTEN LEE
Read More About Dr. Kristen Lee
Why a researcher who also carries a clinical caseload is rare in this category, and what microdosing bravery actually means.
She Researches Burnout at Northeastern. She Also Treats It Clinically on Monday. →
About Dr. Kristen Lee
Dr. Kristen Lee is a behavioral science educator, best-selling author and practicing psychotherapist whose work sits at the intersection of two things most speakers only have one of: peer-reviewed research and a clinical caseload.
She is Lead Faculty for Behavioral Science at Northeastern University, where her research focuses on individual and organizational wellbeing and resilience, with particular attention to marginalized and underserved populations. She also runs a clinical practice devoted to preventing and treating burnout. That combination is why her sessions land differently: she is not reporting on burnout from a distance, she is treating it on Monday.
Dr. Lee is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker with a BS from Worcester State University, an MSW from Boston University and an Ed.D. from Northeastern. She has served as a U.S. federal grant reviewer for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services, and she is a member of the National Association of Social Workers and the American Psychological Association.
She is the author of four books. RESET: Make the Most of Your Stress won the Next Generation Indie Book Award for Motivational Book of 2015. Mentalligence: A New Psychology of Thinking became a bestseller. Worth the Risk took a Nautilus Book Award Silver Medal and a Next Big Idea Club nomination. Clean Slate: How to Make Change Happen was called a witty, easy-to-follow approach to personal transformation by Kirkus Reviews.
Her TED talk, The Risk You Must Take, has passed 430,000 views. Her work has been featured on Forbes, NPR, TED and CBS Radio, and she contributes regularly to Psychology Today.
She has delivered keynotes and workshops for Google, Amazon, Harvard Medical School, Harvard Kennedy School, Brown University, Johnson & Johnson, Chick-fil-A, McLean Hospital, NAMI, the American Chemical Society, Boston Ballet and United Way, among others. In 2022 she received a First Place MVP award from EdTech for her work on mental health in higher education, and in 2023 an honorary doctorate in humane letters, delivered alongside a commencement address to an arena of more than 14,000.
There is also a genuinely unusual fifth gear: Dr. Lee hosts Crackin' Up: Where Therapy Meets Comedy, a stand-up show benefiting mental health access, and she brings that format to organizations as a keynote alternative.
- Lead Faculty for Behavioral Science at Northeastern University, researching organizational wellbeing and resilience
- Practicing psychotherapist (LICSW) running a clinical practice devoted to preventing and treating burnout
- Author of four books, including a Nautilus Silver Medal winner and a Next Generation Indie Book Award winner
- TED talk with 430,000+ views, plus features on Forbes, NPR and CBS Radio
- Booked by Google, Amazon, Harvard Medical School, Brown University, Johnson & Johnson and McLean Hospital
- EdTech 2022 MVP award for mental health innovation in higher education, and a 2023 honorary doctorate in humane letters
Why Planners Book Her
Wellbeing is a crowded category full of speakers working from secondhand research. Dr. Lee is the credentialed option:
Every session is built on evidence, and every session ends with something the room can actually practice.
Watch Dr. Kris In Action
Speaking Topics
Dr. Lee's most requested session. Built for all-employee meetings, association conferences, healthcare and higher education audiences, and any workforce running near capacity.
Burnout is a standing risk in the current landscape rather than an occasional one, and telling people to rest harder has not worked. This keynote goes at the question differently.
The research is clear that protective factors, and a sense of belonging and community above all, are what keep people well and performing. Dr. Lee translates that evidence into habits, mindsets and behaviors an audience can start using immediately, rather than a list of things to feel guilty about not doing.
Program Takeaways
- Understand what the evidence actually says about preventing burnout
- Build the protective factors, especially belonging, that keep people well
- Adopt habits and mindsets that hold up under sustained pressure
- Sustain progress rather than resetting after every crisis
The leadership and organizational session. Built for executive teams, HR and people leaders, institutions and organizations designing wellbeing strategy rather than attending it.
Institutions and companies are caught between real human need and real outcome pressure, and most resolve that tension by adding a benefit and hoping it counts as a culture.
This session applies behavioral science to the actual problem: how to build a culture that lets people thrive and build resilience while the demands stay high. It is aimed at the room that can change conditions, not just the room that absorbs them.
Program Takeaways
- Apply behavioral science principles to organizational culture design
- Balance human needs against outcome and performance demands
- Create conditions in which resilience is possible rather than demanded
- Move from wellbeing programming to genuine cultural change
Interactive session. Built for professional development programs, higher education audiences, healthcare teams and high-pressure performance cultures.
Mindfulness has surged in popularity and shed a lot of its rigor along the way. Dr. Lee separates the evidence from the hype.
In an era defined by pressure to hyper-perform, this session covers what mindfulness actually offers and how to apply it: managing technology overload, dismantling perfectionism and deficit thinking, and building agility that holds at work, at school and at home.
Program Takeaways
- Separate the science of mindfulness from the marketing around it
- Apply practical strategies to reduce anxiety and relieve stress
- Dismantle perfectionism and deficit thinking
- Manage technology overload and the pressure to always be on
A keynote alternative, not a keynote. Built for employee appreciation events, conference evenings, mental health awareness programming and team-building moments that need genuine levity.
Dr. Lee hosts Crackin' Up, a live stand-up show benefiting mental health access, and she brings the format to organizations with special guest comedians.
The result is a therapy-session-meets-comedy-show experience: a way to talk about mental health that a room will actually show up for, and a break from the format fatigue that sets in on day two of most conferences.
What Audiences Get
- A shared experience that builds community and team connection
- Permission to talk about mental health without the usual heaviness
- Genuine levity at a time when joy is in short supply
- A memorable format that stands out on a crowded agenda
Dr. Lee tailors every session to your audience and sector, and is available for keynotes, workshops, breakout sessions and virtual programs.
What People Say
Her evidence-based approach to values assessment and burnout prevention was both practical and inspiring, and provided a framework for the day. It resonated deeply with our 500 attendees.
14th Annual Women in Leadership Conference, Meinders School of Business, Oklahoma City UniversityShe brought our audience heart, hope, humanity, and actionable strategies to activate microdoses of bravery into their everyday lives.
Keynote ClientEvery chapter is a therapy session that teaches in elegant but easily understandable language several logical but pragmatic strategies to increase your resilience.
Dilip V. Jeste, MD, former President, American Psychiatric AssociationA bold blend of science, story, humor, and wisdom. A must-read for anyone wanting to shine brighter without burning out.
Scott Barry Kaufman, Ph.D., host of The Psychology PodcastParents and faculty seeking the balance between academic excellence and student well-being were offered strategic tools and ideas. Thoughtful, reflective and forward-thinking.
Wellness Convention Host, Taipei American SchoolA fantastic, eloquent speaker laced with humor and relevance.
Keynote ClientSelected Clients
Where Dr. Kris Appears
Dr. Kristen Lee is featured on these Amplify Speakers rosters: