Bio
Author, social entrepreneur, and Positive Psychology thought leader, Lisa is a passionary: a visionary driven by great passion and action. An intuitive healer, well-loved inspirational speaker, and expert workshop leader and facilitator, Lisa has shared her wisdom with thousands of people throughout the world to help enhance their lives through Positive Psychology insights and easy-to-use interventions. She is the immediate past president of the International Positive Psychology Association’s Positive Health and Wellbeing Division where she hosts the popular podcast Sci-Why:Thought Provoking Conversations With Positive Psychology Thought Leaders. Three experiences with death and illness in her family during a 10-month period motivated her to launch Soaringwords, a nonprofit organization devoted to inspiring individuals and professionals to take active roles in self-healing to experience greater physical, emotional, and mental well-being. Years later, her father had five strokes and was in and out of long-term care until he could return home. Lisa appreciated the dedication and support of long-term care employees devoted to enhancing the lives of residents and their families.
Since 2000, Lisa has shared Soaringwords’ SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing workshops with more than 500,000 people. Lisa has been a keynote speaker and workshop facilitator at annual conferences -Health Care Association of NJ; LeadingAge NJ/Delaware; keynote at LeadingAge NY; and LeadingAge National Conference. As scholar-in-residence, Lisa led grand rounds for leading universities, medical schools, and nursing schools. Soaringwords’ workshops are based on the SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing scientific model, which has been presented at 20 international scientific conferences- International Positive Psychology Association World Congresses (2023, 2021, 2019, 2015, 2013); European Conference on Positive Psychology (2024, 2022, 2018, 2016, 2014); Canadian Positive Psychology Conference (2018, 2016, 2014); International Positive Education Network (2018, 2016). She is the author of SOARING into Strength: Love Transcends Pain, her debut memoir.
Lisa graduated with an MBA in Marketing from Columbia University Graduate School of Business and a Master of Applied Positive Psychology from The University of Pennsylvania where she also received her undergraduate degree with honors. She has a certificate in Narrative Medicine from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and a certificate from the American Institute for Mental Imagery.
She’s been featured as an expert on ABC News, Fortune Small Business, USA Today, Delta Sky magazine, and CEO to Watch in Chronicle of Philanthropy. Lisa lives in NYC with her husband Jacob. Her pride and joy are her two grown sons Jonathan and Joshua, daughters-in-law Evelyn & Larissa, and grandbabies Charlotte, Natalie, & Jordan. She gets her energy from swimming each day and connecting with people in fun and meaningful ways.
