Mitch Wallis

Psychologist, mental health advocate and social impact entrepreneur helping people and organisations build emotionally healthy cultures

Overview

Mitch Wallis is a leading Australian psychologist, keynote speaker and mental health advocate dedicated to improving emotional wellbeing at both an individual and organisational level. Through his work as a social entrepreneur and founder of one of the world's most recognised mental health movements, Mitch empowers people to develop resilience, strengthen relationships and create environments where open conversations can thrive. Combining professional expertise with personal experience, he delivers impactful insights that help organisations improve wellbeing, performance and human connection.

Who is Mitch Wallis?

Mitch Wallis is the founder of Heart On My Sleeve, an internationally recognised mental health initiative that encourages people to be open about their emotions and seek support when they need it. Before dedicating himself fully to mental health advocacy, Mitch spent nearly seven years building a successful career at Microsoft. He later completed a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology at Columbia University and has since become a respected voice on mental health, resilience, emotional intelligence and workplace wellbeing. Drawing on both his professional training and lived experience with anxiety, depression and OCD, Mitch helps audiences navigate discomfort, build authentic connections and unlock sustainable high performance.

His signature communication framework, Real Conversations, has been shown to boost connection and communication skills by up to 400% — a practical, research-backed system now distributed to hundreds of thousands of people.

Career Highlights

• Founder of Heart On My Sleeve, an internationally recognised mental health movement

• Creator of Real Conversations, a communication framework shown to boost connection skills by up to 400%

• Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University

• Former Microsoft leader with extensive corporate experience

• Advisor to the United Nations on youth mental health initiatives

• Ambassador for the Australia and New Zealand Mental Health Association

• Expert Advisor to the Corporate Mental Health Alliance

• Recipient of the GQ Man of Impact Award

• Named to B&T's Top 10 Social Changemakers in Australia; Westfield Local Hero

• Accredited in Mental Health First Aid; trained Lifeline crisis supporter

• Keynote speaker and campaign spokesperson for organisations including Google, Amazon, American Express, KPMG, Microsoft, Spotify, Dropbox, Woolworths, Johnson & Johnson, Mercer, Allianz and LinkedIn

Key Speaking Themes

• Mental health and emotional wellbeing

• Psychological safety and workplace connection

• Resilience and emotional strength

• High performance without burnout

• Leadership, vulnerability and trust

• Creating healthy workplace cultures

What Your Audience Will Gain

Mitch equips audiences with practical strategies to strengthen emotional wellbeing, improve communication and build resilience in the face of uncertainty. His presentations help people understand the importance of psychological safety, develop stronger interpersonal relationships and create cultures where individuals feel supported and empowered. By blending evidence-based psychology with engaging storytelling, Mitch delivers actionable insights that resonate long after the event concludes.

Ideal For

• Workplace wellbeing and mental health events

• Leadership development programmes

• Corporate culture and engagement initiatives

• Healthcare and education conferences

• Human resources and people-focused events

• Community, government and social impact organisations