Jules Allen

Jules Allen's Biography

Jules Allen is a remarkable Australian with a truly moving story.

As a multi-Award-winning Social Scientist, Jules is guided by the philosophy that “your greatest adversity in life is your greatest gift,” Her address to TEDx Melbourne on The key to resilience' was met with tumultuous applause and a standing ovation.

For the past twenty-five years, she has worked in youth support, child protection, and International Aide, as a school counsellor, and in private practice for young people and families in crisis. Jules found herself on the front line of the mental health crisis during the COVID-19 working as a counsellor for families in crisis. Consequently, she is more convinced than ever that the most effective way to overcome anxiety is through the implementation of a pragmatic toolkit. Combining her knowledge as a Social Scientist with strategies backed by neuroscience, Jules believes she has designed a framework for overcoming anxiety that is practical and accessible for all.

Jules's lived experiences of adversity are the backbone of her expertise in this field. Having experienced years of childhood sexual abuse and a family breakdown, Jules went on to become a youth at risk. Heavy drug and alcohol addiction led to poor decision-making and at 21 she was a young Mum in a domestic violence situation. Needless to say, anxiety and depression were constant companions as Jules navigated her way through this chaos.

Making the decision to be not defined by her experiences, Jules turned her adversity into an asset. She chose to care for 32 Foster children and is the proud Mother of 4 adult children, a blend of her own, fostered, and adopted. In 2013, prompted by a dare from her kids, Jules found herself as a contestant on MasterChef Australia. She went on to feature on an episode of the ABC's Australian Story and The Project, as well as in major magazines such as New Idea, Women's Weekly, and The Collective.

There is so much to admire about Jules Allen including her sheer determination to make a difference, her attitude in the face of extraordinary adversity, and her contagious positivity. As a Speaker, Jules is renowned for her capacity to engage her audience with warmth and humour while providing them with practical toolkits to tackle anxiety, increase resilience and reduce burnout. The wealth of knowledge she has gained both personally and professionally over the years provides sound leadership lessons for us all.

Jules has had many media appearances, featuring in TV programs such as Australian Story and Channel Ten’s The Project, and major magazines such as The Collective, New Idea and Women’s Weekly. Being a leading expert on youth, Jules hopes through public speaking can influence and change lives of those in need.

5 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD HIRE JULES AS A PUBLIC SPEAKER AT YOU NEXT EVENT

1. Every delegate will leave inspired, empowered and motivated to put what they have learnt in to practice.
2. Jules doesn’t have a generic, one size fits all, approach to speaking. Every presentation is tailored to meet your specific needs.
3. Jules doesn’t just provide information. She is engaging, dynamic and entertaining with over 18 years of experience in the field.
4. Jules is diverse and adaptable. She is as comfortable presenting to a group of pubescent teens as she is speaking to CEO’s and executives.
5. Jules is 100% committed to your event being a success. She is professional and is most interested in how she can best benefit you and your organization.

Speaking Topics Include

RULES TO RESILIENCE - How to become resilient, raise resilience and maintain resilience in an increasingly diverse and adverse world.

It’s not what you do for your children, but what you have taught them to do for themselves that will make them successful human beings. Youth suicide is killing more young Australians than anything else and self harm is bordering on an epidemic. There is an irrefutable link between a lack of resilience and and an increase in the above mentioned trends.

We are a population struggling to find the tools to overcome the myriad of challenges facing us in this ever changing ethos. Jules has spent nearly 20 years studying behavioural patterns across vast socio economics within our society.

As a part of this presentation Jules will provide you with some fundamental strategies that are game changers in the fight for resilience. This engaging session will ensure that delegates leave inspired to implement suggested strategies to create and instill resilience in themselves and those around them.

“GAME ON” - How to hit a home run off life’s curve balls!

If there's a topic Jules knows inside out, it’s this one. Through overcoming her own curveballs, she now lives by the mantra that all experiences can serve us once we have the know how.

The great news is that hardship can prepare an ordinary person for extraordinary things.

The solution lies in understanding the extra!!!  Jules has not only identified, the common default positions youth revert to when in crisis but more importantly has thrown them a life line with her proven five step  EXTRA- ordinary strategy.

E  empathy- Uses your unique experience to better connect with others.

X  marks the spot - Identifying the cause and effect.

T  to be of service - The greatest gift you can give to yourself is to give to others

R  responsibility - Taking responsibility for YOU!

A  acceptance - Acceptance is the key!!

In this practical presentation Jules walks challenged teens step by step through her EXTRA- ordinary framework, teaching them how to play life’s game and belt, even the most radical of curve balls out of the ball park.

Each teen will walk away

• feeling empowered to take control of their own lives
• a comprehensive teen survival tool kit
• with an understanding of their worth in this world
• with a connection with Jules via social media for on-going support.

Mindflix' -Overcoming anxiety for life and achieving your potential

Jules's unique approach to overcoming anxiety is extraordinary and incredibly effective. Having worked as a front-line mental health worker during the pandemic, Jules is more convinced than ever that the most effective strategy for combatting anxiety sits in a swift, pragmatic solution-based approach. Her Mindflix' formula is backed by her research as a Social Scientist for over 25 years and recent findings in Neuroscience. The Mindflix' toolkit has been tried and tested by, not only herself, but many of the clients she has helped over the years. Anxiety does not need to be managed; it can be overcome. Only then will you be able to explore what you are truly capable of.

Key Learnings
Gain a depth of understanding from a neurological perspective of how anxiety manifests in the brain and body.
Learn the Mindflix' formula, backed by social science and neuroscience, that gives you the opportunity to live anxiety-free by retraining your brain.
The workshop teaches you how to implement Mindflix' in to your everyday life.
Learn how to live to your full potential without the constraints of anxiety.

Balance before burnout. The key to high performance.

Having raised 32 children as a single Mother whilst studying and working full time, Jules knows something about what's required to maintain the delicate balance and avoid burnout.

Having worked on the front line in mental health during the pandemic Jules has recognised the increased use of the term, limited capacity' when referring to ourselves. As we navigate our way back into a world that now seems foreign, as people who are no longer the same, things are bound to be beyond challenging. Jules has formulated a set of strategies over the years that can be applied to your daily routine that can help avoid burnout, stress and anxiety. She has so much faith in this approach that she refers to these tools as non-negotiables.'

Learning outcomes:

Identify what behaviours and mindsets are contributing to a potential burnout'.

Learn a set of skills that you can apply daily to avoid falling victim to a high-stress environment.

Identifying what you need in life, enhancing your capacity to effectively and realistically achieve your goals.

How to stay in the high-performance lane.

Adversity into Ambition

We don't always have a say over what it is that we experience in life. How do we take all of our experiences - the good and the bad - and turn them into our greatest asset?

Through overcoming her own personal challenges, Jules now lives by the mantra that our biggest challenges in life are our greatest gifts.

Resilience keeps you alive, whereas armed with the right tool kit, overcoming adversity provides you with an opportunity to thrive. It's not what happens to us in life that defines us... It's what we chose to do with it.

In this presentation Jules leaves her audience spellbound as she delicately intertwines her personal trials with a tried and tested theory for, not just overcoming your ordeal, but striving as a result of it. She inspires and restores a sound belief in peoples' sense of purpose.

Learning outcomes:

Learn the mindset required to turn adversity into an asset.

Become familiar with the antidote to shame in order to make your most harrowing of experiences matter.

Learn how to strive because of your experiences rather than to survive in spite of them.