Meet the Team

Jennifer Breheny Wallace is an award-winning journalist and bestselling author who explores the power of mattering in everyday life. Through research and storytelling, Wallace examines the hidden forces shaping modern life, from the crisis of meaning in achievement culture to the essential role of mattering in personal, workplace, and societal health. 

Her first book, Never Enough: When Achievement Culture Becomes Toxic — And What We Can Do About It, was a New York Times Bestseller, an Amazon Best Book of the Year, and a Next Big Idea selection. Her forthcoming book Mattering: The Secret to a Life of Deep Connection and Purpose, will be published in 2026.

Wallace is the founder of The Mattering Institute, whose mission is to create cultures of mattering in workplaces and communities, and co-founder of The Mattering Movement, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating cultures of mattering in schools. Jennifer is a Special Advisor to University Health & Counseling (UHC) at the University of Michigan and a member of their Well-being Collective Advisory Council. She is also on the Advisory Board for Making Caring Common, a project of the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Wallace is a Journalism Fellow at The Center for Parent and Teen Communication at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She is also serving as a guest lecturer for NYU’s Fall 2025 course, Education, Mattering, and the American Dream: Understanding Achievement Culture.

Wallace is a maternal mental health advocate at Calm, the mental health app, a consultant at Netflix, and a BCG  BrightHouse Luminary. She has also partnered with The LEGO Group on its global "Play Unstoppable" campaign, aimed at addressing perfectionism and fostering confidence through play. 

After graduating from Harvard College, Wallace started her journalism career at CBS's “60 Minutes” and was part of the team that won the Robert F. Kennedy Awards for Excellence in Journalism. She is a contributor to The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post and frequently appears on national television programs.  

Wallace serves on the board of the Coalition for the Homeless in New York City, where she lives.

Lauren Lavelle is the Chief of Staff to Jennifer Wallace and Managing Director of The Mattering Institute. As Managing Director, she helps advance the Institute’s mission of building cultures of mattering—in our homes, workplaces, and communities—and oversees the development of practical frameworks that help organizations embed mattering into everyday life.

As Chief of Staff, Lauren leads strategy, partnerships, communications, and events across all of Jennifer’s platforms.

Lauren has dedicated her career to elevating important ideas that make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. For nearly two decades as a literary publicist and strategist at Random House and Simon & Schuster, and as principal of her own agency, she supported hundreds of authors, thought leaders, and journalists launch bestselling and award-winning books.

Having worked alongside Jennifer Wallace since 2022, Lauren has made mattering her mission.

Lauren previously served six years in leadership positions on the Board of Directors for The Cabin, a literary arts nonprofit. She lives in the beautiful Idaho foothills with her family.