Meet Therese

A cognitive scientist at Seattle University, Therese Huston, is always asking, “How can we remove the obstacles that get in the way of smart people?”

In her talks and in her latest book, Sharp, she blends rigorous research in neuroscience and psychology with clever, actionable strategies so you can make the most of the brain you’ve got.

Career Highlights

Early in her career, Therese was an assistant professor of psychology, teaching everything from Cognitive Neuroscience to Research Methods in Developmental Psychology. She went on to found the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Seattle University.

Therese has given more than 275 keynotes, talks, and workshops – including presentations for Microsoft, Amazon, Morgan Stanley, Northwest Mutual, the Cleveland Clinic, and Harvard Business School. She gave her first TEDx talk on what smart groups do differently, and she’s been interviewed on NPR.

Therese’s work has been featured in The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Oprah’s O Magazine, Forbes, Time Magazine, The Guardian, TED Ideas, Fast Company, and The Los Angeles Times.

School, school, and more school

Therese received her BA from Carleton College and her MS and PhD in cognitive psychology from Carnegie Mellon University. She received a prestigious post-doctoral fellowship in cognitive clinical neuroscience at the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, and most recently, she graduated from a program in Organizational Leadership at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford.

International Reach

Therese’s books have been published in seven languages and she’s given talks for audiences in eleven different countries. People from different countries often have very different norms and expectations, and she’s always looking for ways to bridge those culture gaps.