Who is Yana?

This is tricky to answer, because my identity is in flux. I’m a researcher, a public speaker, a writer, a self-care advocate, and a LimeLife by Alcone Beauty Guide. I’m currently moving more and more of my efforts from the beginning to the end of that list. But I am also a mother, a spouse, a step-mother, and a person with complicated health issues. Some days are easier than others, some years are easier than others, and the last few have been particularly difficult. I am currently rebuilding my identity in the hope that I can contribute meaningfully to society while preserving my health.

During a difficult time, I felt more and more compelled to say GOODBYE to academia. All these years I had been holding back on my dreams because I thought I had to do what was expected of me: something highly intellectual. I feel so happy and relieved that I can now say without any shred of shame that I AM IN DIRECT SALES AND THIS IS MY SECOND CAREER. LimeLife by Alcone professional skincare and makeup is, I truly believe, the most progressive company in the Direct Sales industry. We collaborate with top make-up artists of color and in summer 2019 launched a fund to invest in entrepreneurs from marginalized groups. Message me to learn more!

Of course, a decade in academia is hard to give up, so I’m still holding on, and while I move more and more into business, I still care deeply about research, the scientific method as a whole, and supporting people who want to pursue an education. In my academic work, I apply cognitive psychology to education. This means that I take ideas from research on memory, attention, perception etc. and see how they play out when we are trying to learn something. This something could be a skill, some factual information, or an abstract concept. I no longer have a full-time job in academia, though I worked full-time in academia for a decade. However, I still continue to supervise graduate students, teach, co-author papers, and give public talks on effective learning strategies around the world. If you like, you can read more about my academic work. Last but not least, self-care and mental health advocacy are very important to me, so you will see a lot of references to this throughout the website.

If any of these topics speak to you and you would like to connect, please contact me!