About Us

Out of the Box is all about innovative thinking and creative solutions. As the name suggests, we think "out of the box" to find new ways for people to learn more about themselves through new experiences and developing new skills.

How do we do this? Well, it is through the mix of skills and experiences of the principals that we can bring creative thinking to bear on problems, and find new solutions.

The Team

Julian Hyde (Director)

Julian is British, but has been living overseas since 1992. He is a scientist by training, with a degree in biochemistry. He worked for several years as a management consultant, including five years in Russia managing a variety of environmental consulting programmes. He moved to Malaysia seven years ago, initially working as an environmental consultant in KL before moving to Tioman Island to pursue his dream of running his own dive centre, which he now does with his wife Yeen.

An avid reader on subjects as diverse as environmental activism, social issues and philosophy, he has developed an interest in personal development. His experience as a diving instructor have given him insights into how people react to novel situations and problems, and he is now bringing that experience to a broader range of personal development opportunities, including Work & Travel USA.

Lee Siew Yeen (Director)

Yeen is Malaysian, and studied Computer Science in Australia. She held a number of positions in retail and distribution companies in KL, before moving to Tioman with Julian, where she now works as a dive guide and company administrator.

Passionate about the environment, Yeen is an active member of the Malaysian Nature Society. She has assisted MNS to run a number of environmental education programmes on Tioman. She has been trained by Coral Cay Conservation in reef monitoring programmes and now runs Reef Check training for divers in Tioman.

With several years experience in Malaysian companies, Yeen has seen first hand the problems with recruiting new graduates. While academically gifted, she says, they often lack self confidence and the ability to think "out of the box" to find solutions to business problems. She believes that Work & Travel USA is made for Malaysian university students."

Paul Jambunathan (Consultant)

Paul is a clinical psychologist, and a Senior Lecturer in Behavioural Sciences at the International Medical University in KL.

After studying at Sheffield University in the UK, Paul further trained at Murdoch University in Perth, Australia. He initially specialised in two areas of Applied Clinical Psychology: adult stress and anxiety problems; and children's behaviour and developmental problems.

He has over 25 years of experience in applied psychology in the UK, Australia and Malaysia and has extensive experience of a wide spectrum of emotional and behavioural problems. His applied and clinical skills cover issues such as interpersonal effectiveness, personal development, parenting and much more. He runs numerous workshops and seminars for the general public and specialised groups including companies, colleges and parents.

Paul is often a guest on radio and TV and regularly writes in the national papers and local magazines. He used to run Malaysia's first weekly live counseling programme on Astro Talk-Radio and later with Radio 4. He also hosted Asia's first internet radio programme called Asian-family.com.

Currently a member of the Board of Directors of the National Population and Family Development Board, he is a firm believer in emotional intelligence and is active in advancing the practice of emotional intelligence in applied settings and in interpersonal effectiveness.

An avid scuba diver, he is very passionate about conservation. He organises a variety of outdoor programmes and workshops that bring personal development and nature together. He is currently researching and promoting the area of Ecopsychology.