For over 30 years, Jon has helped people and organizations live their purpose.
A social innovator, speaker, executive trainer, serial entrepreneur and author, he has worked with Fortune 500 Executives, Politicians and thousands of leaders in more than 60 countries.
The first part of his career was spent on the frontline of social change, standing on street corners asking people for donations, getting caught up in revolutions and creating ideas that raised millions for charities and non-profits.
Since his first book was published, nearly 20 years ago, his passion and skills have been sought out by business leaders the world over, to help them transform their companies and the lives of the people they serve and communities they touch.
Company: centrepoint
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Jon Duschinsky: My name is Jon Duschinsky, and I’m the Co-founder and Chief Impact Officer of centrepoint.
For the past 30 years, my work has really been about connecting people and organizations to their purpose. That’s taken a couple of forms: helping nonprofits figure out what they stand for so they can raise more money and do more good, and helping companies clarify their purpose so they can make more money and do more good. At the end of the day, everything that drives me is about creating impact – whether that’s in our communities, our environment, or on some of the big, complex challenges we all face. And you can only do good if you are also making money. Fact.
At centrepoint, we’ve pioneered an approach to purpose that goes deeper than just asking “what’s our why?” We help companies not only define their organizational purpose but also figure out how to truly live it- so they can grow faster, attract loyal customers and employees, and build more creative, innovative, and meaningful workplaces at the same time as creating more change around the things they truly care about.
What really sets us apart is that we look at purpose at both the organizational and the individual level. Because if a company wants to be truly purpose-driven, it can’t just be about the leadership team. Every person in the organization needs to understand their own purpose and how it connects to the larger purpose of the company. That’s where the magic really happens.
Can you share a time when your business faced a significant challenge? How did you navigate through it?
Jon Duschinsky: The pandemic was an incredibly difficult period for so many people and organizations, and centrepoint was no exception. In many ways, those of us working to build a more purposeful economy faced a strange paradox. The kind of work we do—helping organizations become more purpose-driven, which can touch strategy, ESG, or long-term growth—is vital, but it’s often seen as something less urgent than keeping the lights on or protecting jobs.
During the pandemic, leaders understandably focused all their energy on immediate survival. That meant a lot of our work was paused, which was a huge challenge for us, as it was for many in this space.
But at the same time, something powerful was happening. As a society, we began to reconnect with the idea that meaning comes from taking care of one another, from service, from being part of something larger than ourselves. So while organizations weren’t always hiring us during that time, the principles of purpose were actually gaining more traction in people’s lives.
One of the ways we responded was simply by showing up. I offered free coaching to leaders, and many people took me up on that. Those conversations built relationships I still carry today.
The pandemic also gave us the space to step back and deepen our own thinking. I’d had an experience just before COVID hit that stuck with me: I was working with the leadership team of a major international bank, trying to help them articulate their organizational purpose. But it wasn’t landing. I eventually asked the CEO if he was clear on his own personal purpose – the things that lit him up, the things he was called to – and he just stared back at me blankly. In that moment, it became clear: you can’t expect an organization to connect to its purpose if its leaders – and ideally every person in it – haven’t first connected with their own.
That realization led us to develop what is now one of our core offerings: the Purpose Driven Leadership Journey, a 10-module program that helps leaders clarify and activate their personal purpose. Since the pandemic, hundreds of leaders in dozens of countries have taken this program and seen measurable and transformational results in their own lives – and in their own businesses. So I suppose you could say that we navigated this challenge by staying true to our purpose and continuing to do the work, just in a different way.
How has a failure or apparent failure set you up for later success?
Jon Duschinsky: I tend to think that failure should be part of everyday life. If I’m not failing, then I’m probably not trying—and if I’m not trying, then I’m likely stuck in some kind of comfort zone.
For me, following my purpose and being in service of something bigger than myself is what gives me the courage to take risks and do things that I otherwise wouldn’t. Because in the end, it’s not about me – it’s about what I’m trying to do, and who or what I’m in service to.
So every time I stand up in front of a group or get on a stage, I’ll try something new – something that pushes the needle just a little further. Sometimes I fall flat on my face. Sometimes it works beautifully. Most of the time, it lands somewhere in between. And that’s okay, because that’s how growth happens.
For me, failure isn’t this big, dramatic event- it’s an ongoing and organic part of life.
If I get to the end of the day and I haven’t done something that lit me up and something that scared me a little, then I’m probably not living my purpose. And those things don’t have to be huge, transformational leaps—they can be small things.
How do you build a resilient team? What qualities do you look for in your team members?
Jon Duschinsky: For me, building a resilient team starts with purpose. First, it’s about defining the collective purpose of the team—why are we here, and what are we here to do together? Then it’s about connecting that bigger purpose to each individual’s purpose. What unique contribution can each person make that truly aligns with what lights them up? When people see how their own sense of meaning connects to the team’s purpose, that’s the foundation of resilience.
From there, it’s about ownership. If we’re clear on why we’re here and where we’re going, and each person knows the role they play in that journey, the next step is to ask: “How do you want to get there? How do you want to do this?” Giving people the space to shape their own path creates a sense of ownership, and that’s a powerful driver of both resilience and accountability.
The final piece is listening. The quality of any team’s communication depends on the quality of its listening. And listening is very different from hearing. You can hear something while doing three other things, but listening requires presence—it’s a verb, not a noun. When we create spaces where people feel truly listened to, that’s when trust builds, and that’s when resilience becomes real.
How do you maintain your personal resilience during tough times?
Jon Duschinsky: I’m very lucky to have a father who’s given me many gifts, and one of the most important is resilience. Through his actions (rather than his words) he modelled for me that life is not, as the French would say, a long, tranquil river. There are going to be big bumps along the way, but that you get distracted from your commitments or the things you’re here to serve at your peril.
A mentor who I trained with many years ago said that you can fill your life with commitments, or you can fill it with addictions.
That has always resonated. To me it means that if you’re clear on what you’re committed to then you don’t let circumstances dictate your life.
That commitment could be family, a cause, or something you believe in deeply. And when you let that be the driver, there is no space for addictions, which are really just ways of comforting the ego and distracting ourselves — whether that’s doomscrolling or filling time with things that don’t matter.
So for me, resilience is about accepting that the path is never straight or predictable. But if you’re clear on the destination and what really matters, you can weather the twists, turns, and buffeting that come along the way.
What strategies do you use to manage stress and maintain focus during a crisis?
Jon Duschinsky: The truth is, I’m not as good at managing stress as I’d like to be. What I am good at is staying focused and clear-headed in a crisis. But when it comes to actually looking after myself in those moments, I know all the things I should be doing: eating well, exercising, taking time to meditate, even just stepping away from the screen to walk around the block instead of answering the next ten emails.
The reality, though, is that I’m not as consistent with those things as I’d like to pretend I am. And every so often, my body gives me a reminder that I’m not 20 anymore! So definitely a work in progress.
How do you communicate with your team during a crisis?
Jon Duschinsky: Clearly, concisely and from a place of WHY.
Get clear on what the crisis is, why it has happened and what it looks like to serve our purpose in this moment. Then make sure we are all clear on what we are doing and why. And then check in regularly with each team member and hold space for the things that are coming up for them.
Not rocket science. But it works.
What advice would you give to other CEOs on building resilience in their organizations?
Jon Duschinsky: At the risk of sounding like a stuck record, my first piece of advice is: get clear on your organization’s purpose. Why do you exist? Why should anyone care? And I don’t mean making money, delivering customer service, or producing more widgets. Purpose is about the impact you create in the world — the reason you exist.
From there, get clear on the vision. Vision is about the impact your organization could make it you really focused on delivering to that purpose. And this isn’t something a CEO does alone. It has to be shaped with the leadership team and in consultation with people across the organization.
Once you’ve done that groundwork, bring the leadership team together and ask them to imagine success. Picture the organization five years from now, having fully stepped into its purpose. What would it mean for the business? What would it mean for the people or organizations you serve?
Then get specific: what would need to happen for that future to become reality?
And who wants to take ownership of which pieces? The right leaders will naturally step into the areas most connected to their departments. Give them freedom to think, to play, to design budgets and plans around those pieces.
Then bring it all back together, analyze it, with your CFO to make sure the numbers add up, and shape an overarching plan that everyone feels part of.
From there, make sure the leadership team – starting with you as CEO – connects your individual purposes to the organization’s purpose. That might take some work. (We use the Purpose-Driven Leadership Journey program with our clients as a framework to do this, for example).
Then ripple the process through the organization: department heads do the same with their teams, inviting team members to take ownership for parts of the five-year plan.
And finally, as you move into execution, align job descriptions and incentive structures with what you’re asking people to do. Without that alignment, the plan won’t stick.
Yes, it sounds like a mammoth task – and I won’t deny that it is work. But it is not complicated and it doesn’t have to take forever.
It’s about common sense more than anything – being clear on why you are here, where you want to go, what success looks like and each person’s role in making that success happen.
Done with focus, this process can be completed in about six months. And that six-month investment of time and energy, paired with the right accountability and reporting structures, will pay dividends over the next many years.
How do you prepare your business for potential future crises?
Jon Duschinsky: We prepare for future crises the same way we help our clients prepare: by not labeling them as crises in the first place.
Circumstances change. What feels daunting today will shift tomorrow. The key is to recognize that true success isn’t measured in quarterly results but in years, decades, and often even generations.
We’re living through generational challenges right now, and they demand new levels of communication, collaboration, trust, innovation, and creativity if we are to meet them effectively.
When we call something a crisis, our brains go into fight-or-flight mode. The prefrontal cortex sees a threat, and we respond with fear or defensiveness. That’s rarely productive.
Instead, if we stay anchored in our purpose—both as individuals and as organizations—these moments become waypoints on the journey rather than existential threats. Purpose provides us with a compass. It allows us to see that there will be calm waters, rough seas, and the occasional storm, but also that each stage can move us closer to the destination. With purpose as the anchor, we can use the quieter times to build resilience and alignment so that when the storm does come, we can navigate through it with clarity and keep moving forward.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned about leadership in times of crisis?
Jon Duschinsky: The most important lesson I’ve learned about leadership in times of crisis is that your team will always show up in your context. By context, I mean the way you show up—the behavior you model. If you are frenetic, panicked, or paralyzed by indecision, your team will mirror that. If you are calm, clear, and methodical, they will reflect that energy too. Leaders often underestimate just how contagious their presence is.
That’s why being intentional about your context is critical. In difficult moments, it’s not enough to stay calm—you need to anchor yourself in your purpose. When you remain focused on the “why,” and demonstrate confidence in your team’s ability to navigate the challenge, you create the conditions for them to do the same. Purpose provides the North Star. It keeps everyone aligned, resilient, and moving forward together. Ultimately, leadership in crisis is less about having all the answers and more about showing up in a way that enables your people to find theirs.
