"Time is the world’s greatest commodity."
Karen Chaston is the Co-founder of The Chaston Centre ~ a place for meaningful living, In her corporate career Karen was a Chief Financial Officer of a publicly listed company and a senior manager for more than 25 years. In July 2011, Karen’s life changed forever when her 27-year-old son, Dan, suddenly and unexpectedly passed away at her back door. Within 15 months, Karen resigned from her CFO role and began a personal, professional and spiritual journey culminating in her becoming a beyond loss expert and co-founding The Chaston Centre.
Karen’s deep-seated knowing that there had to be a more loving way for the western world to move beyond any of the 40+ loss events culminated in her becoming a Beyond Loss Expert, International Best Selling Author and Speaker.
Karen’s first-hand experience assisted in her creating the Beyond Loss retreats (delivered physically and virtually) and People Profits Connection programs which demonstrate the correlations between loss and all areas of your life. When individuals embrace these concepts, you will easily move beyond any kind of loss and create a better everyday life.
When companies embrace these concepts, they unlock the people and profits connection. Providing tangible solutions that will help them to make the best possible product, offer the best possible customer experience and build the strongest possible company.
Her motto: “Life is too short to be suffering from any kind of loss, unwrap the gift this has brought and then design a life that you live and love.”
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Table of Contents
We’re grateful for your time today, thank you for joining us! Share your story with us.
Karen Chaston: Thank you for inviting me to share my knowledge and experience with your readers.
I am Karen Chaston, the co-founder of The Chaston Centre. A place for meaningful living.
In July 2011, I was a Chief Financial Officer of a publicly listed company. From the outside I appeared very successful… a job I loved, an amazing family, friends, house, car, overseas trips… all the trappings of success. Though I had this deep hole within me. I knew something was missing and the stuff I thought I needed was not filling that hole.
Then on the 10th of July 2011, my husband and I woke, thinking we were going to have a lazy Sunday at home. Within minutes I was rushing out the back door, looking at Dan, my 27-year-old son lying there in the fetal position with salvia coming out of his mouth. We thought he was unconscious. Though when the paramedics arrived, they said those words no mother, no parent ever wants to hear, “I’m sorry madam he is dead, probably has been for several hours.
What does one do with that information? What would you do?
I followed the age-old advice “keep busy, give it time and all will be ok,” I returned to work the day after Dan’s funeral. Eating more, drinking much more and working even harder!
Though I now know that this is the wrong advice to follow and that Dan’s death was meant to be my wake-up call. It was time for me to choose another way of being. Though as I just carried on with life, totally in avoidance, suffering in silence, Life / The Universe had to send me another event to hopefully be my wake-up call. (I’m sure I would have kept getting them until I did wake up!)
This came in the form of my much loved company merging with another. During the process, they said I would not be CFO in the new company, though I’d be doing all that I do now, plus more. That was fine with me until they gave me my contract which listed a salary that was 2/3rd of my current salary.
After being angry for around 48 hours, I began to wake from what I now refer to as “my ground-hog-day-daze,” realising that I was only there for the money, that I was wasting most of it just to get through the day, that I was unhealthy (mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually), that my relationships all required attention.
No wonder I had this insatiable hole within me!
I chose redundancy and then started on the journey to becoming the person I am today. Culminating in me co-founding The Chaston Centre, as a Beyond Loss Expert, People and Profits Strategists, International Best Selling Author and International Speaker.
My life experience and desire of always searching for a better way of doing things assisted us in creating the Beyond Loss programs which demonstrate the correlations between loss and all areas of your life and the People Profits Connection programs that assist leaders to see and value their employees as their greatest assets.
When individuals embrace these concepts, they easily move beyond any kind of loss and create a better everyday life. When companies embrace these concepts, they unlock the people and profits connection. Providing tangible solutions that will help them to make the best possible product, offer the best possible customer experience and build the strongest possible company.
Some say leadership is innate, others would argue against it. Would you say you were born a leader or did you have to become a leader? Explain your experience and viewpoint.
Karen Chaston: I do not think we are born leaders. We may be born with some innate traits that lean more towards us becoming a leader though life experience is what makes us a world-class leaders.
It’s about learning from others what works well, what does not, and then adding your own special sauce to the mix.
The first step in being a world-class leader is to learn how to be a leader in your whole life. In all areas of your life. The Chaston Centre’s wellness wheel of life has nine areas of life. It is about spending time in each area, weekly, enhancing them continually closing the gap between where you are today and your desired dream goal.
So often you meet leaders who appear to be very successful in their professional life, though it has been at an expense of their other areas of life. I was following that path in my CFO/ corporate life. Thankfully I woke in time before I was living the old adage of “I spent my health to get my wealth, now I am all alone, spending my wealth to get back my health.”
A world-class leader has empathy, compassion, is open to different points of view, is a good listener, and knows how to inspire others to become a leader of their whole life.
Tell us about your company/Organization. What are some of the most exciting projects that you’re working on and how does your organization distinguish itself from the rest?
Karen Chaston: The Chaston Centre’s initial focus was assisting people to move beyond any kind of loss and create a better everyday life.
There are over 40 different loss events that can affect our lives, yet most of us have little idea on how to move beyond one loss event let alone multiple. This is probably the main reason that worldwide many of us are so good at utilising our avoidance tactics. Some are:
- Food/ alcohol / drugs
- Working too much / Busyness
- Anger (deflection)
- Excess sex
- Excess exercise
- Shopping (we even call it retail therapy)
- Our devices
- Netflix / Social media
The more we worked with individuals, the more I would think back to my corporate days, seeing how different the whole workplace would have been if I had understood people then, as I do now.
This realisation, drove me to create the People Profits Connection strategies and programs. The strategies assist you to realise that your people are your greatest asset and when you start to value them from this perspective you will create a business that will far exceed your forecast projections.
The People Profits Connection is The Chaston Centre’s focus for 2022. I believe that now is the perfect time for us all to seriously look at what is not working. Just because we have always done it this way, does not mean there is not a better way of doing it. An easier way. A more loving way, that surprisingly assists everyone in the organisation to spend more time in their other areas of life, whilst achieving more in their professional space and making more profits for the company.
Throughout your career, have you been a team player or a lone wolf? How did that benefit or handicap you throughout the years?
Karen Chaston: To be honest a mixture of both. I have always known when to speak up and when to go with the flow. As a female, early in my career I had a few male bosses who thought that they were giving me well-meaning advice when they said, “don’t act like that if you want to get ahead.”
This slowly moves you away from your authentic self. You become the team player, which stifles creativity, innovation and people asking, “is there a better way of doing this?”
My redundancy choice was very much “I no longer can play in this team.” I knew it was time for me to get back to my authentic self.
I innately knew that I had to get out, broaden my perspectives, learn new things, skills and then potentially come back to assist all to love being a more authentic and collaborative team player because of the new way the team is playing!
Who wouldn’t love playing in a team that respects and embraces Individuality, Innovation, Collaboration, Your Voice, Your Ideas and most importantly “Together we make a difference, philosophies?”
What leadership qualities do you possess that, in your opinion, inspire your employees to work harder and be more productive?
Karen Chaston: These are the qualities the People Profit Connection strategies inspire all leaders and employees to value and incorporate into their daily life:
- Your People are Your Greatest Asset Focus:
everything changes when you STOP seeing your people as an expense and refocus to seeing them as an asset. You invest in your assets. You make sure they are in tip-top working condition and in turn they will go above and beyond for you and your company. When implemented properly, the “Your People Greatest Asset” ROI will far exceed all your other investments.
- My Beyond Loss Understandings:
An understanding that people are not one-dimensional and that they will not be able to leave their non-professional life at the door each morning. With over 40+ loss events that can affect our lives, we all have many things going on though so often leaders only focus on the workload and never ask “are you OK, how can I assist you at this time?” When people know that you see them, understand them and respect them, they will go above and beyond for you.
- Active Listening:
We have two ears and one mouth for a reason. When you listen to understand and not respond you will not only connect to the person you will also learn something from them. This takes practice, though well worthwhile.
- Asking Questions:
I believe that the quality of your life always comes down to the quality of the questions you ask. Realising that you don’t know what you don’t know, will always broaden your viewpoint and learn something about the person.
- A Better Way Perspective:
We live in a world of infinite possibilities, yet so often we limit the way that we do things, because we think that leaders have all the answers. Taking the time to ask employees for their ideas on an S.O.P. / system will always bring enhancements. What are the chances of our “way of doing things” being the best practice when there are infinite possibilities?
- Together we make a Difference:
So often, leaders adopt an “It’s them or Us” attitude which leads to people creating their own camps and having to watch their backs. The “together” focus assists everyone to have each other’s back because they know that they can see their fingerprint in the company design. Life is so much easier when we walk together towards achieving our company goals.
- Walking My Talk:
I never recommend something that I have not incorporated into my life. My whole life experience of doing things the hard way has assisted me to find a more loving way of embracing all areas of my life. There is nothing worse than a leader who says one thing and then does another.
A national survey from the University of Phoenix has found that 95 percent of employees who have functioned as part of a team think that teams are an important workplace function but less than 25 percent prefer working in teams. Individual and teamwork both have their advantages and disadvantages. What work model have you adopted and how has it benefited your organization?
Karen Chaston: The People Profits Connection strategies.
People often procrastinate when they are unsure of how to do certain tasks. Is there an element of your business process that employees shy away from? How do you counter this problem?
Karen Chaston: By asking questions. Seeking to understand why they are shying away ~ is there a gap in their knowledge or is there a flaw in the system?
The answers will easily provide the next strategical step that will enhance both the employee and the company.
Many businesses today are being overwhelmed with all kinds of data which impacts productivity. How do you ensure that you and your employees are focusing on the right metrics?
Karen Chaston: The second Factor in the People Profits Connection strategy is “Know Like and Trust.”
As business leaders, we know that a basic fundamental principle of marketing is to get people to know, like, and trust you and your products. Though as leaders we sometimes misunderstand how important this concept can be in the success of our business, especially when it comes to our employees.
By delving into each of these three components, employers can create a highly motivated and happy workforce, which is more likely to be productive. As the more you get to know, like and trust them, they will then not only return the sentiment, they will also start to go above and beyond, in all that they do for you and the company. From both a leader and employee perspective we delve into what “know, like and trust” really means.
According to PwC, nearly 60% of survey respondents reported that they would like feedback on a daily or weekly basis. Which employee feedback system does your business use to boost productivity?
Karen Chaston: When the People Profits Connection strategies are adopted, both employees and leaders give and receive feedback on a daily basis.
This boosts high-quality productivity and ensures continual best practices as roadblocks and/or knowledge gaps are not an issue, as they are overcome daily.
What financial or non-financial incentives do you offer employees for motivation? What role has that played in increasing productivity?
Karen Chaston: Time is the world’s greatest commodity. It is something we all wish we had more of. The People Profits Connection strategies assist people to create more time in their day.
The strategies assist people to only focus on their daily tasks. This ensures that they are completed in a more timely manner. Many companies would then get the employee to move onto tomorrow’s task, which makes people work at a slower pace.
Imagine what would happen if the employee could go home, after the daily tasks were completed in an above standard manner?
The employee would be focused to complete, mainly because when they go home early. They get to spend time in other areas of their life – exercising, with their family, cooking healthier meals. The benefits are endless.
When you place more time (as opposed to more money) into your employees accounts on a regular basis they will continually go above and beyond because of how it exponentially enhances all areas of their life……….. and your bottom line!
If you had an unlimited budget and resources to spend on increasing productivity, what is the first thing that you would change?
Karen Chaston: Bringing the People Profits Connection strategies to all employees will give you an unlimited budget.
According to Gusto, 54% of employees say a strong sense of community (great coworkers, celebrating milestones, a common mission) kept them at a company longer than was in their best interest. How do you improve the way teams work together? How do you build a sense of community?
Karen Chaston: Totally agree with Gusto. I commenced working at Dreamworld (Gold Coast, Australian theme park) in 1984 and I stayed 14 years because it was such a fun place to work. There was a huge sense of community and we all had huge pride in the experiences we were giving to the guests that visited the park each day. I left when management changed and it became a dog-eat-dog culture.
These experiences are interwoven into The People Profits Connection strategies.
This has been very insightful and I’m sure other entrepreneurs can learn from the knowledge you have provided. As for your company’s future, what big changes are coming down the pipe in the next 6 months that might increase productivity?
Karen Chaston: I am a great believer that everyone has something to teach you. The more that these strategies are introduced into companies, the more that they are tweaked and expanded.
Having an open mind, knowing that there is always a better way, ensures that there are always big changes coming to enhance all that you do.
Productivity is important but as is an employee’s wellbeing. What are you currently doing to prevent employees from burning out?
Karen Chaston: Educating employees about The Chaston Centre’s Wellness Wheel. Many people are living in a similar “Ground-hog-day-daze” to the one that I was living in my previous corporate life.
It’s time to educate people that you are the only person that you will spend your entire life with, it’s important for you to look after YOU, Your Relationships, Your Expertise, and Your Wealth-Creation.
The understanding and weekly practice of spending time in each area of life ensure and enhances your wellbeing.
Thank you so much for your time but before we finish things off, we do have one more question. We will select these answers for our ValiantCEO Award 2021 edition. The best answers will be selected to challenge the award.
Share with us one of the most difficult decisions you had to make, this past year 2021, for your company that benefited your employees or customers. What made this decision so difficult and what were the positive impacts?
Karen Chaston: I mentioned earlier that it is important for me to walk my talk and to ensure that I am living in all areas of my life.
On the 23rd of June 2021, I flew to Sydney from the Gold Coast for five days. The purpose of this trip was for my daughter (who I adopted out when I was 16, in 1973) and me to meet with my mother to ask her the reasons as to why she guided me towards adopting my daughter out.
Within hours of me arriving, the Queensland Premier locked me out. Three days later Greater Sydney went into two weeks lockdown to flatten the curve. Though as we know this lasted for five months.
I decided to stay (with a girlfriend), hoping that the lockdown would end within the two-week period and the border would re-open without the requirement for hotel quarantine. My decision to stay had the added bonus of my daughter and me being able to walk each morning, within the Northern Beaches LGA and a 10k radius. This took our relationship to a level that I never thought we would ever reach.
I stayed six weeks. During this time, my main priorities were my daughter, me and then enhancing the People Profits Connection strategies.
The rewards from taking the time to STOP and focus on enhancing a very important relationship in my life have flowed into all areas of my life, especially in the programs and strategies that The Chaston Centre offers.
Mike Weiss, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Karen Chaston for taking the time to do this interview and share her knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Karen Chaston or her company, you can do it through her – Linkedin Page
Disclaimer: The ValiantCEO Community welcomes voices from many spheres on our open platform. We publish pieces as written by outside contributors with a wide range of opinions, which don’t necessarily reflect our own. Community stories are not commissioned by our editorial team and must meet our guidelines prior to being published.
