Kristy-Ann Waugh
A Burst of Exuberance
We can either decide our lives or let life define itself for us. Kristy-Ann Waugh is amongst those blessed people when a life-defining moment birthed her calling. Raised in a white, middle-class, Australian family as the eldest of four children, herself, two sisters, and a brother, she considers herself fortunate to have received a private, catholic education, where she bloomed academically and athletically, receiving many awards and accolades during these formative years.
After a collective career of 20 years in the Royal Australian Navy and the Corporate workforce, a situation forced Kristy-Ann to change paths, only to find eternal success. After carrying out a three-month deployment conducting surveillance activity in the Timor Sea with the Royal Australian Navy, Kristy-Ann and her colleagues were relieved and subsequently returned to their home port. She disembarked the ship a shadow of her former self. A severe chronic illness caused cachexia- weakness, and wasting of the body. By this time, she had lost fifteen kilograms, weighing a meager thirty-four kilograms upon disembarkation, prompting hospitalization with a prognosis of only twenty-four hours to live.
A life-threatening diagnosis, and several cardiologists, endocrinologists, gastroenterologists, hematologists, psychologists, nephrologists, dietitians, general practitioners, nutritionists, and psychiatrists attended to Kristy-Ann, who was still plummeting to an all-time low weight of twenty-nine kilograms. After a sevenmonth-long conflict with death, she finally got back to a restored self and returned to work only to be discharged as medically unfit for Naval service. This episode piqued her curiosity.
“Human behavior, human potential, and the psychological sciences had always fascinated me. And this was the catalyst, the birth of my personal development journey. My passion for personal growth, development and transformational change was well and truly ignited.” Her husband’s diagnosis of clinical depression introduced Kristy-Ann to a newfound purpose in life- practicing coaching and therapy, him being an enormous source of inspiration. She finally transitioned full-time into her coaching and therapy practice @Kristy-AnnWaugh. “Through adversity came opportunity,” she says, embracing optimism.
Through her forum, Kristy-Ann facilitates powerful, positive change in people’s lives. She empowers courageous individuals to break through limitations, fear, phobia, and trauma from the past (incl. unresourceful thoughts, patterns, and behaviors), enabling them to not only survive but to flourish in career, business and life. Over the years, she has earned several titles- master coach, speaker, therapist, founder, amazon’s #1 Best-selling author, education junkie, and alumni of the “University of Life.”
Calling her business strategy “unique,” Kristy-Ann shares insights about it, “I have my zone of genius extensive knowledge, skills, qualifications, and certifications in coaching and therapy. However, it is my lived experience, my personal story that separates me in a saturated market, in a sea of sameness if you like.” She is so invested in her passion for helping others see the brighter side of life that sometimes she neglects her personal needs. But implementing a discipline and a sustainable work/life approach, she found a way to meet her needs. The buoyant woman believes that establishing a business appetite is key to success. “Success loves speed (and action!).”
The COVID 19 Pandemic did have an initial impact on her business. However, she believes that there is a gift in everything. “The gift was an opportunity to demonstrate flexibility and agility.” The pandemic did not distress but instead empowered Kristy-Ann to transition the vast majority of her face-to-face coaching and therapy sessions and many training deliveries to online, which subsequently provided her with greater global reach. No wonder she says, “Crisis creates opportunity!
Ask Kristy-Ann about her strengths, and in her own words, “Thinking about it makes my heart sing.” She is someone who embraces each day and encourages clients, students, audiences, viewers, and listeners alike to do the same, a spirit that sprouts from her awareness. “My top 5 Gallup Strengths are Achiever, Learner, Input, Maximizer, and Relator.”
Twenty-eight degrees & certifications, seven memberships, five volunteering associations coupled with sports commingle in a magic box only to uncloak to the world a burst of exuberance, KristyAnn Waugh. Her inspiring mantras of success are like the lights at the end of a tunnel to many. They include- Desire to inspire, make a difference, say “I am possible,” you can figure everything out, it’s good to talk, express, don’t suppress, and communicate, don’t isolate.