Interview with Karen Mason, author of Pause

After 20 years in a corporate career, Karen Mason felt undervalued upon returning from maternity leave. This took years to recover from. It was the trigger for setting up her business, her motivation for writing her first book and the hook in the first line of her writing.

On a quest to find out if all organisations were like this, Pause has been written to support leaders who recognise that there is a need for change.

Karen published her book in September 2019. I recently interviewed her to find out what’s happened in the five months since, also answering some questions posed via social media. 

Helen asked, how did you know it was the time to write your book and how long  had you been thinking about it?

“I’d been thinking about writing my book for 4-5 years. Many people had been reminding me of this fact. It took someone else’s book drop on my doormat, which had a huge impact on me, for me to make the decision to do it. Once I decided I was going to do it, the process was relatively quick. The ideas had been forming over decades. Once I put the support mechanisms in place by getting support from Karen Williams, it was easier. It took 18 months to write it and get it published”.

I asked, what challenges did you face? 

“Finding time to write it. Then it took time to flesh out my ideas, contacting people for permissions, getting practical stories and finding my beta readers. But the weekly accountability kept me on track and having someone external was a vital part of the process. It was great that you had expertise around the process, which would have stopped me from starting. You left the content to me and you owned the process, so it was the perfect partnership. One of my biggest fears was being seen and visible. Although I’ve learnt to be more at ease with that, it was tough in September when I launched the book”. 

Callum asked, what’s happened to your understanding of yourself since becoming an author? 

“It’s helped me to reconnect with my real sense of purpose. It’s helped me to make sense of my corporate experience. I now have a voice to say what I truly believe in”.

One of the things I love about Karen’s book is that she went for full colour inside and out. I asked Karen to explain the reason for this decision.

 “The book that landed on my mat was full colour and I wanted to create the wow factor. It’s an extension of my business and my branding. I worked with a designer for the illustrations, so it was an easy choice to make". 

I asked Karen about the impact and success that she has had so far. 

“The focus and clarity have really helped me to hone my message, hone what I stand for and it’s helping me to attract the ideal clients I’d like to work with. Now I’m working through the topics with teams and it’s fabulous bringing the book to life and seeing the impact that I can make with it. It has enabled me to niche in an area I’m most passionate about. More people are finding out about my work and asking me to speak and facilitate events". 

Finally, I asked Karen what advice would you give to people embarking on the book writing journey?

"Have the courage to write a book and put the support network in place to enable it to happen. Believe in yourself that you have a message to share. I wanted to create ripples and I know that I can impact so many more lives now I’ve written it". 

Watch the video below or listen to the recording here.