Who’s behind The Rebellion?
Christine Durst and Michael Haaren (Chris & Mike) have been leaders in the virtual-work/work-from-home movement since 1999. With their virtual-work training company, Staffcentrix, they designed the first virtual-career programs for the US State Department and the Armed Forces. Their virtual job-finding workshops have been given at community colleges and churches, for organizations for people with disabilities, for military spouses and veterans, and many more.
They’ve appeared on Good Morning America, The View, CNN, in the Wall Street Journal and many other media outlets as experts on working from home.
Christine Durst
“The second of six children, I grew up in a rural New England town on a small family farm.
Over the years, I worked a series of jobs – hotel chain housekeeper, grocery store cashier, administrative assistant, professional clown (yes, a clown), and others. There were positive aspects of each job, but they were just not “me” (well, the clown was pretty close to “me”). After having my children, I realized I’d be happiest working from home and set my sights on making that happen.” ~ Chris
Before co-founding Staffcentrix and Rat Race Rebellion, Chris was the CEO of the Internet’s first denominated “Virtual Assistant” practice, which was launched in 1995.
Chris is frequently hired to keynote and present at a wide variety of venues including dozens of US Air Force bases around the world, the DOD Spouse Employment Conference, Chase Bank, DOL Workforce Innovations, NY State Vocational Rehab, and many others.
Named “America’s Ultimate Work at Home Expert” by Woman’s World Magazine, Chris has been honored for her entrepreneurial leadership by Ernst & Young (EOY nominee), Working Woman Magazine (Entrepreneurial Excellence Award), and Chase Bank (“Working Woman of the Month”).
On behalf of the company, Chris has appeared in/on Good Morning America, Anderson Cooper, The Tyra Banks Show, Business Week, The Wall Street Journal, Woman’s Day, Women’s World, Fortune Magazine, ABCNews.com, MSNBC, Fox Business, Forbes, USA Today, The Washington Post, and many others.
Durst is a Connecticut native, born and raised in the “Quiet Corner” of the northeast, where she shares her home with “The Bean” (her fat cat). With all of that said, Chris is, above all, the proud mother of a grown son and daughter, Zach and Laura.
Michael Haaren
“I grew up in a log cabin in rural Virginia till I was 6, then lived in a small town. It was a real community, with close families. No commuting. We’ve lost a lot of that, but working from home can help restore it. That’s one big reason I love what I do.
“Virtual jobs and gigs let people work wherever they want to — from home, the cafe down the street, a dorm room — whatever fits your lifestyle. That’s why we’re here at RRR, to help people make that happen.” ~ Mike
Like Chris, Mike, an Army veteran, has worked in a variety of jobs — selling flowers on the street, ice cream man, farm hand, ditch digger, Wall Street lawyer, starving writer in Paris — and appears often in the media, including CNN, Forbes, Businessweek and many more. He is co-author of The 2-Second Commute and Work at Home Now.
Mike co-founded Staffcentrix and RRR, and heads Staffcentrix’ Charleston, SC, office. He earned his B.A. at Georgetown University summa cum laude, and his J.D. at the University of Virginia School of Law.