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Jonno White
7 Questions with Ron Katanick
7 Questions with Ron Katanick
Name: Ron Katanick
Current title: Certified Business & Executive Coach, Associate Instructor, Property Business Owner
Current organisation: FocalPoint Coaching & Training Excellence
Retail Industry Product development Leader for over 25 years. Transitioned from corporate to small business owner, coach, trainer and educator.
1. What have you found most challenging as a leader of a small or medium enterprise?
Running a small enterprise with multiple legs can be an organizational challenge. Learning discipline in goal setting, and prioritization when choosing daily tasks is a continuous learning opportunity.
2. How did you become a leader of an SME? Can you please briefly tell the story?
I spent almost 30 years in the corporate world and always found change to be rewarding. When a change came my way one year ago, I had already begun my property acquisition business, and then added the coaching franchise as a new challenge that plays to my strength of helping people develop. Finally, I also was appointed as an educator, which aligned perfectly with coaching and training.
3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?
I am usually up by 6:30 and I begin with a 2 minute meditation drill, finished with a long cleansing breath. Then it's great coffee time, catching up on news and email, and by 8:00 ready for a day of slotting projects, meetings, coaching sessions, and training workshops. Dependent on the day, the mix continually changes. I usually wrap up at 6, or 7 if I have class, eat dinner with my wife, and then relax with a cocktail or glass of wine before turning in around 11:00.
4. What's the most recent significant leadership lesson you've learned?
That you can never be too skilled at listening. True empathetic leadership is rooted in this skill and all good coaching stems from doing this well.
5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your leadership so far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted your leadership?
Simon Sinek "Start With Why... How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone To Take Action." This book changed my entire approach to developing people and building teams. It made me strive to be a leader who could inspire, instead of one who just held a position of power. It made me want to be the kind of leader that people followed for themselves, to achieve a higher purpose.
6. How do you build leadership capacity in an SME?
At this time, the business is just myself and my wife. When we do reach the point where we are ready to hire and develop a team, I see it as similar to the teams I built in the corporate world. Finding the right people who fit each role and the overall team behaviorally, is something we do for others at FocalPoint. Once that team is established and communication styles mesh, empowerment can begin. I believe in the lean leadership concept of sharing and solving together on a regular basis. The team dynamic is very important, but also an individual connection with each person and a development plan of their choosing, with me as a listener and advisor, is where the growth happens.
7. What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as a leader of an SME so far?
That when you begin, you think you can do it all, and with my style I like to do things right the first time. You learn as an entrepreneur that your biggest ROI comes from the visionary forward looking tasks, and not necessarily from crossing every "t" and dotting every "i". I learned the ABCDE of prioritizing. Absolute must do/ Better do/ Could do/ Delegate/ Eliminate. Try it on your daily activities. It is very empowering.