“GIVE MORE THAN YOU TAKE” WITH DR. RUTH GOTIAN
By: Kristin Marquet
Tags: Development, Female Entrepreneurs, Female Founders, Education, Leadership

Dr. Ruth Gotian is a leadership coach, keynote speaker, chief learning officer, and former assistant dean for mentoring at an ivy league medical center. She studies, teaches, and writes about optimizing success, leadership, and networking based on her work and interviews with the most successful people of our generation including Nobel laureates, Olympians, and astronauts. She has a doctorate in adult learning and leadership from Columbia University and has been hailed as a leadership expert by Nature and Columbia University. Dr. Ruth Gotian Coaching & Keynotes www.ruthgotian.com

Can you tell our readers about your background?

I started my career in finance and pivoted to higher and medical education. I have a doctorate in adult learning and leadership. My interests are in the habits and practices of high achievers and how we can emulate some of their mindsets and disciplines to optimize our own success.

What inspired you to start your business?

I’ve always felt comfortable teaching from the stage and pride myself in never being tethered to a podium. I’ve received feedback that my keynotes get people thinking long after the talk is over. I’ve also been coaching people for three decades and people marveled at the transformative changes they were able to make. I decided to spend more time doing the things that I was passionate about and was told I am good at.

Where is your business based?

My business is virtual and is not defined by place or time.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

I built a website and contacted my network which I have cultivated over three decades. People knew what I delivered and referred people to me.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

It is a referral business. Good work brings in more work. The more I give keynotes, the more I am asked to come to other people’s organizations.

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

The pandemic has been challenging as travel came to a grinding halt yet those who were working from home still craved professional development. I had to pivot and consider how to use virtual mediums in a way that didn’t seem one dimensional. For coaching, the issues remain the same but some underlying issues are now coming to the forefront.

How do you stay focused?

I get to see immediate results in my work which fuel my passion and help me stay focused.

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

Having a doctorate in adult learning and leadership and being a contributor to Forbes and Psychology Today in addition to my day job offers me the social proof to stand out.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

My practice is referral based, so doing good work is my best marketing strategy.

What’s your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

Grow your network and develop relationships over time. Give more than you take. Offer what you can for free, it will help establish your credibility.

What’s your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

I am a voracious reader and read 70–100 books a year. My favorite books are A Higher Standard by General Ann Dunwoody, the first female four-star general in the U.S. and From Willard Straight to Wall Street, the memoir of Thomas W. Jones, a Wall Street executive who led the 1969 Cornell University armed takeover. His lessons on success are some of the best I’ve ever read. I had the opportunity to host him for a talk and he is a genuinely nice, authentic, and grounded individual.

What’s your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

I would be lost without my phone. I use it to connect with people and ideas all day long.

Who is your business role model? Why?

I don’t have one role model I have multiple ones. I like how Dorie Clark shares her content creation, Marshall Goldsmith’s coaching ideas, and Grant Baldwin’s ideas of how to generate speaking leads.

How do you balance work and life?

I know when I am productive and focus 100% during that time. The rest of the time, I prefer to spend with family, friends or a good book.

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

Read, of course!

What do you have planned for the next six months?

Speak, coach, and read!

How can our readers connect with you?

Dr. Ruth Gotian Coaching & Keynotes

www.twitter.com/ruthgotian www.instagram.com/ruthgotian

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rgotian/

I am a volunteer mentor with The Mentor Project and host a weekly show every Monday at 8 PM EST called “Optimizing Success”. People can watch and ask their questions via Facebook Live at www.facebook.com/thementorproject