I thought it was the bees knees…and 1) I’m sorry for using the phrase “bees knees,” and 2) I shared it here on this blog (on my weekly Stuff to Read While You’re Pretendingto Work series) in addition to tossing it up on my social media outlets.
There isn’t much to add to Jill’s post; she hit on a lot of “big rock” themes I feel behooves any professional, regardless of occupation – to follow.1
To that end, I wanted to add a few salient points into the mix and to expound a bit on some of MY thoughts hovering around the same topic.
You know, just a few tidbits, tiddlywinks, and tickles(?) <— I couldn’t think of another good t-word to finish the alliteration.
1. Practice What You Preach
I’m a coach.
I like helping people get strong(er), feeling better, and/or conjuring their inner meathead. To steal an analogy from my good friend Dean Somerset: I like to think of myself as a fitness Sherpa.
Except in this case, instead of guiding people up Mt. Everest, I guide them through their Goblet Squats or get-ups; or my Gangstarr play list (alliteration!)
My job is to be their support system and direct them from Point A to Point B in the safest, most time efficient path possible.
The key here, of course, is the coaching part.
I actually coach.
Meaning, I work with people in real-life. It boggles my mind that there are some “fitness professionals” out there, a minority to be fair, who sell themselves as these industry messiahs who have worked with 1000’s of people and are “world renowned” despite being 21.
Now, I’m not saying someone can’t be a successful coach or even well-known in this industry at 21.
However, you know it, I know it, your best friend’s second cousin’s dog trainer’s Little League coach knows it…
…you’re full of shit.
Or, even worse, there are some fitness professionals out there – regardless of age – who market themselves as “experts” and write a good game – are featured on popular sites or sell a bunch of E-books – but train zero people.
Ben Bruno and I like to play a game whenever we come across an insane workout or program online. You can always tell those programs written by real, well-seasoned coaches (who work with real people) and those written by wannabes:
Real Coach
A1. Trap Bar Deadlift 3×5 A2. (Loaded) Push-Up 3×8,8,MAX
A1. Deadlift 10×10 A2. Handstand Walks over Broken Glass 10x400m
B1. Bench Press 10×10 B2. Punch a lumberjack in the beard 10xMAX reps
C1. Back Squat 10×10 C2. Barbell Bicep Curl w/ Weight Releasers, 5/5/5 Tempo – Blindfolded 10×5
Listen, all I am saying is this:
Don’t be a clown. Don’t pretend to be something you’re not. It’s not worth it and (most) people are going to be able to see right through the nonsense anyway, which is not going to help your career in the long run.
Moreover, and this is just my own personal aside: I have rarely programmed an exercise (or protocol) that I haven’t performed myself.
20-rep squats?…yup.
21 straight days of deadlifting?…stupid, but yes.
THIS?
Well, the video proves it…;o)
I can think of no better way to hammer home this point than with a story I heard Martin Rooney say years ago centered around the Monk, the Mom and the Toddler (paraphrased):
A mother was incensed she could not get her toddler to stop eating sugar. As a final hail mary she decided to seek the advice of the wise Monk.
Mother: “Oh wise Monk, can you tell me how I to get my toddler to stop eating sugar?”
Monk: “Come back in two weeks and I will tell you.”
Mother: “FML, (like I said, paraphrased) that doesn’t help me, but okay. See you in two weeks.”
(Fast forward two weeks)
Mother: “Alright Monk, it’s been two weeks. How do I get my toddler to stop eating sugar?”
Monk (looks directly at the toddler): “Stop eating sugar.”
Mother (incredulous): Wait, what? That’s what I have been doing all along! This makes no sense. Some wise Monk you are!”
Monk: “I had to stop eating sugar before I could tell someone else to do the same.”
Recently I watched Bret Contreras’s presentation via the NSCA Personal Trainer’s Virtual Conference on how to grow your Instagram following.
Bret’s someone who has over 800k+ followers so he knows a thing or two about what to do and what not to do.
To Do:
Prioritize actionable content
Treat it like a job (I.e., good content takes more than 10 minutes to produce. Bret spends, on average, 3-4 hours PER DAY creating content and interacting with his followers)
Good content is a combination of training yourself, training other people, and READING
A good microphone, lighting, and knowing your angles matters.
Be authentic
Not to Do
Buy followers
I see it all the time.
Someone has 100,000 followers yet two comments on each post.
Don’t buy followers.
Just. Don’t.
3. I’m Done, Just Realized The Irishman is Now Available to Watch on Netflix
I’m going to just come right out and say it: I’m not a fan of trainers offering discounts for their services. Now, I say this with a grain of salt because I completely understand (and respect) that it’s a delicate matter and that there’s a number of factors to consider.
For example, I think it makes a lot of sense for larger, commercial gyms to offer discounts.
In Boston, like any major city, there are several notable, big chain commercial gyms vying for people’s attention (and wallets):
Equinox
Boston Sports Club
HealthWorks
LifeTime Fitness
24 Hour Fitness
Golds
Planet Fitness
Beacon Hill Athletic Club
In addition there’s dozens of mid-level commercial gyms (not chains, but pretty big) peppered throughout the city, not to mention a CrossFit box in every major neighborhood. That’s a lot of competition and it makes sense that many of them would offer a free consultation or discounted introductory rates on training to entice more people to join.
Moreover, and as Cressey Sports Performance business director, Pete Dupuis, has noted in the past: Roughly 30% of people who are offered free consultations actually end up taking advantage of them.
“This may be a solid conversion rate from the perspective of the commercial gym owner, but not for the independent contractor who doesn’t see a single penny of the monthly membership dues these potential leads are paying. A 30% conversion rate tells me that 7 out of 10 people decided that something for nothing was actually worth nothing.”
As a small business – and more to the point, as a gym that only offers personal and semi-private training (no open gym or classes) – I don’t have the luxury of hundreds (if not thousands) of people paying a membership fee just to walk through the doors.
Why would I offer my services and time at a free or discounted rate when I have bills to pay?5
I can hear the cacophony of pitchforks now.
“But Tony, if you offer free/discounted stuff it’s less intimidating and allows people to see whether or not you’re a good fit.
Stop being such an uppity a-hole!”
To that Point
1. Try walking into a hair salon, attorney’s office, or, I don’t know, Gringotts Bank and ask someone for 30-60 minutes of their time in order to sample the goods and to see if “you’re a good fit.”
HAHAHAHAHAHA – no, seriously, do it.
UPDATE:I should add that it’s not lost on me there’s a bit more robustness to the client-coach relationship compared to the client-attorney relationship. Helping someone to change their behavior takes a lot more nuance. That said, it’s one thing to offer complimentary sessions/discounted rates in conjunction with a clear-cut on-boarding protocol geared towards improving the client experience.
My good friend Todd Bumgardner, owner of Beyond Strength Performance in Sterling, VA, remarks that their conversion rates are very high utilizing a heavily discounted first month of training for new members.
But that’s also because they’re laser focused when it comes to their systems; new members go through a thorough “itinerary” in order to proceed.
And it’s another thing altogether to just haphazardly toss out discounts for the sake of generating some quick revenue.
2. This is my livelihood, not a garage sale.
Sorry not sorry.
To that end, I don’t want to sit here, come across as some crotchedy old bastard (GET OFF MY LAWN!), and rag on the notion that you should never discount your rates as a trainer.
I mean, only Sith’s deal in absolutes, right?
Some Pros or When to Offer Discounts
1. You’re New
If you’re a new trainer or coach in the industry, need experience and more eyes on you – particularly in a crowded commercial gym scenario where there’s a few dozen trainers vying for the same thing – then it makes sense to offer some discounted training to build your client roster.
It’s not beneath you to do so.
I did it.
When I was a commercial gym trainer I’d often offer free 15-30 minute “Deep Dives” for on my own time for members:
Deep Dive: REAL Core Training
Deep Dive: Learn How to Deadlift
Deep Dive: Shoulder Friendly Strength Training
Deep Dive: How Hot is Jennifer Garner in Alias?
As a result I got more eyes on me and would often have members reach out to begin training.
For the more mathematical minded in the crowd, you can also think of it this way courtesy of Finnish coach, Joni Jaakola of Optimal Performance:
“Offer 45 minute free training sessions + 15 minute consultation => client can experience what they are about to sign into => convert 50% of them => fully booked weekly calendar in two months or so.”
2. One-Time Special Offers
My friends over at Mark Fisher Fitness in NYC are huge proponents of offering special one-time only offers of 20-25% off packages when people attend a special class or charity event.
I like this idea.
If you’re already making the time to be at a certain place at a certain time, go for it.
People attend a class, you get their names, you offer the offer, and then you follow-up with a PHONE CALL (or text) – people just delete email – for a few weeks to remind them of when the offer expires.
3. It’s August
In the fitness industry, August (in the Northern hemisphere anyway) is…the…worst.
It’s a dead-zone.
Gym floors often resemble the barren, desolate wastelands of Mordor.
Except in this case it’s because people are on vacation in Martha’s Vineyard (and not so much because of the whole Sauron thing).
So, I get it.
Sometimes you have to discount your rates to attract people’s attention and to get bodies on the gym floor.
Totally legit reason.
However, my buddy and I were headed to get some pizza after a killer squat session last week when we walked past this sign located at the main entrance of a gym chain here in Boston:
Now, admittedly, I have zero insights into this business’s numbers or the inner workings of their operation, maybe they’re crushing it, but to me this is what’s wrong with offering discounts…
…especially ones this, shall we say, aggressive.
My Take (the Cons)
Again, offering discounts is not wrong or altogether a waste of time.
There IS a time and place and a way to implement them that can and will behoove your business as well as the (potential) client.
That said, it’s important to remain aware of the concept of anchoring.
If you’re a fan of behavioral economics – such as myself – and read a lot of books on the topic as it relates to decision making and marketing this should be a familiar term.
Via Wikipedia:
“The anchoring effect is a cognitive bias that describes the common human tendency to rely too heavily on the first piece of information offered. … During decision making, anchoring occurs when individuals use an initial piece of information to make subsequent judgments.”
In the case of the above offer ($15 for 70 minutes of training), the more the discount gets away from your full price, the more problems and reticence you’re going to have – from the consumer – when you reveal said full price.
“Anchor” your price too far removed from your actual rates and you run the risk of creating a bevy of price sensitive clients who are going to jump ship to the next trainer or gym who offers an even better discount.
“I think huge discounts can attract clients who are only willing/able to pay bottom-end rates, and you’re unlikely to wow those people into full-price paying clients if their budget just doesn’t allow it. I think you wind up giving too much of yourself away in the process.”
2. Creates Discounted Effort
Pigging back on the above, in my experience I have found that discounted prices sometimes (not always) creates a culture of discounted effort.
Humans are very loss adverse.
This refers to people’s tendency to prefer avoiding losses to acquiring equivalent gains: it is better to not lose $5 than it is to find $5.
If a client pays my normal rate they have invested in themselves. There’s a degree of “buy in” from the individual to the tune of if they don’t show up – and I enforce my cancelation policy – there’s an inherent loss there.
And people hate loss.
Even more than the Patriots…;o)
Investment = people (usually) go out of their way to put forth some effort and consistency.
They show up.
$15 sessions = “meh, charge me, I gotta catch up on Ballers.”
3. Creates Awkwardness
The less mental gymnastics I have to do as a business owner, the better.
Who’s coming in today?
Who needs a new program?
How many sessions does so and so have left in their package?
Why am I not wearing pants?
I prefer to keep things simple:
– I use Google Calendar to book my sessions.
– I use Excel to write my programs.
– I have an assistant who tracks all client sessions (and to let me know who needs what when).
– I almost always wear pants.
Too, when it comes to training packages, I also prefer simplicity and go out of my way to not offer a robust array of options because, frankly, I don’t want to have to deal with that dumpster fire.
If I charge Client A “x” (a discount) and then Client B who is charged “y” (no discount) finds out about it, and is like “dafuq, Tony?”, it makes for some awkwardness I’d rather avoid.
Me touching my wife’s butt in public = awkwardness I can handle.
Me not shaving my head for two weeks = awkwardness I can still kinda-sorta handle.
Me explaining why two clients are charged two different rates = no thank you.
4. You Get What You Pay For
Image Inspired by thePTDC.com (^^I did that all by myself ^^)
This is 90% meant to be more than tongue-n- cheek than anything.
Note From TG: I am passionate about a lot of things:
90’s hip-hop
My wife’s butt
Tickle fights…to name a few.
I have yet, however, to follow my “passion” in any of those things and attempt to make a career out of them.
There’s a facade in today’s society where we put on our rose colored glasses and think that, so long as we follow our “passion” and pursue something we love doing, that that will be the panacea of a happy life and fulfilling career.
I am not going to rain on everyone’s parade…but it’s not quite that simple.
Today’s guest post by Exercise.com founder, Joel Ohman, hits the nail on the head.
I wish I could make out with it I like it so much.6
Should You “Follow Your Passion” into Starting a Fitness Business?
It seems that many times, maybe even most of the time, the calculus for entering the fitness industry involves a variant of this internal discussion:
“Well, I like working out, and I like wearing shorts to work, and, at least I’ll never have an excuse to not work out, right? A career in the fitness industry seems great for me!”
And then, quickly thereafter,
“You know, I can’t stand having my boss tell me what to do, and I hate having to share my hourly rate with the gym, so I’ll just go out on my own. I’ll start my own fitness business!”
At Exercise.com, we encounter trainers, gym owners, and fitness professionals of all stripes. Some of the trainers we work with train professional athletes, Olympians—including a trainer who is himself an Olympian—those with large social media followings, those who are just starting out, and all across the map, but the common denominator to success is that one must be willing to put in the work.
Passion, energy, and excitement are great things, but let’s be honest, there comes a time in any career or business venture where you just have to do the hard things necessary for success, passion plays little to no part in it.
Rather, Newport argues that we are focusing on exactly the wrong thing.
Similarly to the paradoxical way that focusing on becoming more happy tends not to make us happier, but just more conscious that we are not, in fact, happy, but if we instead focus on something outside of ourselves—helping others or focusing on an important external mission, for example—then happiness is more likely to “just find us” so too, focusing on something besides what we are passionate about in our work will tend to have the same effect.
So what should we concentrate on?
What are some of the things we should focus on to determine whether starting a fitness business or launching a career in the fitness industry is a good fit for us?
Newport outlines a number of things that are important, from autonomy, authenticity, and mission, but the single biggest factor is skill.
Skills Trump Passion
Developing skills by working hard over an extended period of time, by deliberately practicing and improving in a particular area of expertise, trumps any short-term nebulous claims of passion when it comes to finding long-lasting job and career satisfaction.
In other words, when you work hard at something for a long time and become a true expert, viewing your work from the vantage point of a craftsman and true master, then satisfaction naturally follows.
But if you spend all your time chasing after the ephemeral passion bubbles floating by you on the wind then your satisfaction will be temporary and disappointing.
Kevin Mullins echoes Tony’s earlier advice about working in a commercial gym setting with his article, “You Are Never Too Good to Work in a Commercial Gym Setting” because true masters, those with a craftsman’s approach to their work, realize that one must trust the law of the process, and you can’t skip steps on the journey to mastery. Mastery, expertise, a craftsman’s mindset, all of those elements have a much great contribution to lifelong satisfaction in the fitness industry.
Does this mean that you should never start out on your own and build your own fitness business?
Absolutely not!
As a 5x serial entrepreneur I couldn’t imagine doing anything different, so if you are wired the same way—and being wired a particular way is not better or worse than anyone else—then by all means, strike out on your own and start that fitness business!
To be clear, a career in the fitness industry can be a great thing.
But to really succeed and to experience long-lasting satisfaction you must commit to the lifelong deliberate practice of building the skills and craftsmanship necessary to become a true expert.
And, yes, you can wear shorts to work.
SPECIAL DISCOUNT: If you want custom-branded iOS and Android apps for your fitness business, then check out Exercise.com’s fitness business management software to scale your business in-person and online using assessments, clients/class scheduling, gym check-ins, billing, workout software, and more then mention this article to get an extra month free.
About the Author
Joel Ohman is a serial entrepreneur, author, and angel investor. He is the founder and CEO of Exercise.com and a number of tech startups. He lives in Tampa, FL with his wife Angela and their three kids.
His writing companion is Caesar, a slightly overweight Bull Mastiff who loves to eat the tops off of strawberries. He lifts weights six days a week and does Krav Maga twice a week to try to ignore the fact he’s still just a washed up ex-college basketball player.
Best selling author and Exercise.com founder & CEO, Joel Ohman, is in the house today with a stellar guest post on “radical candidness,” and how it can make you a better, more successful personal trainer and human.
Anyway, all that is to say we work with all different types of fitness professionals, and it gives us a unique insight into the psyche of personal trainers and, specifically, how they communicate with us, their co-workers, and their clients.
Different trainers have different communication styles.
Like all business owners, and people in general, there are certain communication traps we can all fall into that can sabotage our client relationships and undermine the success we are all working so hard for in our fitness businesses.
Radical Candor is a book by former Google and Apple executive Kim Scott that outlines a framework to be a better boss, colleague, and human being.
The book outlines a quadrant representing four different very common styles of communication.
On the Y-axis is your level of demonstrated personal care for the person you are communicating with. On the X-axis is your level of willingness to challenge directly in your communication with others.
The ideal stated goal in communication with clients, colleagues, and partners is to land in that top right square titled “Radical Candor,” where you are simultaneously demonstrating that you personally care about the person you are talking to while also not being afraid to challenge them directly and give them the hard truths that they may need to hear.
Radical candor is what happens when you both Care Personally and you Challenge Directly at the same time.
What Radical Candor is Not
But first, it’s important to outline what Radical Candor is NOT.
It’s not a license to act like a jerk.
It’s not an invitation to get creepily personal.
It’s not just for managers, personal trainers, bosses, or those in a position of authority—we all want to succeed.
It’s also helpful to look at each of the four different possible communication approaches/attitudes in the grid and see if you can recognize some common trainer/coach personality types, and then, of course, do the introspective work of seeing which one you tend to land in.
It won’t be hard, you should recognize which one fits you right away (or, just ask one of your clients, your colleagues/partners, or even better: your spouse).
Radical Candor
Radical Candor happens at the intersection of Care Personally and Challenge Directly.
Care Personally means that you care about the other person, not about whether you are winning a popularity contest.
Challenge Directly means that you share your perspective and invite the other person to do the same.
This is the gold standard of where we all want to be.
This is the personal trainer who obviously cares about their clients and wants them to succeed, but is also willing to say the hard truth when it comes to encouraging healthy lifestyle choices, following medical advice when it comes to weight management, and other sensitive topics.
Obnoxious Aggression
Obnoxious Aggression is mean but may be helpful.
Obnoxious Aggression is also called “brutal honesty” or “front stabbing.” This is the classic Marine boot camp instructor or the raging high school football coach that breaks his clipboard
This is the personal trainer who screams at clients but is more invested in checking out their own biceps in the gym mirror than they are in seeing their clients succeed.
We recently created a comprehensive guide on how to become a successful online trainer packed with case studies, and surprise, surprise, yelling and screaming at clients, whether in-person or via video, was not a recipe for success.
In a weird way, we have experienced coaches, trainers, or bosses like this and they have actually made us better people though.
This is why this is the second best square in the quadrant.
Even though that screaming football coach might make you want to hang your head and quietly cry in the shower after a game, can you rely on that coach to ALWAYS tell you exactly where you stand with him?
Can you count on him to communicate directly with you, tell it to you like it is, and give you immediate and specific feedback on what you need to do to improve?
Ruinous Empathy is “nice” but ultimately unhelpful or even damaging.
It’s seeing somebody with their fly down, but, not wanting to embarrass them, saying nothing, with the result that 15 more people see them with their fly down—more embarrassing for them.
It’s a personal trainer not wanting to tell their client the hard truth, that yes, their doctor is right, they do need to lose those 60 pounds. It’s a fitness business owner not wanting to confront their head personal trainer when they are not meeting expectations.
Manipulative Insincerity
Manipulative Insincerity is a stab in the back.
This is active sabotage, and the worst of what we all think of when we think of interpersonal relationships and communication, whether that’s office politics or gym politics.
What About You?
In our weekly team meetings we like to start off with a 10-15 minute segment we call “Weekly Wisdom” that has one member of the team sharing something they recently learned, whether business, personal, a book they read, etc. and then we discuss as a team.
We recently discussed, you guessed it, Radical Candor, and here are some of the questions we discussed:
Can you provide an example of someone who communicated something to you using Radical Candor? How did that make you feel?
Can you provide an example of someone who communicated something to you using Obnoxious Aggression, Ruinous Empathy, or Manipulative Insincerity? How did that make you feel?
When faced with difficult conversations, which of the four communication approaches do you find yourself gravitating towards? How might you intentionally become Radically Candid instead?
How might we encourage Radical Candor as a team?
How might you utilize Radical Candor in your personal life?
So, what about you? How might becoming Radically Candid transform your fitness business, your client relationships, and maybe even your personal life?
About the Author
Joel Ohman is a serial entrepreneur, author, and angel investor.
He is the founder and CEO of Exercise.com and a number of tech startups. He lives in Tampa, FL with his wife Angela and their three kids.
His writing companion is Caesar, a slightly overweight Bull Mastiff who loves to eat the tops off of strawberries. He lifts weights six days a week and does Krav Maga twice a week to try to ignore the fact he’s still just a washed up ex-college basketball player.
You can connect with Joel and send your own Radically Candid personal communication to him at JoelOhman.com.
SPECIAL DISCOUNT: If you want custom-branded iOS and Android apps for your fitness business, then check out Exercise.com’s fitness business management software to scale your business in-person and online using assessments, clients/class scheduling, gym check-ins, billing, workout software, and more then mention this article to get an extra month free.
Some of you may recall an article I wrote years ago, not long after I left Cressey Sports Performance, where I demonstrably stated I would never want to open a gym on my own.
For those who need their memory jogged – or for those who missed it altogether – you can check it out HERE.
I joke, but there was a time where you would have been more likely to see the words “the next Bachelor” or “Kumite champion” or “vegan” next to my name before you ever saw the words “gym owner.”
To quote the article above:
“All of This To Say….
I have NO interest in opening or owning my own facility.
I’ve spent over a decade building my own brand and a “business,” but I am in no way, shape, or form a businessman.”
There’s still much I agree with in that article:
I still feel, strongly, that gym ownership can often be a facade. We’re programmed to believe that just because someone owns a gym that they’ve somehow reached the pinnacle in this industry, that they’ve “made it,” and that they read scripture to orphaned kittens and shit rainbows and stuff.
That they can do no wrong and they’re inherently better than us.
Pfffft, whatever.
I still feel, strongly, that many fitness professionals enter gym ownership for the wrong reasons.
I still feel, strongly, that as much as hard work, consistency, resiliency, and perseverance play a role in everyone’s success, that luck, too, is an often under-appreciated and under-reported factor.7
And finally, I still feel, strongly, my pecs can cut diamonds.
Alas, time has a funny way of making us eat our words.
I left Cressey Sports Performance in the Fall of 2015 to begin training people out of a small studio in Brookline, MA where I’d was sub-lease underneath another gym owner.
In the summer of 2016 I took over the lease and as a result…
…CORE was established.
It not so many words: I became a bonafide “gym owner.”
Now, I put “gym owner” in quotations marks because, while my name is on the lease, and while I am responsible for making sure the rent is paid every month, liability insurance is covered, and that the utilities are taken care of, I still don’t consider CORE a gym gym.
It sounds silly, but because it’s so tiny – 450 sq. feet – I consider it more of a “place where I happen to train people” more so than it being regaled as a gym.
Studio?
Training Space?
Deadlifting Dojo?
I don’t know.
Gym just seemed/seems like a bit of a stretch.
Moreover, there’s still a degree of imposture syndrome that plagues and festers inside me. I’ve never considered myself a savvy business person. I mean, I still have to Google things like “the difference between net and gross income” or “in the black vs. in the red” or “will I be sued if I don’t wear pants to work?” on a regular basis.
There’s a reason I barely passed (business) economics class in college.
Suffice to say, despite my best efforts to besmirch and (de)aggrandize my success over the course of the past three years of gym ownership – it’s a personality trait I work hard to battle – things have gone quite splendidly.
So splendidly, in fact, that I am on the cusp of moving CORE to a larger location.
Excuse Me, That’s My Sphincter Clenching It’s Sphincter
If there was ever a more opportune time for Dramatic Chipmunk to make an appearance it’s now…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1Y73sPHKxw
It’s still in the early stages and nothing is cemented yet, but an LOI (Letter of Intent) has been agreed upon and it’s looking as if I’ll be moving my 450 sq. foot “something-er-other” into a 3,500 sq. foot TECHNO & DEADLIFTING PALACE OF FISTPUMPS.™
(Excuse me while I go destroy the back of my pants).
A lot has gone into this decision, it’s been brewing for a while, but I felt it prudent (and a bit cathartic) to hash out and explain a few details that helped inspire this bold move:
1. My (New) Vision
As it stands now, I coach my own clients 20 hours per week out of CORE. I also have six other coaches running their own businesses out of the same space.
One coach, one space.
There can be only one.
Some, like me, follow a semi-private model (coaching anywhere from 2-4 clients at a time), while others use it solely to train their clients one-on-one.
Either way, each coach pays an hourly rate to use the space. They’re all coaches I know and trust, and who are very competent.
And what’s more to the point, the system has worked very well to help offset my overhead.
My model has proven to work on a small scale.
However, can I make it work on a grander scale?
As in, instead of one coach using the space at a time, maybe two, three, or four coaches could utilize the space simultaneously?
I love the idea of providing a space for other fitness professionals to grow their businesses & brands; a consortium of like-minded fitness professionals supporting and helping one another to create an environment that’s welcoming and inspiring to all.
One of the things I miss most about being at CSP is the camaraderie amongst the coaches; sharing and bouncing ideas off one another.
I also love the idea of actually having showers, changing rooms, a lounge area, and more than one squat rack (something CORE doesn’t have access to at the moment).
Goals.
2) My Jerry Maguire Moment
This idea would only work if 1) I was 100% sure I had reached a tipping point in my own ability to accommodate clients and more importantly 2) the coaches who were sub-leasing under me currently would also be willing to take a risk and follow me to the new space.
So I sent an email a few weeks ago and it said…
“Who’s coming with me?”
I explained my umbrella theme for the new space, how things would benefit everyone – for myself AND them – in addition to outlining some baseline expectations.
They all said yes.
NOTE TO SAID COACHES: You can’t back out now. We pinky swore. WE PINKY SWORE.
3) Onward!
I’m scared to fail.
I’m scared to take a risk.
I’m scared to step outside my comfort zone just like everyone else.
But then I remembered 13 words my friend, Todd Bumgardner, uttered to me years ago when I was going back and forth on whether or not to leave Cressey Sports Performance. They punched me in the face and nothing has resonated with me so much:
“Scare the shit out of yourself. It’s the only way to do it.”
I have the support of my wife. I have the support of my clients and colleagues. And, seemingly, I have the support of my bank account.
I’ll be the first to admit I’m not the most savvy business person.
I likely wouldn’t be able to tell you my P & L breakdown for the month of September, I probably wouldn’t be able to tell you how many sessions I completed in June, and I assuredly, still, would need a few seconds to remember which is better:
I understand this won’t resonate or apply to those coaches/trainers who work out of a commercial gym setting, but for all others reading hear me out.
This is something I adopted from my time at Cressey Sports Performance and a concept CSP business director, Pete Dupuis, has championed for years.
Not many things are going to make someone pump the brakes on hiring you as their coach more than you asking/requiring a massive amount of money out of the gate.
You: “That was an excellent assessment, I think we’ll be able to get a lot accomplished if we can work together.”
Client:“I agree. How much will it cost to get started?”
You:“I require six months in advance, and you have to share your Netflix account with me.”
Not many people are going to do cartwheels and take out their checkbook when they hear something like that.
It’s daunting and absurd.
Instead, offer a monthly rate.
It’s way less intimidating.
It forces you to EARN their business every month.
2. Know the WHY.
This Tweet should explain things:
If YOU (the fitness professional) can’t explain the “why” behind an exercise or modality in a program how in the heck do you expect your client/athlete to buy into it much less understand it?
This is going to be the most cliche piece of advice I’m going to give.
Call your mother.
Seriously, stop being a jerk.
Also, don’t discount the power of a hand-written note or card.
Every client of mine receives a Birthday card of some sort every year. Here’s this year’s iteration:
In it I’ll write a little sumthin, sumthin and also include a $10-$15 gift card to a local coffee shop or movie theater.
Clients love it, and there’s little doubt in my mind that this teeny-tiny gesture produces an immense ROI that bodes in my favor.
Likewise, if I haven’t seen a client in a while, or he or she has fallen off the grid, I’ll send them a wildcard card like this:
One of two things usually happens:
1. They come back.
2. I’m handed a restraining order.
5. Just Do Your Job
Smiling (without being obnoxious or creepy about it), showing up on time, providing feedback and a fun, inviting environment, showing empathy (albeit not refraining from offering tough love when needed), and writing programs based on your CLIENT’s ability level and your CLIENT’s needs and your CLIENT’s goals doesn’t require a fancy algorithm or a bevy of letters next to your name.
It’s called doing your job.
And it’s amazing how that alone will make all the difference in the world.
I don’t say this lightly: It was one of the best experiences as a speaker (and attendee) I’ve ever had in my 15+ years in the industry. The only way it could have been better is if my hosts, Ryan Ketchum and the rest of the Fitness Revolution crew, gave me my own ticker-tape parade.11
It was well-organized, well-paced, provided a ton of actionable content, had an amazing roster of speakers and attendees, and included a plethora opportunities for everyone to mingle and interact.
It was the perfect blend of professionalism, pithiness, and “laidbackness” that I’ve grown to respect and appreciate after attending so many conferences throughout my career.
So to say I was legitimately sad when I had to decline Ryan’s offer to come back this year to present (due to a prior engagement) was an understatement.12
That said, I still wanted to inform all my readers about the event, to let them know why it will help them grow their fitness business(es), and to also let them know they can still save $100 off their registration.
Answers To Your Most Pressing Fitness Business Questions
If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to create a high powered, cash generating fitness business that allows you to live the life you want, YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
A world-class fitness business that pumps out predictable revenue and doesn’t drive you insane trying to manage all the chaos is a fantasy that many fitness business owners and fitness pros only dream of. This can seem like an unattainable business target only achievable by the super-humans you see on social media.
While contemplating multiple locations, building sales funnels and taking several weeks off to spend time on vacation with family may seem like goals for the elite, many fitness business owners struggle with the day to day challenges of running a business. If you resolved those issues you could create a substantial impact on your business, growth, and career.
The most pressing challenges are:
How do I attract more quality leads and build my business with Ideal Clients?
How do I sell my training at the price I deserve without selling out and being a sleazy salesperson?
How can I automate more of my business so that I don’t have to spend 18 hours a day running around with my hair on fire trying to manage the chaos?
How I can predict my sales and profits so that I can run my business?
How can I build a reliable team of ‘A Players’ who help me grow my business and build my culture?
How do I lead a team and become a fitness entrepreneur?
The answers to these questions elude most fitness business owners for their entire career.
How can making killer cat memes increase my net intake?
That is, until now…
For the past 12 years Fitness Revolutionhas been helping fitness business owners implement strategies that grow their business and develop the skills needed to reach their full potential as a fitness entrepreneur. From the startup fitness business to well-known gyms that appear in the Men’s Health Top 10 Gyms list, FR has helped them all.
Many fitness business owners wonder how they can achieve more in their business without having to kill themselves doing it. Because of this, FR hosts the Elite Fitness & Performance Summiteach year to provide you with TWO full days of strategy and innovation for your business.
If you’ve have ever wanted to the chance to learn from the best in the industry join the Fitness Revolution Team and our top industry experts to learn how to IMMEDIATELY transform your business with more sales, greater efficiency, and more profits, YOUR opportunity has finally arrived…
It must be “gym ownership week” on TG.com this week.
Yesterday’s post on the effect social media has on the perception of gym ownership – everything is seen through rose colored glasses – was a huge hit.
Today I have guest post by another gym owner, Doug Spurling of Spurling Fitness located in Kennebunk, ME, discussing how to best build a team to help your business thrive.
Doug’s done an amazing job building a successful fitness business and he’s someone I respect a ton. Read what he has to say. He’s smart.
NOTE: Next month I’ll speaking alongside Doug (along with his staff, and my wife, Dr. Lisa Lewis) at the Spurling Spring Seminar. It’s going to be a great event and tonight (3/14) at midnight is your last chance to take advantage of the early bird registration of $50 off.
Getting good at marketing, financial statement analysis, strategic planning, holding good meetings, putting out fires, and that you’ll never be able to actually shut it “off.
I’m sure the list could go on and on, but today I want to focus on one particular aspect that I don’t think we spend enough time on as an industry.
HUMAN RESOURCES.
More leads, more clients, and more growth usually means….
More team members.
They are our biggest asset, but can also be our biggest headaches if you don’t know how to lead them.
We thought we got into this business to train people, change some lives, and do it all hanging out in comfy gym clothes.
Now I’m telling you if you want long-term success you need to get really good at human resources.
Today I spend the majority of my time on human resources, team development, holding meetings, and making sure our margins are strong as I run a payroll that exceeds a half a million dollars a year.
I love it, but it’s not what I expected as a gym owner.
I now have seven families I am responsible for, only one of which is mine.
With six full-time team members, that means six people that look up to me, six people that count on me running a successful business so they can get a paycheck next week, six people who live their life mission through my business, and six people who support their families with my business.
That’s a big responsibility when we think about it.
That being said, I’ve made some major mistakes as a leader, but I also feel that I have one of the strongest teams around.
Here are six lessons I’ve learned so far…
1. Hire for Personality, Train for Skill
I want driven, hard-working, value-focused people, I don’t really care if you can coach a squat.
I can’t train a smile, I can train you how to coach a squat.
We aim to hire people that fit our core values, and then have a strong onboarding system that teaches them the technical stuff like how to coach.
2. Have Clear Systems
We have a master folder called “The Spurling Way.”
Every process in our business is documented under that folder.
There’s no questioning how to do things.
We get feedback when we create a new process, but once it’s put into this folder the team has agreed that this is the way we do things.
We don’t want people that want to do it “their way.”
Follow the system.
Run the play.
3. Hold Good Meetings
I think good meetings are totally underutilized.
Every day we have a meeting.
It starts each day with a daily huddle-a quick 5-minute accountability meeting about what each team member is doing that day and what that needs help with.
We have a leadership meeting every Monday, a coaches meeting every Tuesday, individual meetings every Wednesday, and a team meeting every Thursday.
Now, notice above I said, “good meetings are underutilized.”
Read a book like “Death by Meeting” and learn how to hold good meetings.
They can be some of the most productive hours of the week, or if done wrong, they can be the biggest waste of time.
4. Balance Multiple Personalities
We can’t have a universal leadership approach.
Each team member is different.
How you talk to one team member is different than how you talk to another.
One may be motivated by public praise, one may want a small note left on their desk.
We use things like the DISC profiles and the 5 Languages of Appreciation to understand how each of us functions and how each of us gives and receives appreciation.
As your team continues to grow the possible communication flaws, the potential drama, and headaches can quickly multiply if you don’t stay on top of it.
Understanding each team member, what they value, how they tick, treating them as an individual, and not have a universal leadership approach is key.
5. Communication Is Key
Communication is not what’s said, but what is understood.
Nothing drives us crazier than when we tell someone something and they don’t do it or don’t follow through with it the way you wanted it to be done.
Or you tell Coach A how to do something, they nod their head, and then don’t go it the way you taught them.
Or you come in and hear the Coach A hates Coach B but isn’t doing anything about it.
Or Coach A is annoyed because they feel they’re working so much harder than Coach B.
Or Coach A is complaining about something but then isn’t doing anything about it.
I’m sure you can think of a million scenarios that cause you to pull your hair out as the leader.
However, as the leader, you have to take extreme ownership (good book, btw), and take charge of the situation.
Quite often if you hire good people (see number one), most situations come down to poor communication and/or assumptions.
Someone makes an assumption that someone else took care of it.
Someone makes an assumption that the person understood what they just told them.
We need to over-communicate with our team, never make assumptions, and make sure that we understand each personality (see number four) and how they like to receive communication.
6. Treat Them the Way You’d Want To Be Treated
Seriously.
Seems like common sense, but as they say, sometimes common sense is not so common.
I get a lot of questions on why I have an all full-time staff, all salaried, all fully benefited, have unlimited time off, and they all work a “normal” 40ish hour work week.
It’s the culture I’m trying to build.
I don’t want people that want to train “their clients.”
I don’t want people that are just here for a paycheck.
I want people that are going to devote their lives to our mission.
I want people that are here for more than just a job.
In order to do that, I need to treat them really well.
That means a good salary, a good schedule, good benefits, constant leadership, constant appreciation, and a constant pitch of why we’re doing this.
Is it easy?
No.
Most months I shed a few tears when the payroll gets withdrawn.
It’s my biggest expense, but I also know it’s my biggest ROI.
The most common message we get from client always comes back to something along the lines of…
“You have the most cohesive team I’ve ever met. You can tell they are here for the right reasons.”
It all comes back to driving the mission, communicating clearly, leading them, and treating them the way you want to be treated.
We all got into this business to change lives, and depending on what kind of impact you want to make, if you want to change the lives of hundreds of people, you’re going to need a team to support you in your mission.
Hope this helps.
Want More?
Next month Doug will be hosting the Spurling Spring Seminar in Kennebunk, ME alongside myself, my wife, Dr. Lisa Lewis, and the entire Spurling Fitness staff.
There aren’t many events outside Boston that cater to the fitness community, so this will be an awesome opportunity for any personal trainers, strength coaches, gym owners, or anyone interested in assessment, program design, business, and mindset skills to enjoy a day of learning.
Long before I owned CORE, and even now, as a current gym owner, I’ve championed the message that gym ownership is not for everyone, and more to the point that it should not be perceived as the holy grail of the fitness industry.
There’s a running theme – which is nauseatingly prevalent on social media – that owning a gym provides some sort of pinnacle, “I’ve made it!” mentality, and that once it happens it’s nothing but rainbows and kitten kisses for everyone.
Sure, the fairy tale ending can happen.
However the reality is, for many….being a gym owner is fucking brutal.
My friend and colleague, Mike Connelly, who’s a recent former gym owner, took the time to write this beautifully honest guest post today on the trials and tribulations (and general dumpsterfireness) of owning a gym.
What Social Media Isn’t Telling You About Owning a Gym
“I’m so sorry to hear about that. Must be tough, man.”
I’ve heard that line from a lot of people in the past two months. The reason I’m hearing that so much is because after six years I am moving on from owning my business, Rebell Strength and Conditioning, and all I can think about when it comes up is how happy I am about the situation.
I’m not going to sit here and tell you it all went as I planned and that I’m coming out of this footloose and fancy free.
That’s not the case.
But, since being out of the operation of my business for the last two months, my life has changed and only in positive ways. I’m averaging just about twelve more hours of sleep a week, I’ve lost thirty pounds, my mental health is back to being stable (as stable as it will get anyways), and, most importantly, I feel like myself again.
When you own and run a business, it’s easy to get so caught up in things that you don’t even realize what is happening to yourself. You think about bills, timelines, clients, marketing, bills, social media posts, blogs, bills, complaints, finding new clients, keeping current clients, bills, programming, systems, bills, platforms that run your business, networking, bills, finding good employees, keeping good employees, how to manage your revenue, and finally…. bills.
It’s a lot.
It’s nauseating at times. To feel stress at a molecular level (Paul Lyngso hit that description on the head) all the time becomes your new normal.
And it sucks.
But you keep going because you’re “living the dream.”
A mentor of mine once described entrepreneurship to me like this:
“There you are, riding the bull that is business, through town. People are cheering for you and admiring your courage to go out and do it on your own. You are revered and respected at the mere mention that you own a small business. Yet, through all the accolades all you can think about is, “how the fuck do I get off this bull?!”
I know that’s not the case for all business owners.
There are some out there that are owning it through and through. These people are running a business and not just getting paid for their hobby. It took me a long time to realize and then admit it, but I never broke through to that level of ownership.
I never owned my business.
My business owned me.
I could go on vacation whenever I wanted, but I always had to add the cost of people covering my work to the price tag. I didn’t have a boss, but a long client list that could, at times, be much worse than a boss.
I had the opportunity to take as much free time as I wanted, but it always came with the sacrifice of progress. When all that became too much, the progress suffered, and once that ship sails, it’s hard to get it back to shore.
As coaches, we should teach our clients to own movement, not just survive it. Well, for a long time I was merely surviving being a business owner. And that, my friends, is not a path to success or happiness.
I’m not writing this to shit all over your dreams of being a business owner.
Nope, far from it.
Nor am I here to make excuses.
I fucked this whole thing up.
I always had good intentions, but that and a nickel will get you a jaw breaker from a vending machine at your local arcade. I wanted to share this with you because the coach in me wants you to move forward with caution. I want you to realize that before you get on that bull, you better have those ducks in line and know that the glory and freedom that often get put on owning a business rarely become a reality.
I want to share this cautionary tale, because chasing down the dream of business ownership seems to be trending in our industry, and I don’t hear too many people talking about why it might be a bad idea.
I’m not the smartest guy around, but I’m not the dumbest either. I’m intuitive and have a wicked creative side. I’m strong willed and will fight to the death at the drop of a hat.
I’m a Marine.
I once did 177 get ups in one hour with a 24Kg bell for a fundraiser and then drank whiskey and danced the night away at a wedding. I can get shit done – when I want to – and that’s the thing about being a business owner that caught up to me.
The accounting, the marketing, the interviewing, the blah, blah, blah side of business that I didn’t like finally became not as fun anymore, so I just let off the gas and coasted.
That’s how you lose $4,000 in revenue in a month, and that’s the thing about losing business, it always goes much, much quicker than it comes.
It wasn’t over a bad customer experience either. In six years I can count those on one hand.
It’s because people move, lose jobs, get in relationships, and any other reason that has nothing to do with you.
There is no amount of success that can protect you from that and for that reason, you can never let up. Never.
Well, I did.
I knew what I had to do, and I just didn’t want to anymore. It didn’t make me happy like it used to. I know, I know, you’re supposed to delegate and hire out for all those items that you suck at, and that brings me to my next shortcoming.
I mean, I’m good at spending it without thinking, but I really suck at doing the right thing with it.
If you don’t want your business to own you, you better have a fucking stellar plan for every dollar that comes in the door. It seems to me that every successful business has a numbers guy somewhere in the mix.
That’s no coincidence.
Then there’s me, just throwing money at things that won’t do me any good in six months, let alone a year.
I paid my staff too much; I charged too little for my product; I wasn’t patient with purchases, and I got into a lease that put me in a position where I was fighting uphill from day one.
I never gave myself a chance, but I never saw it because I always thought that if I treat people better than they would ever expect, then that would motivate them to produce. I thought that if I was aggressive with purchases and leases that it would pay off overall.
I’m not saying that employees shouldn’t be paid well and that aggressive moves don’t pay off. I’m just saying that you should have a plan for everything, and it better make sense to someone that knows numbers.
Have a numbers person!
In the end, that will make or break your business no matter how good your product is.
There are plenty of shitty gyms out there making a large profit because they have their numbers on lockdown. There are also a lot, and I mean a lot, of unbelievable coaches getting their asses kicked because they are not equally as good of a numbers person.
I’ve learned from the many, many mistakes that I’ve made over the years. I know that I will continue to learn as I sort through and process all of this.
For that, I am grateful.
Any time we can learn from our mistakes it was worth it.
The only thing I’m ashamed of is that I allowed myself to think that my identity and character were defined by a title that I slapped on myself but was never really cut out to live up to.
That kills me a little bit when I think about it.
I let it stress me out and change who I am. It stressed all my relationships and probably none more than the one that I have with my family. My hope is that maybe one or two business owners out there who are feeling alone and completely fucked mentally read this, and it lets them take a breath and realize that they are not bad people or coaches because they are having a hard time with their business.
It’s easy to feel like a failure in that position, but the reality is that you had the guts to take a shot and that’s great. If you’re the type that just cannot go back to working for someone, then I hope this pushes you to get the help you need to right the ship.
But if you’re like me and can be perfectly happy and have a lot to contribute in another arena then I hope this gives you the guts to do the right thing for yourself and the people that you love.
About the Author
Mike Connelly: Former Owner of Rebell Strength and Conditioning for 6 years, current Fitness Director for Fitness Formula Clubs at their Oak Park, Il. location and co-owner/coach at Strength Faction.
Serves as a consultant to the Chicago Blackhawks organization for off-season camps for the past three years.
When I first started in this industry my business competence was pretty low. If you asked me what the term “overhead” was or what it meant to itemize business expenses I would have been like “say what again?”
I’m still not someone I’d consider to have a lot of business pedigree, but I think I’ve done pretty well for myself.
My friend Shane McLean went around and asked a bunch of coaches – including myself – some standard fitness business and gym ownership questions that I hope will resonate with people.
Personal trainers get into the fitness industry because they’ve got a huge passion for exercise and for changing people’s lives. However, some have no idea about the business side of coaching, particularly those who are new to the industry.
Newbie (and experienced trainers) work crazy hours to please clients which makes having any sort of social life outside of work very difficult. Trainers then start to realize there’s more to this coaching gig than meets the eye because:
Furthermore, exercise is big business nowadays. According to the website Statista, the US spent 25.8 billion dollars in 2015 on all things health and fitness. (1) That’s a fair chunk of change that has some trainers saying…….
The same hard work that goes into becoming proficient at coaching needs to be applied to the business side also.
But how do you get started?
Don’t worry this Aussie has your back.
I asked some prominent people in this industry – David Crump, Eric Bach, Johnny Tea, Chris Diamantakos, and some cat-obsessed nerd named Tony Gentilcore – a couple of hard hitting questions that will provide you with actionable takeaways on the business side of coaching.
Read on and learn things.
David Crump – Entrepreneur and Coach at DaveCrump.com
1. At what point in your career did you realize that you needed to know more about the business side of coaching and how did you go about it?
Fortunately, I started my training career in a big box gym and moved into management relatively quickly. This gave me the opportunity to learn more about sales and the business side of fitness early on.
I did, however, realize that this gave me a leg up on many of my contemporaries as soon as I wanted to branch out on my own.
Despite my early advantage, I was still aware that if I wanted to stay ahead, that I would have to continue learning more and I found the most benefit from reading content from some of the big names in the industry as well as reading a lot of books from thought leaders in other industries.
2. What were your go to people/resources that helped you expand your business knowledge?
I can’t overemphasize the importance of having great mentors in this area. Some of the people that I have learned from directly or indirectly include Mark Fisher, Alwyn Cosgrove, Jon Goodman, Thomas Plummer and others.
It should also be mentioned that the experience of making mistakes and learning from them is paramount. Getting to make mistakes on someone else’s dime (at a big box gym) was a very valuable experience.
3. What advice would you give a coach looking to open a gym?
I would tell them to get VERY clear on what they want long-term. Many coaches and trainers think that opening a facility is the most logical next step, but that is not accurate.
Being a great gym owner means being a coach takes a back seat and increasing your level of responsibility exponentially. You have to be prepared to make your gym your number 1 priority for at least the next 5 years.
I think there are a ton of coaches that would be much happier simply renting space someone and having full freedom and control of their schedule and life.
If, on the other hand, someone knows that it is what they really want then I would tell them to start small. That means your first place shouldn’t be your 6000-square foot dream facility with every piece of equipment under the sun.
Instead, starting a modest gym and building it organically will put you in a better financial position to work the kinks out over the first couple years and eventually grow into a larger facility without being up to your eyeballs in debt.
4. The best book you’ve read about business and why?
I can’t narrow it down to 1, but I think there are 3-4 that really helped define my beliefs about business:
How To Win Friends And Influence People– Businesses are built on dealing with people and this book really delivers great tips on how to have better interactions and make people enjoy working with you.
The E-Myth Revisited – The classic business book that helps newbies learn how to move from being a “technician” to a “manager” of business owner through the use of systems in simple terms.
Start With Why– The most successful businesses in the world understand what they stand for and why they exist. This book helps a business owner really crystalize what makes their business unique and how to help customers understand its purpose.
Delivering Happiness – Written by the founder of Zappos, this is the best book on business culture, values, and customer service I have ever read.
1. At what point in your career did you realize that you needed to know more about the business side of coaching and how did you go about it?
My first training job at a big box gym gave me a first class look at the limitations of the personal training industry. Frequent policy changes, ownership transitions, and inconsistent sales goals led to a ton of stress on my business early on.
After I built a full book of business and deep relationships with clients’ ownership cut trainer-take-home pay by 30% to follow a “group training system”. At this point I was left with the decision: let my business be gutted and play the game or rewrite the rules on my own terms.
I decided to rewrite the rules, seek out mentors who had built a business I wanted to replicate and invest heavily in myself by paying for their services.
2. What were your go to people/resources that helped you expand your business knowledge?
Early on I followed the typical path: reading sporadic articles on the internet. I read everything I could on training from coaches like Dave Tate, Jason Ferruggia, John Berardi, Tony Gentilcore, John Romaniello, Jon Goodman, Nate Green, Christian Thibaudeau, and Eric Cressey.
When it came to business I dug into work by Ryan Holiday, Dale Carnegie, Chip and Dan Heath, Seth Godin, and Tim Ferriss.
Not long thereafter Jon Goodman introduced his Viralnomics coaching group to personal trainers looking to build their online business.
He was my first business mentor and pushed me to get out of my comfort zone and start treating my business like, well…a business and not a hobby.
3. What advice would you give a coach looking to open a gym?
Think long and hard whether you’re ready to run a business. Today everyone wants to be an entrepreneur and a business owner, yet no-one ever tells you not everyone is meant to run a business.
There will be long days, short nights, lots of coffee, and a constant battle to improve. While some folks are built for this challenge others simply aren’t.
Make sure you’re truly willing to make the sacrifices needed to create something great from the ground up before exploring leases, equipment deals, and opening a brick and mortar facility.
4. The best book you’ve read about business and why?
The One Thing by Gary Keller– In an age where information travels faster than ever and there’s an endless supply of “tips, tricks, and hacks” it’s far too easy to get bogged down in the minutes.
Trainers looking to build their online business fall into the same trap many of our personal training clients do: getting stuck in a cycle of information overload and inaction.
The One Thing reinforces getting clear on your number one priority for the day, week, month, and year and makes taking action on accomplishing this task the most important focus.
1. At what point in your career did you realize that you needed to know more about the business side of coaching and how did you go about it?
As soon as I decided to go out on my own and become self-employed in 2008, I realized I needed to learn a ton more about the business side. As new trainers, we tend to start off by thinking to ourselves, “Oh, I don’t care about the money part. I just want to train people and the money will eventually come.”
As we all know, there’s a lot more to it than just winging it and seeing where it goes in business. I’ve always loved the quote “Plan your work and work your plan”. Write down your goals (both short term and long term), and continue chipping away.
I reached out to other fellow colleagues/friends, read books, attended workshops, and picked the brains of some of my clients with a business background, and even brainstormed ideas with a trusted friend (in this case my wife).
With all this information I gathered, I applied the ideas that made sense for my business and made adjustments if needed.
2. What were your go to people/resources that helped you expand your business knowledge?
I specifically reached out to people that I respected in our industry who had a ton of success. Eric Cressey, Pete Dupuis, Chad Landers, Mark Fisher, Tony Gentilcore, John Rusin, Dean Somerset, Eric Bach, Jordan Syatt, John Goodman, John Romaniello, and David Dellanave are just a few names that come to mind, but this list is honestly endless.
Important side note: make sure you go about reaching out to people the right way. Meet with them at workshops/seminars or offer to pay them for their input and time.
Genuinely try to develop a relationship with the person before seeking advice.
No one likes creepy needy people seeking free advice.
3. What advice would you give a coach looking to open a gym?
I would say first ask yourself: why do you want to open a gym? I don’t mean that in a negative way but it’s a valid question. Here are some important questions to consider:
Do you want to open a gym because you just want a big fancy building with your name on it?
Do you have enough clients to support a gym and what’s your strategy to attract new clients?
Have you considered the amount of money it would cost to get started? (Oh, and don’t forget about the hidden fees too).
Do you have the capital to cover you for at least 6 months, just in case your business doesn’t start booming like you expected?
A lot of people want to go big and open a gigantic facility like Cressey Sports Performance (awesome facility and people by the way), but are probably better off starting small.
I would recommend possibly considering training facilities/studios that allow you to rent out space. This will give you time to build up your clientele while keeping your overhead cost low.
4. The best book you’ve read about business and why?
This is a tough one because there’s so many good books. I really enjoyed “Ignite the Fire” and “Viralnomics” by Jon Goodman because they were written specifically for people in the fitness industry, and gave actionable steps on how to become successful.
1. At what point in your career did you realize that you needed to know more about the business side of coaching and how did you go about it?
When I decided to leave the gym, I was looking to start my own PT business. I realized I knew nothing about business and marketing. I had a small-time frame of six weeks to learn as much as I could and actually apply it.
I picked the brains of a few gym owners and successful freelance trainers I knew and had been directed to a couple fitness business coaches who could help.
2. What were your go to people/resources that helped you expand your business knowledge?
I ended up following Jonathan Goodman and theptdc.com. If you’re wondering why, it’s because Jon personally took the time to answer my questions and he seemed to truly care about improving the fitness industry by helping trainers and gym owners with business.
3. What advice would you give a coach looking to open a gym?
Spend a shit load of time figuring out the niche you want to service and become a true expert in that field.
Realize how you can help these people the most, and continue to work hard at being great. One quote that’s stuck with me from Jon since day 1 is:
“1. Do a really good job 2. Make sure everyone knows about it.“
4. The best book you’ve read about business and why?
There are obviously tons of great business resources out there but the one that’s helped me the most directly is “Ignite the Fire.” It’s specific to personal trainers and up to date in terms of marketing techniques.
Tony Gentilcore, You’re Reading His Site Right Now*
* You’re really smart
1. At what point in your career did you realize that you needed to know more about the business side of coaching and how did you go about it?
Not soon enough to be honest.
There’s still a huge part of me that feels I’m behind the curve when it comes to business acuity and savvy.
Then I think to myself, “Huh, I’m making a profit, I’m still getting a nice stream of new clients, and my landlord hasn’t given me an eviction notice yet…I’ve got to be doing something right!?”
To answer the question, though, it wasn’t soon after meeting (and then living with) Eric Cressey that I soon learned the err of my ways. It’s hard to be around a guy like that and not absorb his work ethic and be a little more in-tune with going the extra mile to get better.
If I had to be exact, I’d say the week Eric, myself, and Pete Dupuis decided to put our balls out there and open up Cressey Sports Performance – July 2007 – was when I finally diving head first into more business-related content.14
Alwyn Cosgrove was a major influence on us when we opened up CSP, and from there all I did was following the scent of other successful trainers/coaches – Mike Boyle, Joe Dowdell, Dan John, John Berardi, to name a few – and try to emulate what they read or did.
2. What were your go to people/resources that helped you expand your business knowledge?
Giving credit where it’s due, I feel I was able to live in this unique “learning business bubble” by being in the proximity of Eric and Pete for eight years (I left Cressey Sports Performance in the Fall of 2015).
When I decided to leave I was so scared and nervous.
I thought for sure I’d fail.
Low and behold I was quite surprised to realize I didn’t suck at business as much as I thought I would.
In fact, I took solace in something I used to hear Pete always say:
“99% of operating a profitable and efficient fitness facility is application of common sense.“
That sentence alone helped mute a lot of my self-doubt and negative self-talk about business.
I mean, in a sense, business can be dwindled down to one simple act:
Don’t spend more than you collect.
Does your facility really need that expensive leg press machine or life-size early 90’s Mariah Carey statue?
3. What advice would you give a coach looking to open a gym?
The holy grail in this industry is NOT owning a gym.
There’s a connotation that you’re only successful in this industry if you own a gym.
That’s bullshit. And if anyone wants to read more of my thoughts on that I’d encourage them to check THIS out.
I could sit here and wax poetic on all the reasons why someone would and would not want to open their own gym.
I’ll just say this: I think every trainer should work in a commercial setting for 2-5 years before the words “gym ownership” are uttered. It’s times used to learn the craft, to get really good, and to understand how to develop relationships with people from all walks of life.
4. The best book you’ve read about business and why?
No one book has helped shape my approach to running my business than this book.
About the Author
Shane “The Balance Guy” McLean, is an A.C.E Certified Personal Trainer working deep in the heart of Texas. Shane believes in balancing exercise with life while putting the fun back into both.
Joel Ohman is a serial entrepreneur, author, and angel investor. He is the founder and CEO of 
Joel Ohman is a serial entrepreneur, author, and angel investor.
