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The Gym Owner Journey: From Trainer to Scalable Fitness Business · Gym Business Coach Podcast

• 0:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: Welcome back to another episode of the gym business coach podcast.
• 0:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm going to be your host today, Randy angst and joined with me.
• 0:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: Is that Columbia?
• 0:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: I like doing it.
• 0:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: Hey, yes, let's get you got the wardrobe message today for those of you who are viewing us on YouTube.
• 0:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: Obviously checking out the studio.
• 0:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: You can see us face to face.
• 0:17
  [SPEAKER_00]: Zach and I have the same wardrobe today.
• 0:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: Business coach, gym business coach, proper tires, not in the brand.
• 0:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: We've been an interesting one today, we're going to dive into a little bit of the identity of the gym owner through the phases of ownership, kind of paint the journey from trainer all the way up.
• 0:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: But let's start there.
• 0:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: Let's kind of create the path.
• 0:39
  [SPEAKER_00]: Where does it begin?
• 0:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: How do most gym owners start in this industry?
• 0:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think that it's only natural to start at the trainer level.
• 0:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 0:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think most most get into the fitness industry because they're passionate about fitness.
• 0:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't think we always say that it's like really want to help people.
• 1:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't necessarily know that that's the reason why people get into local becoming a trainer.
• 1:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think it's one of the benefits.
• 1:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's like it makes you feel good to help people.
• 1:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: But I think that most trainers start out because they're just super passionate about fitness.
• 1:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: They like working out.
• 1:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: They like learning new things about fitness or about canyzeology and the human body and all of that.
• 1:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so I think that's kind of like that old kind of idea of like, hey, I can turn my passion into my career to paycheck.
• 1:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 1:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 1:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so naturally when they get like when trainers are starting out, it's usually it like some sort of big box gym.
• 1:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Most of the time, I think now you see it a little bit more where somebody goes to school.
• 1:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: They get a bachelor's degree and then maybe they ended up end up in a facility like ours where it's where you're going right into a training studio.
• 1:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: But I think it's still most of the time it's probably you end up at like a big box gym.
• 2:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 2:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: And at that level, because you are passionate about fitness, that's where your focus is.
• 2:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's learning new exercises.
• 2:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's learning new workout techniques or new programming techniques.
• 2:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: theoretical.
• 2:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's all about the mechanics and the movement.
• 2:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, it's about being a technician.
• 2:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 2:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 2:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I think that you when you get into it, that's where your main focus is.
• 2:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then you're trying to figure out, hey, how do I?
• 2:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: go get clients.
• 2:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I had to make money with this, right?
• 2:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: Funny with this.
• 2:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: Oh, I didn't realize this is a sales position.
• 2:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: There you go.
• 2:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: But even so, like, you know, I think at least, it wasn't like this when I got started 24 hour fitness.
• 2:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: It was like my second day on the job after filling out all the new higher paperwork was like, okay, go walk the floor and sell somebody training.
• 3:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I was like, what do you mean?
• 3:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, I thought you just gave me the clients and I just trained them as how it is.
• 3:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: But even at that level, once you kind of hustle a little bit and, you know, you get your first 10, 15 clients, the focus is still around just the work out.
• 3:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: Delivering the training.
• 3:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: Delivering the training piece of it.
• 3:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 3:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: Now, before we move or kind of like paint the picture of the next natural progression position, if you may, tell me about that position a little bit, right?
• 3:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: So you're in that role, you're on the floor.
• 3:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: You have the responsibility of selling clients into training.
• 3:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: Was that part of the conversation from them?
• 3:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: Were they teaching you sales skills?
• 3:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: They'd be hard to get
• 3:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: My perception.
• 3:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I think this is one of the reasons why like trainers don't last very long.
• 4:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: It brings the numbers down, right?
• 4:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: Kind of changes the bell curve a little bit in terms of 10 year for coaches, because I had no idea whatsoever what it was going to look like when I got into the training industry.
• 4:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so, yeah, it's like second day on the job, it's like, hey, go talk to people, try to get them to work out with you like, like sell them a free workout essentially, and then after you sell them a free workout, try to sell them up.
• 4:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: get people in the door, um, but yeah, like in that, in that role, um, you are doing a lot of like fitness orientations.
• 4:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: So the gym when somebody like signs up everybody gets a free fitness orientation leaves that's how it worked back in my
• 5:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: every big box you've sent a few free consultation so then then the person that signed somebody up for the gym would sell them or sign them up for a fitness orientation and then it's like who knows if that person is going to show up or not because it's a free thing and it's just like so you know probably 70% of them know show you and you're in the gym and
• 5:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sometimes it's like you have a client or two clients back to back and then you've got an hour break and then you have a fitness orientation that maybe shows up or doesn't show up.
• 5:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then your day is like your day is 14 hours long, but you're only training like five hours of back.
• 5:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so, and there's, you know, when you're in a big box gym, there's a lot more employees and so there's a lot of like time spent around the water cooler or, you know, just chat and wasting wasting time.
• 5:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: There's only a couple of.
• 5:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: trainers that I saw that were like 12 hours of just training straight.
• 6:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: They were the season ones, but your date yet, just looks totally different.
• 6:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's like you're there for a lot of hours, and you're just trying to figure out, like, hey, how do I turn this into something that's,
• 6:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: livable real.
• 6:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you generating and then once you get your stronghold on that and you do figure it out, which probably a small percentage actually do and you are that guy or girl that's training, you know, eight, nine, ten, twelve hours a day.
• 6:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: Then you're, if you're smart, you start looking at it and you go, man, I'm giving all my money away, like I'm I'm taking home 30 40% of the revenue and 24 hour fitness or EOS or whatever it is is taking home the majority of this and obviously in that position, you have zero understanding of overhead and
• 6:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: what it takes to run a facility business you're just looking at is like hey i'm trading time for money and if i go somewhere else and do this on my own like i'm going to keep a bigger portion of that revenue and so that's kind of what i think leads to that next step that natural progression maybe you go out and open your own thing but i think usually it's like
• 7:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: And the reality of it is, is that majority in that role take the clients with them.
• 7:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
• 7:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
• 7:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: This is my launching pad to my own thing.
• 7:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: And things do change a little bit when you become an independent trainer, because I went that route to her.
• 7:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: I was renting space.
• 7:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: That was my next kind of step.
• 7:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: a big ocean of people to go market to talk to sell them training, because now pretty much if it's a training gym that just like leases to trainers, everybody coming in there is working with a trainer already.
• 8:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: So then you're trying to figure out, well, like, how do I attract people?
• 8:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: Is it getting referrals from my, from the people that do love me and train with me?
• 8:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: Is
• 8:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: influence or route or your track dance on TikTok and whatever whatever it is grassroots you know pound and pavement making relationships but I think if we're talking about like phases of levels of ownership responsibility I mean I think some of the conversation here is the relationship with a crew and revenue with recurring wealth.
• 8:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's almost like to toe in the water when it comes to like the entrepreneurial route, right?
• 8:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: You had a job as the trainer in a big box gym, and then when you go out on your own in your 1099, and if you don't create the revenue, you don't eat type of mentality, you know?
• 9:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: So I think that there is a shift.
• 9:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: in the role of responsibility of, you're taking on more, right?
• 9:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, while, yes, at that, that original position you had the obligation you were responsible for, for creating your own training clients, but I'm sure there was a way, there was exactly, right?
• 9:22
  [SPEAKER_00]: Like you had to say that if I didn't, I'm still getting some wage, I'm still getting some pay, but then you make that transition to an independent coach and it's, it's all on you.
• 9:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, and there are, yeah, there are a lot of people of trainers that that's their that's their cap right is like being an independent trainer at somebody else's gym renting space like that's that's the highest in their their journey career journey that they're going to go and I would argue that for a big portion of
• 10:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: the population.
• 10:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's probably a good thing.
• 10:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: I was disgusting because we've seen like we talked to Jim owners all the time.
• 10:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like you've been you you are Jim owner.
• 10:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: But you have been on the training floor for 30 years.
• 10:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: You've never raised prices, and you've had all this overhead.
• 10:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: And all these other things, it's like, you would have been better off instead of owning the thing to just be paying $1,000 a month and rent or whatever.
• 10:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then have no overhead, and all you had to do is just train your children training.
• 10:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 10:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: So a lot of times, I think that's where.
• 10:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: Then you should stop there.
• 10:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: That would be my advice to like a really young.
• 10:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well said trainer.
• 10:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, because the next step is then like I'm going to go open my own thing right I'm going to go open my own thing at that point in time.
• 10:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: You just created a lot, you just adopted a lot of liabilities, right?
• 11:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: You now have a lease, you have to purchase the equipment, most of the time you're financing that, plus you have to market and there's legal and you know, all these other components insurance, like all these other components and things that go with that, that you just,
• 11:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: Don't don't mistake ownership with obligation would be my advice right because what do you really own that is yours and proprietary and that that can't just go away at that point in time.
• 11:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, pretty much everything.
• 11:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: You you just obligated you just got a whole lot more responsibility and at that point the.
• 11:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: You're probably still like the technician.
• 11:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: You're probably still doing almost all of the training, most of the time when somebody opens, they don't have staff right away.
• 12:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's still their name on the gym or, they're the face, they're doing the consultations, they're doing the marketing, they're doing all the training, and the referrals and the check-ins, and all of that, it's still one-man show, or one-in-one show.
• 12:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: And the focus usually at that point is still on the training and the being passionate about at at least the early stages, being passionate about the fitness and the relationships and helping people and all that.
• 12:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: but now you're starting, this door has been opened and you're starting to see like, man, in order for me to turn this into something.
• 12:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm going to have to walk through that door.
• 12:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm have to take the next steps and my, I'm going to have to grow as a human being.
• 12:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's an individual, right?
• 12:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, it's a profession.
• 13:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 13:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so here's, here's the interesting thing is,
• 13:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: everybody goes through these, you're all born right when you're a little kid.
• 13:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's like, man, that's a little kid.
• 13:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like all I wanted to do was play with G. I Joe's.
• 13:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, that was my favorite thing.
• 13:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like I want to, G. I Joe's, man.
• 13:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then you become, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you,
• 13:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: Maybe, you know, like a pre-teen and then all of a sudden it's like, I'm not playing as much, not using my imagination, the toys are kind of going away.
• 13:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: And maybe it shifts to like your more focused on physical activity or video game.
• 13:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: You know, friends are hanging out with friends and then it's, you know, you get to, oh, now it's girls and driving and going to parties and then it's and then it just continue your focus and your priorities continue to like develop and change.
• 13:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: and like for whatever reason, we get into this industry and we think that that it almost has a negative connotation, right?
• 14:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: And there's different stages.
• 14:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so like
• 14:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: In your gym owner journey, you might be an adolescent, and here's your priorities right now.
• 14:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, in order for me to now progress to an adult of gym ownership, I'm going to stop caring about how we're going to prep the hip for the hinge.
• 14:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: For we're going to hinge today,
• 14:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: new exercise that I'm going to bring into the training or what is this new piece of equipment or training gadget tool, whatever you're thinking about the business like how am I going to generate revenue?
• 14:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: How am I going to create a career path for the team that team you're
• 15:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't want to say that you shouldn't care at all about like the training because ultimately that is your brand.
• 15:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think to the day that's the only thing that you truly own, everything else can go away.
• 15:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: The building can go away.
• 15:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: The the team can go away like your proprietary way of delivering the training and your brand image and all that.
• 15:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's really what you own.
• 15:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: So I'm not saying that you should not worry about it all, but if you wake up in the
• 15:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: training exercises, and all of the, the kinesiology and all of that, probably not even on your top 10 list of things to think about.
• 15:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: Sure.
• 15:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: Once you get there, yeah.
• 15:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think that's that's important because as you do ascend through the levels of ownership, I mean, your priorities have to change, right?
• 15:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're listening to a, you know, this is the gym business coach podcast.
• 15:59
  [SPEAKER_00]: This isn't, you know, it's when I talk about training methodologies
• 16:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: uh... that because the you know our target audience of the u-listening we want you to shift that focus we want to help you shift that focus because this is the these are the things that we've realized with clients of the last decade that if that shift doesn't happen neither the growth is stagnant right they can't get to those next levels because the things that they're spending their time and focused on a daily basis
• 16:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: are limiting their their potential growth, right?
• 16:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: Um, you know, we have to talk with the cameraman tell you probably 20,000 jim owners over the last decade or so.
• 16:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I remember vividly, you know, some of those first calls where I'm like, hey, you know, so let's go over your P now.
• 16:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: Let's talk about the the the business.
• 16:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: And if I hear what's a P&L, I know that we're, you know, we've got a lot of work to do type of thing.
• 16:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: But it's a reality, right?
• 16:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: There is no guide to gym ownership, you know, through that through your curriculum, you know, through the, the courses and the search that you've taken, there is no understanding.
• 17:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, back to that first position you had, right?
• 17:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: There was no understanding that,
• 17:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: equal to the training that you're providing, the marketing and selling component has to take place in order to put somebody in that position to be able to train them.
• 17:18
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think a lot of gym owners step into the business and think that I own a business and how people are just going to walk to the front door.
• 17:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: And then they're met with that reality that, oh, if I don't develop the skill sets, if I don't understand the task at hand and sharpen that skill, it's going to be a short runaway, you know.
• 17:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, and think about as a gym owner, maybe, you know, somebody listened to this, when you're a young trainer, you are looking at continuing education, you're looking at workshops, you're like, I'm going to go to this get this TRX certification or this kettlebell workshop or whatever it is at a certain level.
• 18:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: you realize that those things are not bringing anybody into your business.
• 18:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: They're not making you money.
• 18:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's like, yeah, that's great that you have all these letters after your name and you get this certain that certain and all these things.
• 18:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: that's not going to get people in the door.
• 18:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's not going to keep them either.
• 18:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
• 18:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: Are you like now and where where are you in this journey?
• 18:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I'm not going to say that any one place is wrong.
• 18:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's just your journey.
• 18:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like know that there's always going to be a next step.
• 18:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: Are you in that point in your career where, hey, maybe I'm not so concerned about going to this movement workshop, instead I'm going to go to something like our gross summit or our MDM live, where it's like we're teaching the business side of things and the systems, because ultimately those are the things that you're, even if it's not right now, you're going to need in the future
• 19:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: super profitable, sustainable business.
• 19:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: And at some point, you're also going to be the Jim owner that's like, hey, I'm ready to sell this thing and move on.
• 19:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's a good point.
• 19:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think it's important to say too.
• 19:18
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, you touched on it.
• 19:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: The training and the delivery of the training is it is wildly important.
• 19:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: But it's not important for the owner to have their hand in 24
• 19:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: for your coaches to take on that level of passion.
• 19:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: That's what they're there for, right?
• 19:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: They're the mechanics to tactician on the floor, training those clients, allow them to worry about those things at night.
• 19:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: Your job is to make sure that the systems in place for them to run the system that creates that outcome.
• 19:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: I just wanted to kind of preface that because it's not that we don't care about the training and the quality.
• 19:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's just the fact that it's not, it's somebody on your team that's responsible for that rather than you as the owner.
• 20:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, the trainer or the head coach, whatever, they're going to think about the programming.
• 20:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 20:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: The owner or the, you know, what a true fitness director does is what I did him, you know, when I was a fitness director here is think about how do I create a system for programming?
• 20:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: How do I create it?
• 20:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: So anybody on my staff can then go execute on it?
• 20:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: Those are two different
• 20:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: The trainer brain is the one that's going to sit down for an hour and just like go into their flow state and get immersed in this exercise comes after this exercise and if I put this movement with this movement together like that's so genius and it's like that's great.
• 20:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: But again, like, that's not going to generate revenue.
• 20:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's not going to, it's important.
• 20:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: But if you can create a system where somebody on your team can go do that, or where it's already done for you, you know, then it, that frees you up to focus on other things.
• 21:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yep.
• 21:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: And what's really important, Randy, I'm glad we're talking about this is like, if you don't create the systems, if you, if you're not thinking in that way, how do I
• 21:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: Eventually, you'll just get jaded and you won't care anymore about the programming because you're like, what's the point in this?
• 21:31
  [SPEAKER_01]: I can't make a good living or I'm, oh, my, I can't go on vacation.
• 21:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: All my time spent doing this.
• 21:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's, you know, 930 PM on a Sunday and I have two hours of programming before I have to get up tomorrow because you're not going to love it anymore.
• 21:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 21:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: You know, and so they're, they're just, you're just a, you just get to different places and your career, but the industry, this industry is really hard.
• 21:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: So if you don't start shifting your thinking to into that level, if you're in that owner position,
• 22:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: then it it's a recipe for disaster.
• 22:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, you need to be a proactive as opposed to reactive, right?
• 22:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, exactly.
• 22:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: Exactly.
• 22:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: You started to talk about, um, you know, now you are the seasoned orchestrator of the business, right?
• 22:18
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're the owner that now has, uh, uh, for the lack of a trim, let's say it's a thriving business, right?
• 22:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: You've got a team, uh, that are running the systems that, uh,
• 22:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: And you as the owner and the brand have now dictated you got the the cogs in position they're doing the work they're doing the training and I hopefully you have a system in place for programming right now you're starting to think of Like you said the exit goal or what is this business going to do for me what is my my next phase of ownership.
• 22:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: Um, let's break that time what's.
• 22:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I see it as two different ways, right?
• 22:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: You can run a cash flowing operation where you as the owner have owner benefit.
• 23:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's turning profit.
• 23:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're paying yourself a salary without having to pull every lever in the gym.
• 23:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: That is one path where you can continue and just reap the rewards of everything that you've built.
• 23:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: But the other half, and for a lot of individuals at some point, it does become the reality like I want an exit goal.
• 23:17
  [SPEAKER_00]: I want to take what I've created and not just be able to write that out into the future.
• 23:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: But let's say you want that cash, that cash, not a cash grab, but you know, you want to cash out there is perfect.
• 23:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: Um, how is that different live on the beat?
• 23:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 23:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 23:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: Doesn't everybody, right?
• 23:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: But yeah, I mean, we'll look at the, so if you get to that level where hey, this business is running really, really well, it's smooth, everything's in place.
• 23:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: At that point, if you want to be the guy or a girl that's like, man, I'm so passionate about fitness, I want to learn all these things and go in and teach the skills and like you're back to that trainer mindset.
• 24:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: Great.
• 24:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: You have the freedom to do that.
• 24:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's not now an obligation.
• 24:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's like, it's a joy.
• 24:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's fun.
• 24:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 24:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: I don't know if I've ever seen that.
• 24:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: honestly with all the gyms that we've worked with.
• 24:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: Because your identity has changed so many times and moved so far away for this successful gym owner that's got to that level that those things just don't do it for them anymore.
• 24:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm not saying it can't happen maybe, you know, when a gym owner goes to it, maybe they take a break and when they're 70 years old that's like man, I really, I was so, I want to get back into this.
• 24:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: Great.
• 24:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: I've just never seen it.
• 24:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sure, because they're different people.
• 24:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: There's different humans now.
• 24:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.
• 24:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: When you do get to that level where you're like, hey, everything's running smoothly.
• 24:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: Usually you have become a successful business owner, not like a just a gym owner or a successful trainer.
• 25:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: So your goal may be, sure, keep this cash flow and, you know, it's a great business and I just have it in at some point like I'll sell it in the future, but not right now.
• 25:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, or you might go, hey, I really want to cash out on this and retire and not worry about it at all because let's face it.
• 25:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: There is no such thing is completely passive.
• 25:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 25:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Or you might go, I want to sell this and take that money and go start something else because now I'm a different person and I've learned these skills and develop these skills and this just doesn't do it for me anymore.
• 25:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's not a challenge.
• 25:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: I need a challenge.
• 25:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: I need something, you know, that's next.
• 25:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I think that's probably a place where a lot of jim owners end up where they do sell and with the intent of retiring.
• 25:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then in a very short, maybe a year, they're like, oh, man, I miss the miss the challenge.
• 26:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: I need something new to do.
• 26:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: And now you have that that money and you have the resources and the know how and all that to go do something.
• 26:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think the big thing there is skill sets, right?
• 26:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: Because it's industry is so tough.
• 26:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: to be even starting as, you know, a trainer get out of the gates, you have to start learning marketing, you have to start learning selling, you have to start learning skill sets that transpired a business across any business that you're going to run.
• 26:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think you, not even for just the challenge, but I think the opportunity, sometimes, if we parlay those skill sets into other industries, other businesses, things like that, and I draw on this from a lot of the Aryan circle conversations that take place.
• 26:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, they step into owning a different business in another industry, and it's like, man,
• 26:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: I didn't realize it could be quote unquote, this easy and comparison, right?
• 26:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: Because and something that a lot of it's going to do with the product that we sell, you know, the service that we sell.
• 26:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's a difficult sell when we're playing with basically the entertainment funds in somebody's life or the luxury funds for a training gym.
• 27:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: And it is not the easiest.
• 27:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: We sell to late gratification hard work.
• 27:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: We talk about it all the time, you know, versus our buddy that has a nail salon or hair salon, you know, and people want what they offer.
• 27:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: People are literally lined up at the door.
• 27:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: They don't have to do all of the convincing in the, the hard sale to get somebody to see the vision of what can be, what can be.
• 27:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: They're leaving with that result.
• 27:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: So, we see that a lot with the business owners that do develop to that point.
• 27:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: They take those skill sets and they do apply them in different industries, different businesses.
• 27:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: And sometimes they're their synonymous with the fitness industry.
• 27:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: You know, we know people that go into the agency side or the tech side or the support fitness.
• 27:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so, but some of them take it elsewhere, and I think to your point, there's not there's no right or wrong answer.
• 27:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think it's based on the individual and what they want out of it, but I think understanding what you want.
• 28:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: We had a conversation this weekend with our buddy Thomas Plumber and like everything always comes back to like, what do you want out of this business.
• 28:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think that at that phase of ownership, that's really what you have to be focused is I'm going to butcher it but love, you know, Tim shared that Jay Abrams quote, right?
• 28:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: You choose a business because you believe it's the the optimal use of your time energy and resources for the the result that you're looking for and
• 28:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think there's a lot of opportunity in other businesses and other areas of life, other interests, you know, maybe you've felt stagnant in the fitness industry or you don't feel that same passion that you had when you started 20 something 30 years ago.
• 28:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't think it's a wrong thing to look elsewhere and take those skill sets that have been developed and see how you can play over there, right, for a new challenge for something unique.
• 29:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: But ultimately, I think being able to go back in the business for a lot of them without the work requirement is a sense of freedom that I think everybody should.
• 29:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: Once you own the business, I think that should be the position that you're aiming for.
• 29:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: You nailed it.
• 29:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's without the requirement.
• 29:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 29:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: So is it is a, is a,
• 29:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: trainer, gym owner, you know, when you start looking at, when you start feeling like the things that you are doing are an obligation, instead of a joy and for fun, and then it's time that that should be a warning sign to you that you're not being challenged, you're being burnt out.
• 29:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: right like when you're first starting off those things, you're okay working ton of hours because it's like, man, this is so much fun.
• 29:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm in this.
• 30:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm going to be a successful business owner and I'm making things work and happen.
• 30:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then when it gets to the point where it's like,
• 30:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: I know what needs to get done.
• 30:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: I know how to do it.
• 30:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: I just don't want to do it anymore.
• 30:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: And it starts to feel more heavy.
• 30:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: More a little more, a little more.
• 30:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 30:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: That should be the warning sign to you to now.
• 30:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: Hey, it's time to scale up.
• 30:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's time to take the next step.
• 30:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: If you're not sure what that is, well, then it's like, or how to do that.
• 30:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's like, well, that's where you get some coaching.
• 30:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: But now you move to like, okay, now working on things that are challenging me and I'm excited about this next step in my journey and then you get to a point where it's like, okay, this just isn't doing it and now it's time to move on again.
• 30:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: that the most important thing is like, don't just get stuck.
• 30:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 30:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: I mean, it's life guys.
• 30:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: We only had time as our, the only thing that we really have.
• 30:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 30:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: And if you're not enjoying what you're doing, it doesn't mean that you were, you went down the wrong path and it's like, oh, I should have never got into training.
• 31:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's like, no, it's, you're on the right path.
• 31:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's just, we, you just need to take the next step in the journey.
• 31:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: And there's nothing wrong with that.
• 31:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: Don't feel guilty about that.
• 31:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 31:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 31:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: So what are some of those options?
• 31:17
  [SPEAKER_00]: Let's say you're at that point and you're looking to exit.
• 31:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: What do you feel is the best on maybe not best?
• 31:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: But what do you feel are the options for a gym owner at that point?
• 31:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, what do we traditionally see when it comes to the exit?
• 31:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: I mean, I think what's probably most common and what you could probably just do a separate like episode on this, like how to make this happen.
• 31:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: But I think what's well,
• 31:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: What's most common is gymsa shut down.
• 31:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: Sure.
• 31:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yep.
• 31:44
  [SPEAKER_00]: You just close the door.
• 31:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, what's probably the next most common is somebody in the business takes it over.
• 31:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: Right.
• 31:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so yeah, I mean, that's probably why it like that.
• 31:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: There's a lot we could talk about there, but it's developing the person within your business, mentoring them and grooming them to take it over and what that looks like because sure you could sell it.
• 32:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: to just put it, you know, put it on the market and sell it, but in order for you to do that and exit it, well, you have to have everything, everything to me down the end, but I think the logical thing, even if everything is dialed in is to give it to the, not give it, but sell it to the person that's been in your business that's
• 32:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: been with you and, you know, that's their next logical step.
• 32:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: They don't do you to hand it off to them past the torch past the torch.
• 32:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 32:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 32:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: I love it.
• 32:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: I hope that I think that we could probably wrap things up there.
• 32:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think we we discussed kind of the journey, right?
• 32:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: From the reason that the traditional entry point all the way through towards, you know, the potential exit.
• 32:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: Where are you on that journey?
• 33:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: What are the skillsets that are required in order to be in that next phase of gym ownership?
• 33:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: You mentioned our growth summit, right?
• 33:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: That's it's a perfect opportunity.
• 33:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's coming up in June.
• 33:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: Take it to our on sale right now.
• 33:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: If you realize, right, that it's not the next certification anymore, it's not the having that proprietary work out every single week that just re-engages and re-ignites your clients.
• 33:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: If you're looking for leadership when it comes to the business and the next step, we'd love to see it to grow summit.
• 33:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: They'll be linked at the show notes, grab a ticket.
• 33:39
  [SPEAKER_00]: But that's all we've got for today.
• 33:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: Keep changing lives.