Have you made many Resolutions for 2010?

Have you made many resolutions for 2010? Is this the year that you are going to stick to those resolutions you made? Now, most people make resolutions but few keep them. Why? Well, with it being the New Year the intention and determination is there to change but people fail because of two reason.  One, the lack of specific goals and two, is the lack of a plan to achieve those goals.

First, let’s talk about goals. Saying that you are going to make more money or get more clients is not specific. What you need to do is state specifically how much more money do you want to make. As for getting more clients, how many? The goal needs to be specific and measurable. Once you have your goals formulated you need to write them down. I hear from personal trainers all the time that I have them in my head. Sorry, if it is not written down on paper it is not a goal. Writing it down creates a record of what you want to achieve and there is no way of disputing what your goals are if they are written down.

The second step to achieve success is to create a plan. When you have your goals written down you need to break them down into smaller steps. For instance if you said you wanted to increase your income by 10% then step 1 might be to get one new client a week (52 by year end). Another might be to do more group training. The important thing here is to break the larger goal into smaller steps to ultimately lead to the larger goal. Oh, and one more important thing to add here is you need a time table and deadline. This was something I neglected to do for  long time but once I set a deadline I began to notice my success in accomplishing my goals increased.

Okay, do me a favor and take some time and sit down and implement these two tips into your New Year’s resolutions and see yourself accomplish more this year than in years past! Make 2010 the best year ever!

Do Style Points Matter?

As most of you know by now I am a huge Gator football fan, and last week the Gators just barely beat the Arkansas Razorbacks. Now, when I say barely, I mean the game could have gone either way, but fortunately for the Gators they pulled off the victory. With the victory being so ugly everyone is talking about how Florida is not really good and they are just barely winning their games. Of course, this drives me crazy because regardless if they won in style they still won the game. I am sorry, but a W in the win column is still a W!

Alright, you may be asking what does this have to do with me being a personal trainer or fitness professional. Everything! I know too many personal trainers that try to get flashy and fancy with prospects and clients. Because of this behavior I see all too often personal trainers either lose the sale or lose the client. Remember, when it comes to closing a sale or keeping a personal training client for a long time you have to understand that the way to win is by being consistent and determined to do your best. If you stick to the fundamentals of solid training and showing the client that you have their best interest in mind then you will win 9 out of 10 times. So, the next time someone says, “well you did not win with style.” You tell them I still won!

It is Lonely at the Top

album.php.jpg

The first two weeks of the college football season is over and my team is still atop the national rankings. I know a lot of my friends will give me a hard time for the teams we played the last two weeks but regardless of who we played there are always going to be people who will be naysayers or will try to bring you down. You need to avoid these people like the plague. And if you have personal training clients that do nothing but bring your enthusiasm or passion down every time you meet with them it is a must to cut ties immediately. In all the years that I have been involved in managing personal trainers I have never seen a positive outcome occur when a personal trainer has a client that does not connect with them. I know it is difficult to turn down a paid personal training session but let me tell you that in the long run you will come out ahead if you sever the relationship before it gets out of control.  So, the take away from this post is that there is going to be a time when you encounter someone who is going to try and take you down and if that occurs stand up and be a leader. Tell the personal training client that you can no longer work with them and move on. Trust me you will stay on top if you listen to me!

 

Coach D

Times are a Changing

autumnleaves9.jpg

Have you noticed the changing of the sun in relationship to the sky? Every year there comes a day when I walk outside and say, “Oh, fall is coming, the shadows are different.” Okay, you are probably like my wife and say, “really?” Well, maybe she is right and it is not as obvious to everyone else but one thing I am certain of and that is times are a changing. Hurricane season, back to school, and football is here and that means you need to be done with the lazy days of summer and start planning for the rest of the year. Here is what you need to do to go along with these changing times.

1.) Revisit your goals that you set back for yourself in January and see which ones still seem relavant and important to accomplish this year.  

2.) Go back to your client list and start making calls to get more people back into your personal training schedule. (You do have a list, right?) 

3.) Decide whether or not you are going to raise your rates now or wait till January. Yes, even in a recession you can raise your rates.

4.) Get motivated again. Summer can be a really depressing time for personal trainers because clients are of town for a month and business is slow, so pick up a book that is motivational and start reading.

So the question now is will you go with these changing times or will you stand still and wait for things to happen. I hope you will go with the times and create the success you deserve. By the way I love the fall so you can expect more of these of the cuff posts. Until the next one, go get em!

Coach D

Part III of 7 tips on how to get more personal training clients

Last week I started a series of posts on, “7 tips on how to get more personal training clients” and today I want to finish the series with the final two. Before I finish the series let me give you a piece of advice that will help you. First of all, reading and agreeing with me is okay, but if you do not act and do something then you are missing out. One of my short comings for a long time was the fact that I read a lot, had great ideas, but never acted and implemented them. That all changed one day when a previous supervisor told me that you have great ideas but you don’t do anything about them. That lit a fire and since that day when I find myself talking about how I want to create more passive income or start a business I say to myself, “Quit talking and do something”. I hope I light a fire in you. Okay onto the final two tips. The first one is a simple action tip, but few personal trainers take advatange of what they have at their finger tips.

6.) Ask your current clients – Your current clients should be your biggest fan and you have at your fingertips the potential to get several more clients but you have to ask. Now, the key here is to make sure that you have an incentive for your client. For example, for every client they refer you can give them a few complimentary sessions in return. Think long term and big picture here. Also, don’t go to the well too often and if you ask them once and they do not respond then move onto another client. 

The final tip has to do with a marketing strategy called positioning.

7.) Position yourself – this final tip will take sometime to develop and understand. The biggest mistake I see personal trainers make is they want to everything to everyone. It is important to become an expert in a niche and market yourself as the expert. Once you have established your self as say the expert in “Back Pain” then people will come to seek you out for your help. If you are having a tough time figure out a niche just ask yourself what you are passionate about and gravitate towards that to start with.

Well that concludes the seven tips on how to get more personal training clients. Remember you need to start putting things into action because action will lead to results! Good luck!