Nothing Wrong With Being Picky…
Hey San Antonio,
This is one of my longer posts in quite a while, but while working on emails and reflecting on the last several months and what lies in store for me in the near future, I allowed a small, seemingly simple topic to become a 1300 word post, so enjoy!
While going through my emails Sunday evening, I read one from a personal trainer here in San Antonio that was contemplating hiring me to advise him as he prepared for a bodybuilding show in June. He and I have spoken numerous times, and I think he is an excellent personal trainer and is quite competent – if someone asked me about his services, I would gladly give him my endorsement.
One question he asked me was if is being a competitive bodybuilder has helped my personal training business. While I will admit that some potential clients have viewed it as an accomplishment that lends credibility to what I do (walk the walk/talk the talk kind of thing), I think that many of my clients have often felt my passion from their first meeting with me.
He mentioned that his primary reason for wanting to compete was to help his personal training business and attract more clients. My advice to him was to save his time, his effort, his energy, and his money (competitive bodybuilding is an expensive sport when followed the way I do it: all organic food (in HUGE amounts), best cuts of meat, supplements, tanning, registration fees, posing trunks, NPC card, and most importantly, time).
Don’t get me wrong – I’m extremely proud of the effort I put forth when preparing to compete. I like having every aspect of 16-20 weeks laid out in front of me. I loved feeling like every day was a contest, and I had to win every single day to stay alive in my “season” to eventually make it to my imaginary “playoffs”, culminating in my “Super Bowl”, which is the show itself. Funny thing is, by the time you’ve reached that day, unlike most other sports, you already have won and the result of the competition is of little consequence.
But to decide to compete to increase business? I couldn’t do it. There’s only one reason on this earth I choose to compete: because I want to. If your heart isn’t in it, you WILL find excuses not to continue with preparation. Trust me, adversity presents itself in many, many forms, from injury to job related stress, relationships, family sickness, and the regular drama that we live with each and every single day seems to multiply to an almost unbearable level when we’re under that type of stress. So, to do it for any reason other than yourself just isn’t going to be enough.
With that being said, while I am talking about bodybuilding in this specific post, I am actually foreshadowing a bit: and it has helped my business evolve to what it is today. You see, I actually pick and choose my clients. I often turn clients away if I don’t feel they are a good match for me, as I would hope they’d not train with me if they weren’t completely confident about what I can bring to them.
I’m not crazy, and of course, a bulk of my income comes from personal training and actually training clients. But I’ve found that my business THRIVES when I am training the type of people that I hand choose. Of course, I can’t go out on the street and say “I want to train you” and have that person walk in my studio. That’s not the “hand picking” I am talking about. Of course, people need to find me first. A majority of those people are from referrals of clients, and since my clients know the way I operate, they don’t refer people to me that aren’t completely serious. Of course, the internet and searches for “personal trainers San Antonio” is my other form of leads. I do get leads from local doctors and other professionals, but a bulk of my clients come from current and former clients and the internet.
With that being said, what do I look for? It’s simple: determined individuals. I am looking for motivated individuals. I want to train driven individuals. Most importantly, I want to train people that want to make a change PRIMARILY for a specific person: not their children… Not their spouse or significant other. Not their parents. Those are great sources of motivation, but the people I want to train have to want to make a change for themselves.
I get the occasional “My wife really has been riding my ass about losing weight, and well, thought I’d give this a shot” email or walk-in to my studio and I simply explain how I don’t think that I am the person that you want to train you. I’m hardcore. I am demanding. I expect high levels of progress. I’m not afraid to make drastic changes if something isn’t making the changes that I’m expecting and I’m not afraid to say “you’re not pushing it hard enough.” I’m very compassionate, I’m also very talkative, usually entertaining, and I understand that “life happens”. But I’m also a professional and I’m also very direct.
If I went to a doctor and had a condition that was caused by something I was or wasn’t doing, I’d want him to be direct, up front and open with me. Don’t beat around the bush and don’t make simple recommendations like “Well, I’d really like for you to do this.” BS. I don’t do that either. I expect my clients to follow my nutritional guidelines and ask questions about things they’re not clear on or simple changes they may want to make (it may not be simple and it may end up catastrophic). I want them to give me feedback on how they feel. I want them to ask me why, do research, and understand the methods behind my guidance.
So, in a nutshell, I’m picky. There are hundreds of personal trainers in San Antonio. Many of them may at least look like they know what they’re talking about. Most of them probably have a few impressive letters by their names representing popular certification programs. A few of them may have been lucky enough to train someone who has made a decent transformation.
But be clear – change starts within. If you’re motivated, a caveman could point you in the right direction on how to change your body, lose fat and become healthier. However, I think most people expect more than that – they expect the bodies of their dreams. They want to be taken to a different level and they want their friends to ask them “what on earth are you doing?”
While many people obtain “results” with a trainer, there’s a difference between hiring a young motivated rep-counter and hiring a professional fitness coach and life coach.
Personal Training and Fat Loss Management are results based businesses, and in San Antonio, these career fields have a very high level of attrition. Time is expensive and results don’t come easy. Most personal trainers guide every single client through the exact workouts and are happy with whatever results they may obtain. I would never allow myself to become so complacent and I’d never settle for marginal results, and I expect the same from my clients.
Life is too short to settle. Live each day as if it is your last on this earth. Motivation dwindles, and there are days we fall down and wonder if getting up to our knees, much less our feet, is even possible. Short term goals being regularly accomplished lead to great, sustainable results in the long term.
Become amazing, expect amazing, and never, ever settle.
Boyd Myers
Personal Trainer in San Antonio
Owner, San Antonio’s Top Personal Training Studio
16613 Huebner Rd (corner of Huebner and Bitters)
210.391.1454
