Comments on: IS PERSONAL TRAINING A BUSINESS OR A PASSION? Walking the line between LOVE and MONEY, LIFESTYLE and SERVICE, WORK and FUN …

By: Stephanie

Stephanie — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 14:07:11 +0000

Kaiser,
Dang! Everything you’ve said about personal training is how I feel in my heart but have put aside because all the “experts” emphasize business, business, business as the focus. I almost feel moved to tears because that’s what I want! I want to train people one on one and make a difference in their lives. A big difference! I’ve been in the fitness business for over 20 years working in gyms and in group fitness. I still teach group fitness (cycling, bootcamp, yoga, pilates, weightlifting classes…) at a local gym and it’s just that, “group fitness”. I have tried small group training and hated it. It is too much to keep up with and I feel the quality of my attention suffers. It’s hard to stay organized and keep things moving. I tried the fitness bootcamp thing too. It’s fun and all, but I already teach group fitness and this is just more of the same. It’s NOT personal training. Thanks for letting me know that it’s o.k. to want to train my clients myself, have only a handful of clients and keep it all simple, personal and small. I only need to train 4 – 6 people a day to make the kind of money I’d like to see from it and still be available to my kids (5). Things are really dead right now because of the holidays, but I have a renewed sense of enthusiasm after reading your posts. Thanks for the reassurance!

By: J. jitomir

J. jitomir — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 23:16:42 +0000

Thanks for the post. It’s definately useful since I’m planning to start a business after finishing the PhD– I need all the help I can get ;-)

By: Kaiser

Kaiser — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 07:35:47 +0000

Yeah Gaby – it’s not just me – that’s what all the top research says – you’ll notice every single top trainer market themselves first – you’ll even see this with major companies – big companies that don’t have a face will hire someone to portray it – that “Mac” kid from the apple commercials, and Mr “Can you hear me now?” come to mind!

By: gaby

gaby — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:19:44 +0000

Biggest thing I got out of this article and Kaiser is that you need to focus on YOU and not your company. YOU are the product first. I actually got sidetracked and started to focus too much on the biz end of it while Kaiser has been helping me set up my website. Always great to read these articles and get refocused.

By: Kaiser

Kaiser — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 03:23:09 +0000

Yeah Dave, there are parallels – what I love about Personal Training though is that it has some unique dynamics that you won’t find in any other field of consulting – I talk about this in the first set of bullet point in THE WHISTLEBLOWER REPORT –

Yeah Bill, hard work is the recipe no doubt – it takes on different forms – IN your business, ON your business, and ON yourself -

I like that so many of you had comments and got something out of this post – this balance between fitness as a job and as an extension of your own passions is what this blog is all about -

By: bill moore

bill moore — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 20:20:06 +0000

Bravo, Kaiser hits the nail on the head again, finding the “happy medium” is important, BUT working hard is needed to really pay off !!

By: Dave

Dave — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 18:53:48 +0000

I love your articles. I’m working on my certification right now, but I’m already in the tutoring business and a lot of the same principles apply. Every time I read your articles the one thing you remind me of is that the difference between premium trainers and regular trainers is premium trainers think and know they are premium.

By: Kaiser

Kaiser — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 18:35:53 +0000

Hey Rivak – I can completely relate to every aspect of your story, and every emerging trainer needs to head this warning and keep it in mind – the aversion to training, addiction to money, endless hours, and being a slave to your clients –

The lesson here is THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT IT MEANS NOT TO BE A PERSONAL TRAINER –

We’re creating a new definition here and a new job description so I hope everyone takes notice –

Yeah Manny, you’re on the right path – it’s not about big business – it’s being yourself and letting customers know it -

By: Manny

Manny — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 18:03:25 +0000

Hey Kaiser! I agree with this post 100%! I wasted most of the past two years trying to learn more and more about starting my own training business. I’ve been reading a lot of business books just like you said. But your site has made me realize that training isn’t so complicated – now I’ve got a real plan where I’m learning from other people and starting to get things set-up. I’ve made more progress in the past two months than the last two years! You’re right, just keep it simple and take it from there – thanks man!

By: Somagenesis San Diego Personal Trainer

Somagenesis San Diego Personal Trainer — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 02:14:09 +0000

Hello Kaiser,

Very well written! Are you sure your last name is not Hemingway?
I agree, that better defining your strengths, while really enjoying the beginning years of this fantastic career is super important. As your and your business rises in popularity, the hobby/joy perspective of being a personal trainer begins to disintegrate, and staying focused on customer satisfaction and retention can be very tricky.
When the six figure income begins to roll in, the addiction to more money becomes deeply etched in your mind. Before you know it, your wealthy beyond your wildest dreams, vacationless, and have too many needy clients controlling your life. I knew there was a BIG problem with the way my business was developing, when I began to develop an aversion to training myself. There was a 1 year window in my career when I actually needed the help and accountability of a pro personal trainer to get me to the gym and kick my ass. Thank God I made some wise business decisions, and am now working intelligently. Best of all, I am am back to working out on my own, Crossfitting 6 days per week and really digging it!