Accelerating Training Greatness

Any successful trainer who has been at this for a while will be able to provide you with an extensive list of lessons that they have learned over time. What I appreciate about lessons learned in this industry is that these lessons are derived from each trainer's own unique experiences. To take it beyond that, it is often the experiences of the people that we work with that pave the way for some of the biggest lessons that you could possibly learn as a personal trainer.

For me this has been and still is one of my biggest resources when it comes to polishing my own craft and in my eyes is the biggest component responsible for you evolving into either a flourishing career path or having to find a side gig to pay the bills.

To put it simply:
 

• If you want to enroll a potential client, you need to show someone in a narrow window of time that you are worth it.
• If you want someone to renew, you need to prove that their experience is worth their long term time and financial investment.
• If you want referrals, you need to provide your people a personal training experience that was worth talking about.

The strategy behind these three drivers of business is that there is no strategy. For any trainer who is great at what they do they know that providing a positive experience is everything and they have the ability to turn that on for anyone they work with. The question is what constitutes a good experience?

In a few short years it seems that seeking out quality personal training talent has transitioned from the highly educated to seeking out the highly personable. I have to agree with this as I have now seen enough people come and go who were very highly educated in exercise science and they just couldn't cut it. Not because of the masters degree that they possessed but because their personality was comparable to the frame that was showcasing it. On the flip side I believe that personality will only do so much justice in a training environment. You need to know your stuff. Plain and simple.

Truthfully you want to have both for you as this is a career that is only going to become more and more competitive and those who will survive will be the ones who are able to possess both the knowledge as well as the character to back it up. On top of it personal training is the real deal and no longer the novelty it once was. It is a growing profession which means being a professional and true professionals are the people who dissect and strive to improve upon all of the intricacies that propel you from good to renowned.

This doesn't mean scrambling to find your next certification or joining your local Toastmasters to learn how to present yourself (although they will help). There are numerous factors in the personal training profession that you can enhance today that will not only help you build your knowledge base but help you effectively showcase it.

Achieve High Concept Within Your Comfort Zone

Part of training evolution will always be the seeking out new strategy and technique to your game. Discovering new strategy is an integral part of evolving as a trainer. Just make sure that it is not being done at the expense of your clients. This was a mistake of mine from the very beginning and I have a feeling I am not the only one out there. Seeking out new components to your game will definitely enhance your skill set but technical proficiency needs to be learned before it is coached. Achieving high concept with your existing knowledge base will allow you to showcase what you really know rather expose what you are trying to learn and I think that is key. It teaches you how to fine tune on the fly for any considerations that need to be addressed to keep a workout challenging without stepping outside of physical limitation. Not to mention you can achieve a healthy level of communication when you are not having to worry about killing your client.

I work with a lot of Olympic Weightlifters and they are able to do a great job at this. Some are at the point where they coach a lot of people looking to learn the sport. Some are learning and are completely aware that the majority of their people are not at the point of learning the snatch. However they are also aware that hip extension is something that they spend a lot of time perfecting and how many people out there could do a better job at that?

Programming Collaboration Is Way Cooler Than Programming Dictation

Good coaches know that they do not have all of the answers and often converse with their staff and players for insight. Good companies nurture and roll with the creative inspiration that comes from their staff. Training should be no different as when you take on a client, you are stepping into the role of head coach, GM, President and CEO of whatever it is they are looking to get done. For that reason your job does not end at writing down what they need to do and making sure that they do it. Designing and implementing a program in my eyes should be fueled by clear communication of how things are feeling, what can be handled when it comes to volume and load, and what can be brought to the table on any given day.

Getting someone to adhere to a program can be tricky but I think a lot of that can be prevented based solely on the fact that nobody likes being told what to do. There is a job to do of course but it needs to be a collaborative effort and for a trainer that means appreciating feedback, input, and ultimately realizing that just because it's on paper doesn't mean that there may be a better way of doing things.

Not only does collaboration fuel an effective program, it provides a big part of the relationship that is required to get it done and done well.

Get Educated. Get Educated On Getting Educated

Coming from a limited exercise science background and stepping into a competitive training environment opened my eyes to the fact I had a lot to learn. More importantly it made me realize that no matter what qualified you to get into this business you are so far away from knowing everything you need to know it is not even fit.

Continuing education is the part of the ride that defines where you go and what you do with yourself as a trainer.

I am not proclaiming myself as an investment adviser but I strongly believe that it is one of the best things that you could possibly do with your money. In a time of bi polar economic performance it is nice knowing you are in complete control of your return when you invest in your craft.

In The New Economy, Information, Education, And Motivation are Everything.
   -Bill Clinton

A vital factor in your return on your investment is how you process information. For that reason I believe that it is just as important to get educated on getting educated. The take home point being that everything that you learn is a result of the accumulation, filtration, experimentation, and implementation of information that has formulated a success worthy of presenting. Your ROI will be determined by that same factor.
 

Been used a lot lately but it's about as bang on as it gets

It Doesn't Need To Be Sexy But You Sure Can Make It Look Pretty

The glamorization of exercise in today's media has given a lot of people the impression that electrifying leads to result when really today's answers are no different from the ones that have been preached for generations. Still I see people who get caught up in trying to make things to sexy.

The problem with sexy is that it's impractical and inconsistent. And you're trying too hard.

There is room for visual beauty in exercise however and it comes in the form of making the essentials look pretty. In a training environment where you are under a very judgemental microscope you want pretty. Pretty signifies a well executed program and it is also a great indicator of limitation and how to adjust for it. When pretty is the pursuit it is the idea that strength, stability, mobility, and awareness potential are being put to the test. It also puts you as a trainer into a role where you are visibly and verbally engaged and your ability to communicate has no choice to become better polished. 

It has been the pursuit to beautify the basics that has become a big part of my training identity and being in session has become my biggest client builder as a result of it. 

As I mentioned above, training is the real deal. I do believe that I do have some extended family members and social circle who do believe that this is something that I do until I find a ''real job''. But this is it, and I am seeing it evolve into that more and more for people and I love to see it. However, it is a grind and as it becomes more alluring it also becomes more competitive so it really has me thinking non stop on what it takes both as a trainer and as a professional and the truth is that you need both. It may not be 50/50 but if you are packed with technical brilliance but cant get clients I suggest you put your soft skills into consideration. If you have the soft skills but are having trouble taking it to the next level I highly suggest you know your stuff. Like any other strong professional, perfection is never attained but the ones who keep seeking it will be the ones who thrive in this business.

All the best,

Jeff