This post is a direct response to the last one I wrote. If you haven’t read it in full you can check it out here.

If you don’t want to read it, I’ll give you the quick cliff notes. As my day job got (and really gets) busier, it becomes harder for me to try to build my fitness brand. I wasn’t sure if I was going to continue on with trying to acquire clients for both training and nutrition or the combo, especially because I was having a really hard time finding any to begin with.

Again, it’s more in depth than that, so if you want to see more details then go read the post.

What Will I Do?

If you don’t have a drumroll in one of your playlists, I’d highly advise you find one before reading the conclusion I’ve come to. It’ll be a lot more fun. I promise. You don’t have to play it yet, but get it queued up.

At the end of the day, I got into this because I wanted to help them. I wanted to help people build a better body, gain the confidence they deserve, and ultimately show them they can absolutely enjoy their life while still being healthy.

The target market I chose to focus on were beer lovers because, well, I was once a beer sales rep who let myself go. I thought I had to give it all up to get healthy and that’s partly what took me so long to change. I knew I could connect very easily with this group because I’ve felt the pain they currently feel. I’ve felt the fear they feel. I understand their wants and needs, because I was once in their shoes.

I learned that it’s a tough market to crack. A lot of beer lovers are content with themselves and their lives, and the ones who aren’t are few and far between. At least that’s what I found. But maybe a lot of them aren’t ready for change right now. This is partly what led to a lot of my frustration.

Anyway, after a lot of thought I’ve decided to…

*Start playing that drumroll track now*

Continue trying to build my brand!

How I Expect This To Go

Whew! Now that you’re done celebrating with me, I know it’s going to be an uphill and very slow battle. I have a day job. That’s no secret. This means it’s really hard for me to be all-in on this thing until or unless it starts generating a good amount of income.

It’s a bit of a vicious cycle. Not going all-in means I’m not focusing on the business as much as I could if I did it full-time. By not focusing on it full-time it becomes harder to generate income. But I can’t go all-in until it’s generating enough income for me to justify leaving a day job. You see where I’m going with this, right?

I’ve got rent, utilities, student loans, car and car insurance, cellphone, some credit cards, and more that I have to pay every month. Leaving a well paying job just isn’t in the cards right now.

However, I do not want to give up. Quite honestly I understand there’s a chance this never turns into anything more than a part-time thing unless I get super lucky. I wish I could dedicate every spare moment I have to build this, but I know I’ll burn out. Between my day job, helping out at Kansas City Barbell, and my band it’s a lot. I need to build this my way and that means doing things a bit different.

What Does Different Look Like?

Honestly I won’t lie – this will be a bit more sporadic than I know it should be. I used to post to Instagram 3 times per day. That eventually morphed into once per day. At this point I haven’t posted on there in well over a month.

I don’t particularly enjoy using that platform to try to promote myself. Perhaps I’ll be more consistent with this platform sometime in the future, but right now I think I’d rather focus my energy on Facebook posts and blog posts. I enjoy long form writing much more than I do short posts that you see on Instagram. Even then, you may get a FB post from me once a week or it may be a few times per week. Again, sporadic.

I’ll still post to Instagram here and there, but you’d be much better suited to either friend me on Facebook (feel free to do so here) or subscribe to this blog. Again, you won’t see posts on a regular basis, but they’ll be there. You’ll also have to deal with posts that are non-fitness related, but that’s okay.

I’m Going My Own Way

I’ve also decided to do things the way I see fit. I spent too much time trying to emulate others or follow the advice I’ve been given. There was also an element of being judged that I was trying to avoid. I didn’t want anyone to think I was a joke for potentially helping more people online than in-person. While I understand the value of it all and that the advice I’ve been given is probably right, I need to do things my own way.

This means not only focusing on trying to get in-person clients, but also online ones. One of the frustrating factors that I mentioned in the other post was that most of my circle was out on the east coast. Again, a lot of coaches are all about in-person experience before going online and I absolutely understand that.

On the flipside, I can’t learn to write effective workout programs or refine my coaching skills if I have no clients at all.

This means if I’ve got friends or family in DC, NY, or anywhere else that believes in me, connects with me, feels I’m the best fit for them and ultimately can help them reach their goals I’m going to do it even though I’ve only had one in-person client.

If you’re one of those people reading this and wants the help, let me know.

Lucky You, I’m LOWERING My Prices

I’m going to end this by doing yet another thing industry coaches would consider business suicide. Not only am I going to lower my prices, but I’m going to be 100% transparent in what my prices are. 

I’m not going to convince you to work with me. You either want to or you don’t. You’re either ready or you’re not. With that said, here’s what we’re looking at in terms of prices:

In-Person Personal Training: $30/session; discounts when you buy in bulk (12, 24, or 48 session packages available)

Nutrition Coaching: 3 months for $225; 6 months for $425; 12 months for $800

Online Training: 3 months for $300; 6 months for $570; 12 months for $1,080

Training & Nutrition: 3 months for $450; 6 months for $850; 12 months for $1,600

If you’re not sure what you need let’s talk about your goals and find you the best plan of action. Not sure what any of these things consist of? Just ask! For starters, just know that everything is 100% customized to your goals and needs. Whether you only have dumbbells or resistance bands or you have access to a full blown gym, I will make it work for you. Same with nutrition. I meet you where you’re at.

In any case, if you’ve read this far congratulations! I’m not only impressed, but thankful you’ve stuck with my post this long.

Here’s to not giving up, doing things my own way, and hopefully finding some semblance of success in the process. Thanks for joining me on this journey.