At one point in my career, I was training as many as 12 to 13 people a day, six days a week—and doing paperwork on the seventh! These were primarily 60-minute, one-on-one sessions. I was going practically non-stop. My wife joked that I was even training people in my sleep!

I did that for years with barely any downtime, and I never burned out. Why? Because I loved it. It didn’t feel like work. I genuinely enjoyed what I was doing—and I was making a great living from it! The flame still burns today. I’m doing around 40 sessions a week, and I still love it.

The professionals in this industry who’ve lasted for years and are still going strong share the same passion. Here’s a great quote from Joe DeFranco that sums it up perfectly:

I have literally become successful training athletes out of a storage closet! What does this tell you? It tells you that this business is about results! A fancy gym with a high-budget marketing campaign might get people in the door, but it doesn’t keep them there. Simply put, the success of my company hasn’t been because of some witty marketing campaign; and it certainly isn’t because I’m working out of a big gym with fancy equipment. I attribute the success to a tireless work ethic and an unmatched passion for helping athletes achieve their goals. Every single one of my clients has come to me through word-of-mouth advertising. Athletes talk. And if your athletes are seeing results training with you, they will tell everyone that they know about you.

By no means is this business easy. If you want to be successful, you must be willing to put in the time. It’s a 7-day-a-week job! Besides training athletes for 40+ hours a week, there are phone calls, meetings with the accountant, payroll, insurance issues, tax issues, scheduling issues, managing the business books, updating the website, etc., etc.! I’m telling you this because after completing all of the above tasks, you must still have the passion and dedication to continue your education. This field is constantly evolving. I still spend at least one hour every night reading new information on training. Sometimes this “continued education” takes place at 2 o’clock in the morning, but I don’t care. I don’t do this because I have to; I do it because I want to. I’m not saying that I’m the smartest strength coach in the world, but I refuse to be outworked by anyone! You should have this same attitude.

If you’re interested in more tips on long-term success in the personal training business, check out my presentation at the 2020 Personal Trainer Online Summit, hosted by the Certified Professional Trainers Network (CPTN), on Friday, May 29, 2020. Don’t miss it!

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