We started out as two couples who all wanted to own a gym, train members, and hoped in the back of our minds that we could make a little money doing it. Despite having business degrees, we really knew nothing about owning or operating a business.
For years we joked about being “almost professional;” to the point that we had a short-standing podcast actually called “Almost Professional.”
We started a CrossFit gym together in 2012 and slowly gained members.
And while we shared the love of fitness, the passion to help people, and we had high energy, commitment, and continued to educate ourselves -- those things were not the issue.
What we lacked, to name a few things, was
- A member orientation process
- Financial goals (other than making enough money to pay the bills that month)
- A method to progress athletes in a way that they could understand
- A system for tracking our athlete’s improvements
Most of our actions were reactive vs proactive, so we were always putting out fires. We fully identified with “almost professional”; If something happened, such as a fan catching on fire (yes, that actually happened) then we deemed it ok because we never owned true professionalism.
As the gym grew over the years, so did the need for systems and for us to step it up in the world of professionalism. Chris and Jim both took on full time jobs as first responders, which left most of the coaching and behind the scenes work to Shawndi and myself.
This was fine, except for the fact that the careers our husbands had taken on, require long hours and we have young children who need a lot of attention right now. This posed some questions that would decide the fate of our gym.
“Is it possible for us to be good wives, good mothers AND run a successful business? Do we have to choose if we want to be one or the other or could we really do both?”
We agreed that we couldn’t keep going at the breakneck pace that we had grown wearily accustomed to. If we wanted our family life and gym life to be successful, we would need to develop systems. We started to identify as “more professional” and this is where Level Method comes in.
Chris had dropped in at a gym who uses Level Method while traveling for work and LOVED it. He couldn’t wait to tell us about it. I had just recently finished a coaching certificate that focused more on one-on-one training and I was struggling with the idea of how to have personalized training in a group setting. When Chris came back telling us about Level Method, I was beyond excited because I knew this was the solution! We had no idea just how much Level Method was going to help us with our pursuit of being “more professional.”
Joining the Level Method Legion was by far the best decision we have made for our business. They have given us a road map to success, not just for our members physical improvements but also for the long-term success of our gym. We have taken advantage of every aspect that Level Method has to offer, including the gym programming, social media assets and applying to be in the very first MasterMind group!
Since becoming a Level Method gym we:
- Completely changed our identity from being “more professional” to being “professional.”
- Have a plan for new members, which includes them going through four one-on-one sessions to complete their assessments within the first two weeks of joining the gym.
- Have short and long-term financial goals, with plans in place for marketing to new members and retention of current members.
- Implement a very stringent cleaning system to ensure the cleanliness of our gym and health of our members.
- Plan events weeks or even months in advance to ensure the highest participation of members.
One of our seed clients who owns a multi-million dollar business noticed that we had leveled up our professionalism and commented on it! What a huge compliment that was!
We had finally stepped into the professional league of gym owners! So what about the ability to be a good mom and wife while owning a business? Level Method has even helped there!
Taking advantage of the programming and social media assets has saved us hours per week of our time, which leaves more time for family. Being part of the MasterMind has given us systems and advice to be more competent and efficient which has also left more time for family. We’ve even developed systems inside our homes, which include ways to keep our houses cleaner and less chaotic. We developed systems within our schedules to leave space and time for all of the things that are important to us. Most recently, we developed budget systems to help take us to the next goal of both families being debt-free!
The Legion and specifically my MasterMind group has become an extension of our gym family which has helped walk us through some tough times. We can’t imagine having even survived 2020 without them, nevermind actually thriving in 2020! Our families are stronger and closer than ever before and our gym is by far the “MOST professional” we have ever been!
If you are reading this and not aware of what Level Method is… Learn more about Level Method and sign up for a free discovery session to find out if it is a good fit for you.
