It’s the end of the year! We made it! 🙂
Where do I start with 2021? So much has happened this year. To put it in a nutshell…I have never had a year like this year. 2021 will be remembered as the year that my business exploded.
When the beginning of 2021 rolled around, I was still humming right along with my existing clients. We were still doing mostly online training with a few exceptions, where we were meeting in person and doing everything we were supposed to be doing due to the virus. As we all know, the vaccines were starting to roll out with the hopes that we may return to some normalcy. I am so thankful that the majority of my clients were willing to get the vaccines so we could all meet in person again and not wear masks. That was liberating for sure.
I didn’t know what was going to happen this year. Were people going to still be hesitant to meet in person? Could I get more online clients? All those questions would be answered within the first couple of months. Now, I did revamp the home page of the website last December. When you change something that was already working, you are always leery, thinking you should have kept things status quo. Let’s just say I was glad that I changed it!
The inquiries started rolling in. And they kept rolling in…every…single…month. Not just a few here and there, but MULTIPLE inquiries. By April I was scrambling because I needed to hire trainers ASAP. My schedule was filling up fast. And in fact, the inquiries haven’t stopped. Usually, by November, everyone is getting ready for the holidays. Personal training is the farthest thing from their minds. Not this year. I signed up seven clients during November and December.
As of right now, between me and the few trainers that are helping me, I have 47 clients. Never has this happened before. Sure, I have been consistently busy, but never overwhelmingly busy. It’s been tremendous, and I am grateful for the success every day.
Now it hasn’t been all sunshine and roses. Two things happened this year that didn’t go according to plan. The first one was that I attempted to start some online and in-person boot camps that would have been held at a park. That was met with a resounding THUD! A national boot camp company tried to recruit me last year, and I eventually turned them down. So I thought I could get a jump start on them before they found someone else. Well, only a few people were interested, and that company never found someone. I guess I needed to stay in my wheelhouse!
The second is that my attempts to find trainers to help me have turned out to be beyond frustrating. It’s like no one wants a job. So I am just another one of those frustrated business owners that can’t find help. I had two trainers quit within a month and another that was supposed to get started and then informed me, after weeks of ghosting me, that she wanted to start her own business.
The good that came out of that? I was able to squeeze quite a few clients into my schedule. But I also had to turn down business for the first time ever. If someone contacted me and their availability didn’t work, then I had to tell them that I couldn’t help them. There are only so many hours in my day. I have another trainer that is supposed to move here soon, so fingers crossed that he works out.
Online personal training continues to be one of the best things that happened to the business. I have a good mix of 60% of clients meeting in person, and 40% meeting online. I got my first out-of-state clients this past year (they live in Scottsbluff, Nebraska), and I will have another one next year when an existing client moves to Bend, Oregon. I had some clients that moved from Fort Collins to Windsor this last year, and if it wasn’t for online training, I would have had to let them go because I wouldn’t have been able to get out to Windsor with my schedule the way it is. I should have done this much, much sooner!
I started working with two special needs clients this year as well. No matter what, I will ALWAYS find spots for clients with special needs. It is always rewarding to work with these clients, and they always bring a huge smile to my face.
So, once again, I am extremely grateful for my clients and the continued success of my business. When I was that young man walking around CU’s campus (that’s right, GO BUFFS!) in the 90s, I never dreamed that this would be my career. It wasn’t even a thought. But thank goodness I have had the privilege and incredible good fortune to help people change their lives. I am one lucky guy!
As always with these end-of-the-year emails, I like to give a shout-out to those clients that have been with me for at least a couple of years. These clients have stuck with me through thick and thin, and I certainly am humbled to work with them:
- Sheryl and Besa (14 years)
- Meg (13 years)
- Craig (11 years)
- Valerie (10 years)
- Neil and Laura (4 years)
- Bernadette (4 years)
- Lynda (3 years)
- David (3 years)
- Natasha (2 years)
There should be some more additions to next year’s list. They know who they are. 🙂
I sincerely hope that all of you have a wonderful holiday season. As I stated last year, I hereby give all of you permission to live it up as best as you can and not worry about being strict with your goals. It’s time to enjoy all that the holidays give us and to live life to the fullest.
Be well!
Dennis