Here’s a golden nugget from NPE Member Paul Wright. He
wrote this as part of his recent blog post for the Mega
Training Scholarship contest…

“A couple weeks ago I had a client come into my office and
ask me a “simple” exercise-related question (a very common
occurrence for all of us). I answered to her satisfaction
and as she left my office she said, “Well I guess I’ll go
try to do this” to which I responded with a question that
has become one of my new business directives:

“Are you training or are you trying?

“She didn’t quite understand what I meant so I explained
that when you’re “training” to accomplish your goals you
are focused, systematic, analytical and eliminate “chance”
from the equation. You have to be purposeful in your actions
and then evaluate the outcome of those actions.

“If you’re merely “trying” to reach your goals then you’ve
allowed chance to be your guide and you’re haphazardly
going from one diet to the next or you’re sporadic and
unfocused in your exercise routine.”

Now that’s really good stuff you can use with your clients.

And it’s transcendant, it goes way beyond exercise. It really
hits on the difference between mediocre results (or none at
all) and game-changing results in every aspect of our lives.

We’re all so busy, with so much to do just to keep our heads
above water, let alone really thrive.

Business is hard work. Infinitely harder than a job.

But when you do things right consistently, the work load
becomes more manageable and things start to really click.

The secret, as I mentioned yesterday, is focus.

You have to eliminate distraction.

When I’m really on my game, really focused and productive,
it’s because I’m not resisting structure.

Here’s what I mean by that.

Like a lot of entrepreneurial people, maybe you, I like the
thrill of the new challenge and the new opportunity. So I find
myself almost unconsciously seeking those things out, and that
can sometimes get me off track.

It can also lead to big ideas and big breakthroughs, so there’s
definitely an upside. But if you’re not in control of that
(emotional) tendency or compulsion (however you want to characterize
it), you can constantly be jumping from one thing to the next,
never fully completing projects, and therefore never fully
benefiting from them.

That’s why structure is so vital.

Here’s a couple tips on being structured:

1. Use a calendar like http://www.google.com/calendar and block
your time. Then be ruthless about disciplining yourself to do
what you’ve blocked the time to do.

2. Go to bed at the same time every night. Wake up at the same
time every morning. Get into a routine. Sounds simple, and it
is. Some of the best stuff is simple.

3. Take care of yourself first. This is one I’ve been struggling
with a lot lately. Get your workout in every day, or as per your
schedule. Don’t miss even one.  And take time off, even if it’s
just 30 minutes a day, to read. No TV. Just read something good
that’s stimulating. Maybe motivational/inspiration stuff, or maybe
business related, or hobby related. Just not something frivolous.

4. Plan, prioritize and review. Most people understand the importance
of planning and prioritizing (although they don’t always stick to
the plan), but very few appreciate how critical it is to review.
Dick and Sean are VERY big on this, and it’s rubbing off on me…
finally.  Go back and look at last week’s calendar. Did you stick
to it?  If not, why not? What got in the way?  When you review, you
discover the bottlenecks and can eliminate them.

5. Have fun. Business is serious stuff, but it can also be a lot of
fun if you let it be. It’s what you make it. And if you follow the
first 4 steps I’ve outlined here, you’ll be able to make it a lot
more fun, because you won’t be so frazzled and stressed all the time.

6. Be honest with yourself. Nobody knows you like you do. If there
is some behavior that’s holding you back, you know it, and you need
to be honest with yourself about it. As they say in the 12-step
programs, “the first step is admitting you have a problem.”  Truth
is, we ALL have our issues. But the folks who make the most of their
lives figure out what the problems are and take daily action to
eliminate them.

7. Finally, get connected and inspired.  Make connections and let
other people help you. Even if it’s just with inspiration and positive
role modeling. But I encourage you to take it beyond that by putting
yourself in an environment like Mega Training where you’ll be surrounded
by very serious (but fun) fitness business owners who have experienced
many of the same issues as you and found ways to overcome them and to
excel. Trying to figure everything out on your own is a needlessly
frustrating experience when you have access to the best of the best
who are ready, willing and able to help you.

If you haven’t registered for Mega Training yet, do it right now
while this is fresh on your mind. The discount deadline is coming
up fast (this Friday).

http://www.NPEMegaTraining.com

I look forward to seeing you in Orlando
(be sure to come up and say hi),

Eric Ruth

P.S. We have lots of great surprises and just flat out amazing
content, systems and tools to share with you at Mega Training.
Our line-up of speakers is incredible (21 in all) and this event
will be something that you look back on as the turning point in
your career – the launching pad.  It’s true, as you’ll see.

http://www.NPEMegaTraining.com

Here’s another health club marketing post you may enjoy.

Hope you’re having a great weekend.

Just wanted to drop a line and let everyone know that Eric and I spoke Friday night, and confirmed that we WILL be opening up I-AM RAINMAKER™ again this week.

Date is set for relaunch on this Wednesday, July 22nd, at 9am EST.

I expect we’ll probably open up, and then shut down again same day given the demand to join the program we’ve got.

We could certainly leave this thing open and keep having folks join, but we’re committed to limited enrollment at this point to ensure 100% implementation and set-up support for each and every new member.  So the reason we keep this thing limited, is to help YOU become as successful as possible with the program.

If you have NOT heard all about I-AM RAINMAKER™ yet, and want to get the full story, read the Fitness Marketing Magic Bullet report here.

And you can also read the sales letter and join the early bird list here.

We have well over 100 folks on the early bird list to join when we reopen this week, and will be sending out special details on a private (early bird list only) webinar Tuesday evening at 7pm.

Join the early bird list here for full notification on that webinar (I’ll be sending out details there tomorrow).

Ok, have a great rest of your weekend.

To your success,
Sean

P.S. We have added 3 VERY sexy new features to I-AM RAINMAKER™ based on suggestions and feedback from our first 118 members, and I’ll be reviewing each of them in the preview webinar Tuesday night.

If you want to find the link for that webinar, then make sure you register on the early bird list today at www.FitBizRainmaker.com .

Here’s another health club marketing post you may enjoy.

The NPE Freedom Sale is On!

- Half price on a limited quantity of our BEST Fitness Marketing, Sales and Management Systems
- 35% off on every Fitness Business product we offer (except Commander)

http://www.NPEFreedomSale.com

The big news is everything is on sale…but only until Thursday, July 16. (All the half price products will probably be gone today.)

We’re holding this special FREEDOM sale to celebrate our third year anniversary and to celebrate the financial and personal freedom our Members and Customers are creating using our systems, tools and coaching.

We are very grateful for your loyalty and look forward to continuing to help you attract more clients, sell them more of what they want, keep them longer and manage your business like a real CEO.

So, in honor of our 3-year anniversary and in honor of you, we have slashed prices by 35% on all our products (except COMMANDER) and by 50% on select “scratch and dent” systems so you can save more…make more…and be more…

…faster than ever before.

If you’ve been waiting for just the right time to invest in one or more of our “Best-In-Class” client-attracting, profit-exploding products for Fitness Professionals…the time is now!!!

Especially when you take advantage of the E-Z Pay installments that make buying easy.

Join the fun and save big here:

http://www.NPEFreedomSale.com

To your success,

Eric Ruth

P.S. If you’re quick, you can get our best selling systems AUTO-CLOSER, DEEP-CORE, DUPLICATOR and GOLD-RUSH at half price, but only in VERY limited quantities:

http://www.NPEFreedomSale.com

Here’s another personal trainer marketing post you may enjoy.

Last night’s Group Training Tele-seminar ROCKED the house.

It’s funny Eric and I haven’t done a tele-seminar in probably 3 years, and just decided to offer this after getting flooded with questions on Group Training last week.

And boy am I glad we did.

It was an absolute blast talking to so many folks from all over the USA & Canada.

We took questions non-stop for about 3 hours straight.

Here are just a few of questions asked that we talked about on the call:

- How to transition your personal training department from private to semi-private training

- How to package, price, and sell Boot Camp

- The pro’s and con’s of selling monthly EFT vs. longer term contract sales

- How to overcome the challenge of working with ‘beginner’ vs. ‘advanced’ clients in a group

- What are the best ‘front-end’ offers to use for marketing group training services

- Secrets to choosing the best location for your group… and how to start one when you don’t have a facility of your own

- How to compensate group training and boot camp instructors  and the differences between base, base + commission, or strictly commission based compensation models

- How to overcome problems with client compliance and accountability in a group training environment

- Strategies for getting traction and momentum with strategic alliances to grow your group training programs

- What you must do in segmenting client vs. prospect communication in marketing group training programs

- How to maximize workshops, clinic, and other secrets to making the most with ‘dead time’ in your business

- And much, much more.

I’m not kidding. This call was MARATHON.

I couldn’t even keep up with all my notes fast enough as the questions kept coming, and we kept rolling.

Good thing we got this recorded and will send it out for transcription today.

Lauren is cleaning up the audio file now, and will send it out later today as a special bonus to everyone that’s purchased GROUP TRAINING ACCELERATOR.

If you haven’t grabbed your copy yet, get on over and do so today at GroupTrainingSecrets.com.

“Early bird” pricing on this program goes up end of day tomorrow, and frankly just this audio recording alone is worth the measly $67 investment many times over.

To your success,
Sean

P.S. Now IS the time to offer group programs, and improve all your existing group offers. On last night’s tele-seminar we had one caller (an Anytime Fitness owner) that we consulted with. And with just a few slight adjustments, she will conservatively DOUBLE her revenue within 60-90 days. If they really get after it aggressively, frankly I wouldn’t be surprised to see those numbers even triple… with a WHOLE lot more net profit to take home.

What were the tweaks, and how can you do the same?

It’s all on the bonus recording from last night. Get it now at Group Training Secrets.

Here’s another fitness marketing post you may enjoy.

I’ve got a couple great videos showing you how to market your boot camp. I’ll get to those in a second.

—–

Yesterday I shared a strong fitness marketing strategy with you using Animoto.

In case you missed it, read this page and watch the 2 minute video.

Okay, now a couple quick things…

First, we got a bunch of emails from some of our best Members wondering why they weren’t included in the “client love” video I shared yesterday.

Their comments were all in fun – they weren’t really upset with me. But it really got me thinking about just how powerful this marketing strategy really is.

See, people WANT to be included, they WANT to be recognized. And that’s powerful. Remember that.

In my defense, I whipped that video together in 20 minutes, just grabbing a variety of pics off my hard drive (including a couple funny animal pics).

I didn’t put a whole lot of thought or effort into it. Had I, the video would have been way better. But for the sake of expedience, I just tossed it together.

So, to all of you who I didn’t include…sorry bout that…we DO love you. Truth is, though, with hundreds of VIP and Gold Plus Members, and many hundreds more Gold Members and Customers, it would be impossible to fit everyone in one video.

Second, Tony Rathstone, who runs a very successful women’s boot camp, sent me links to a couple of boot camp marketing killer videos he created using Animoto. And I want to share those with you so you can see what he’s done, and how he uses them to market his boot camp.

But before I give you those links I want to ask you a question.

Got boot camp?

Seriously, are you doing a boot camp? If not, why not? It’s the quickest and easiest (by comparison) way to make really good money in this business. And it’s a natural “feeder” into one-on-one personal training, so it serves a dual purpose, if you want it to.

If you’ve got a house list of 200+ people, you can launch a successful boot camp within a week, particularly now that the weather is improving.

And if you don’t have a house list (get started on that pronto), you can still launch quickly, it will just take more effort to fill up the first one.

We’re getting stories from all over about folks really crushing with boot camp. And done right, the net profits can be substantial because there’s minimal overhead and expense.

Plus, if you follow a few referral rules we share with you, your boot camp can become almost internally self-perpetuating.

We’ve re-opened Boot Camp VIP registration, and I encourage you to grab the info-pak and application here.

With our VIP boot camp program you get a complete done-for-you highly optimized website that can get you top Google ranking quickly, plus the sales letter is written by me and it’s a proven winner.

You also get a whole bunch more stuff, including multiple referral marketing strategies and tools and dozens more marketing tools like winning advertisements, press releases, flyers, postcards, door hangers and more.

Everything is ready to go – ready to implement within days. You can literally have your camp launched and filling up within two weeks after being accepted into Boot Camp VIP. That’s speed. And that means you’re profitable fast, growing fast, enjoying yourself again…fast.

Grab your VIP Boot Camp info-pak and application here.

No magic bullets, just smart fitness marketing,
Eric Ruth

P.S. I didn’t forget Tony’s boot camp marketing videos. Here’s what he says:

Howdy Eric

here are 2 videos we made with Animoto a few months back

Video #1 (great music sound track)

Video #2 (a little more sedate, but strong imagery)

Thanks for all you do!!!

Tony

Here’s another personal trainer marketing post you may enjoy.

I get a lot of e-mails.

All-in-all I’m probably signed up on at least a couple hundred lists of top marketers, authors, companies, etc.

And I see it all.

Most of the communication people send out is bad.

Some is ’so-so’.

But only a few are GREAT.

And on my list of top 5 folks with GREAT e-mail newsletters (and probably the top guy hands down in the fitness industry) is Doug Jackson.

Doug has been a great friend both Eric and I have known for 5 or 6 years now.

Recently he’s just gone out on his own to start a new studio.

And I’ll tell you what… he’s going to kill it.

Because he believes in himself, he believes in his mission, and he inspires everyone around him to be better.

Now normally I don’t forward other folks e-mails out, but this one that Doug sent last week was so good I wanted to share it with you.

It contains a VERY important lesson about having a success mindset that anybody who’s feeling down or getting caught up in the negative media needs to hear.

Check out this e-mail Doug sent out to his list last week:

—————————————————————————————–

Subject: Allow others to control your dreams (last American Idol)
From:  “Doug Jackson” <doug@personalfitnessadvantage.com>
Date:    Thu, Feb 12, 2009 3:23 pm
To:    <sgreeley@netprofitexplosion.com>

We’ve had a great week here at Personal Fitness Advantage.

We opened our studio on Monday with an extremely busy day and have had fantastic days each day since.

On Tuesday, our trainer Jessica Kerley, a nationally-known fitness model, did her first sessions at the studio.

And as several people have said over the last few days, our studio has a special energy in it.

To meet Jessica and the rest of our special team, sign up to attend our BIG kickoff seminar at:

http://www.PlantationChallenge2009.com

——-

-The economy and American Idol-

Emily was watching American Idol last night while I was cleaning up the home office.

If you were watching, you may have seen the scene where a very weird guy was basically crying. He said something like, “how can they take my dream away from me?”.

I growled when I saw the scene.

What immediately went through my head is that no one takes our dreams away from us but us.

It reminded me of the economy now…

Many people complain, others get to work…

Focus on the things you have control over. Don’t worry yourself to death over stuff you have no control over. It’s pointless.

There are certainly people struggling right now, but nothing good happens by complaining.

————-

At the same time many are cowering, I’m opening a business.

The future favors the bold.

How is your mindset currently?

How do you handle the negative thoughts that enter your head each day?

Do you let your fears, anger, and complaining run wild?

Or do you shut down the head trash and get your head right?

If you want to really learn now to take control of your life while others are too busy complaining and staying in reactive (rather than proactive) mode, come to our Fitness Kickoff Seminar.  Sign up at:
www.PlantationChallenge2009.com

At the seminar, you’ll get the no BS fitness and nutrition information that Personal Fitness Advantage is known for, and just as importantly, you’ll be inspired and motivated to take hold of the reigns for the rest of ‘09.

When many are struggling and looking to others for solutions, I can promise that there are people thriving right now and they are the people taking action, rather than waiting for others to take action.

IMPORTANT: If you’ve already signed up for the seminar, you don’t need to sign up again. You’re good to go. My team and I look forward to seeing you there.

Dedicated to your success,

Doug Jackson, M.Ed., CSCS

—————————————————————————————–

I took out Doug’s offers and please don’t bug him and light up his website because I’ve left it in here.

My purpose of sharing this with you today is:

#1 Share with you a great example of a winning mindset, that EVERYONE needs to be proactive in cultivating. NOT just for your own personal benefit, but more importantly to inspire and lead others around you (your staff, your clients, your family) through an ‘interesting time’.

#2 If you’re NOT sharing e-mails with this level of personality with your list, you are NOT marketing effectively. Be real, share yourself. There are a LOT of folks out there right now that want to hear from you and are waiting for you to go find them.

Stop sitting around. Don’t whine and complain that it’s ‘tougher’ to bring new clients in the door. Get to marketing and growing right now!

To your success,
Sean

P.S. Last chance to grab our new jam-packed referral resource for the unheard of price of just $47. We’ve had so many folks raving about this resource, that the price is finally going up to $67 tomorrow. Get your copy now at:

http://www.fitbizreferrals.com

Here’s another health club marketing post you may enjoy.

Here’s a great question for you this morning:

“How much value are you bringing to your key relationships?”

Is your answer:

A) Enough

B) Could be better

C) Overdeliver, every single time

If you answered A or B, then you should be concerned about your future.

Because to your clients, you are REPLACEABLE.

They could go find another ‘you’ anywhere.

ONLY when you can confidently answer “C” will you see what I call ‘growth from the inside out’ in your business.

Overdelivering is NOT just a philosophy. It’s a commitment and discipline you make… and follow-through on every day.

You don’t get to call off sick.

You don’t get a ’snow day’.

Doesn’t matter if you ‘don’t feel like it’.

You do it.

Because it’s the right thing to do.

And you not only earn respect from your clients, but you will build a herd of raving, loyal fans.

And THAT is what owning a rock-star business is all about.

To your success,
Sean

P.S. This was a simple quiz. You shouldn’t have to think about your answer. You KNOW where you’re at right now, and where you need to get better. I encourage you to get serious about becoming better… and overdelivering MORE…right now.

We’re got a great resource to help you with that here:

http://www.fitbizreferrals.com

It’s been flying off the shelves the past week, and price goes up on Friday. So get your copy while the gettin’ is good.

Here’s another personal trainer marketing post you may enjoy.

Hope you had a great weekend.

I just got back from a trip to Phoenix last night, where I’ve been meeting with a very special Mastermind group.

But I’ll tell you more about that tomorrow.

First I wanted to address the numerous questions our office has been receiving about our new BLUEPRINT program.

Several folks have been asking about the 5-step fitness business building process we teach, what’s included in the BLUEPRINT program, and how it can help them.

So I thought the easiest way to address all of those questions, and share some more great business building info with you, was to record a brief video I’ve now posted online at:

http://www.fitnessmarketingsystems.com/blueprint.html

We’re giving away some great bonuses right now for those ready to take FAST-ACTION on 2009.

Take a look at everything you get at:

http://www.fitnessmarketingsystems.com/blueprint.html

To your success,
Sean

P.S. LION or LAMB?

Which one are you and what am I talking about?

Read about 3/4 of way down the page:

http://www.fitnessmarketingsystems.com/blueprint.html

Here’s another personal trainer marketing post you may enjoy.

I can’t force you to read this post, but if I could, I would.

Because what I have to share with you here reveals THE ’secret key’ to an explosive 2009 for you and your fitness biz.

And it doesn’t involve buying a thing. There’s nothing for ’sale’ here…

…except a philosophy…a strategy…a way of being, doing and having more of what you want.

That’s my only objective – to ’sell’ you on a simple ‘mind-shift.’

When I was six years old, we lived in Munich, Germany. One day my dad come home with two small puppies. They were brother and sister Poodles and we named them Franz and Felisha.

If you’ve ever had puppies, you know that house training can sometimes be tough.

The way I remember it, Felisha learned pretty quickly, but Franz was another story.

On a couple occassions, I recall seeing my dad shove Franz’s nose into the carpet where he’d just peed and say, “NO!” Then he’d put Franz in his crate for an hour, while Felisha got to roam around the house and play.

This went on for quite a while. I forget how long, but I remember my folks talking about how difficult it was to get him trained, especially as compared to Felisha, who seemed to catch on right away.

They say Poodles are one of the smarter breeds. Franz and Felisha were brother and sister. She was smart, but he was either stubborn, lazy or stupid, despite having her as a role model.

He saw how good her life was because she did one thing right – took care of her ‘business’ outside.

And his life in those early days was not nearly as good – because he didn’t.

You’d think he’d catch on – quick – but for whatever reason he continued to sabotage the quality of his life, he continued to spend twice as much time in the crate as Felisha.

I can relate to Franz. In the early days of my biz career, I was stubborn, lazy and stupid about one thing – THE thing. And like Franz, I had no excuse because there were plenty of role models for me.

It was just blatant self-sabotage.

BEWARE THE SABOTEUR (IT’S YOU)

Why do we do it to ourselves?

If you know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that taking a specific action will help you tremendously; and that the converse is also true – not taking that action will hurt you big time; what is it that stops us from doing something so obviously in our own interest?

It’s a good question, for sure. But one even the most sophisticated and accomplished shrinks can’t always answer.

We all sabotage ourselves in one way or another.

Fact is, those who do it less – those with greater self-control and discipline – are those who rise to the top.

That’s the bottom line.

Because there are no external circumstances that can hold you back if you won’t let them. There’s only internal limitations.

“YOU ARE EXACTLY WHERE YOU WANT TO BE.”

I am blessed to have a friend who doesn’t pull any punches with me. He always challenges me. And years ago, when I was really struggling and miserable, he said to me, “You are exactly where you want to be.”

“HA! You’re kidding, right?”

“You are,” he said, “because you took every step to get exactly where you are now.”

I could defend myself on that point all day long. But the more annoyed and defensive I became, the more I argued with him, the more I realized one thing: He was right.

Its not easy to change your mindset from “victim of circumstance” to “in complete control”. And it’s not something that happens overnight. But all it takes is one tiny seed to begin that transformation.

That in-my-face accusation, and the story he told me next, was the seed of my transformation.

You’ve probably heard the story about the Harvard study on goal setting. I’d heard it many times before, but when my friend Ralph told it to me again that day, it finally sunk in…

In 1979, there was a study conducted on students in the Harvard MBA program. In that year, the students were asked, “Have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?” Only three percent of the graduates had written goals and plans; 13 percent had goals, but they were not in writing; and 84 percent had no specific goals at all.

Ten years later, the members of the class were interviewed again, and the findings, were illuminating. The 13 percent of the class who had goals were earning, on average, twice as much as the 84 percent who had no goals at all. And what about the three percent who had clear, written goals? They were earning, on average, ten times as much as the other 97 percent put together.

In spite of such proof of success (and the re-telling of this story so frequently that almost everyone has heard it multiple times by now), most people still don’t have clear, measurable, time-bounded goals that they work toward.

Why not?

SABOTAGE

There simply is no other reason imaginable that a sane person, faced with this evidence, would not sit down, like NOW, and write out his or her goals and a clear, systematic plan for achieving them.

When my buddy Ralph held that metaphorical mirror up to my face so I could see who the culprit really was, he put me on the path towards the achievement I wanted more desperately than anything else. See, it wasn’t about muney, a nice house or a new car, it was about upholding my promise as a human being, living up to my potential, doing what I KNEW I could do. It was about accomplishment and self actualization.

And in my experience, the only way to fully realize and manifest that in our lives is by creating a plan for that achievement and then working that plan.

LIFE BY DESIGN

We can wander aimlessly, buffetted by the winds of circumstance, or we can set a target, pick a point on the map and head towards it with determination.

Regardless of where you are right now, you can be, do and have more by living your life by design. The tighter you dial it in, the more you work at refining the plan and working the plan, the more certainty you get.

I like predictability. I like certainty.

How about you?

Make 2009 your best year ever,
Eric Ruth

P.S. Don’t get caught up in the details of goal setting. Don’t worry about getting it “just right.” Just get it done and make it a weekly, if not daily practice. I promise you, nothing will have a more profound and immediate impact on your life.

If you need a starting point, get Brian Tracy’s excellent book, Goals: How To Get Everything You Want Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible. It’s available at Amazon here.
(that is NOT an affiliate link, Amazon’s links are way too long to put in this email)

What are your thoughts about goal setting and achievement? Share your perspective by posting a comment below…

Here’s another personal trainer marketing post you may enjoy.

Testing Blubrry