Six questions with Heidi Sivers Boyce, the president and CEO of Hawthorn Farm Athletic Club.
1. How did you get started in the fitness industry?
I’m the third generation running family businesses. While we’ve been in several different industries over the decades, all have been rooted in commercial real estate. My start in the fitness industry came when Hawthorn Farm Athletic Club (HFAC) was one location in a multi-club development project. I was just starting in business and learned everything I could by working in every level of operations. I would eventually see our original three club locations sell to a group with growth plans, then watch them struggle and close. That was heartbreaking. I also missed being in the health and wellness industry. When the opportunity came to restart HFAC as a locally-owned, independent club, we jumped back in.
2. What’s been a key to your organization’s success? What are you most proud of?
A key to success is having a set of core values that guide decision making. I’m most proud of doing work that makes a meaningful and positive impact in people’s daily lives.
3. What has been one of the biggest accomplishments of your career?
I’m an optimist with a growth mindset. I hope my biggest accomplishments are ahead.
4. What has been one of the biggest challenges you have faced in your career? And how did you overcome it?
Like many, navigating the COVID-19 pandemic was one of the biggest challenges I’ve faced. I had newly taken on the top leadership role in our family businesses when it hit, and the pandemic significantly but differently impacted each one. I couldn’t have made it through that initial, intense period without first making a serious commitment to prioritize my own physical health and stress management. As someone who tends to put work and caretaking first, that doesn’t come naturally to me. This is one of many reasons I’m grateful to be in our industry.
I also overcame the biggest challenges of that time by connecting with other business leaders. My team and I both asked for and gave support wherever we could. I’m still grateful for the relationships made within HFAC and also through the Health & Fitness Association (formerly IHRSA), our regional Fitlife Association, the Oregon Health and Fitness Alliance, and our local Chamber of Commerce.
5. What is one lesson you have learned that other fitness professionals can learn from?
Much of the work I do is addressing the impact of decisions that were made years and sometimes decades in the past. I’m a vocal advocate for taking a long-term business perspective in any venture. This includes having a clear business plan with multiple exit strategies. I think everyone should invest in good legal and accounting advice, keep good documentation and review the organization’s structure over time. All those good preventative health measures we encourage in our members apply in business health, too.
6. Tell us one fact about yourself others may not know.
Others may not know I have a Ph.D in cognitive psychology from Stanford University with a background in how trauma, depression and anxiety impact the brain and behavior. I’m passionate about the connections between mental health, physical health and overall well-being, and what we can do as an industry to make significant contributions in these areas.
