Jarod Cogswell, the co-creator and senior director of Spartan DEKA, shares why focusing on coaching versus managing elevates your team to another level.
Leading a fitness business to peak performance is no easy task. There are so many variables to manage, but one area that deserves maniacal focus is how we educate, support and motivate our team members. The fact is, culture is crucial to any service-related organization and it starts at the top.
In this case, let’s zero in on our fitness coaches, instructors and trainers. There is no doubt these team members have a dramatic impact on member and client experiences, including membership sales and retention. While some naturally attract and retain high participation levels in classes or a solid book of business, most do not possess the business experience to maximize their own potential. This is where we have the awesome opportunity to sincerely lead and mentor our team members.
With this said, I’ve met many fitness operators frustrated with their teams or individual employees for a lack of expected performance, but these cases actually allow us to put our coaching hats on and ask ourselves the following:
- Am I leading to the expectations of my team?
- Am I personally demonstrating “the ethos” that I expect the team to deliver to our members and clients, including positive energy, care, passion and work ethic?
- Am I leading, coaching and mentoring my team to perform at a higher level versus simply managing?
- Am I doing all of the above and still graciously holding my team accountable to the standards?
- Am I recognizing even the small victories and showing appreciation for those who are taking our business to higher levels?
As fitness professionals, our facilities are sacred. For some, the club, gym or studio is an escape and a special place where we grow stronger physically, mentally and emotionally. In order for these benefits to permeate naturally throughout the business, it should be the same for our team members. They are the glue and, in most cases, the reason our members keep coming back.
Yes, coaches need coaches. We all do. So, let’s focus on coaching versus managing to elevate our teams to another level. In the end, it’s an awesome way to armor up your business.
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Jarod Cogswell is the co-creator and senior director for Spartan DEKA, the decathlon of functional fitness. He can be reached at jarod.cogswell@spartan.com or, for more information, log on to deka.fit.
