Community, Connection, and Team Building with Amanda "Wheels" Wheeler

You're listening to the PT Profit podcast, episode number 214. Today I'm sitting down with Amanda Wheels Wheeler, who is discussing the all of the components of community, connection and team building. Are you ready? Let's get started.

Hi, I'm Beverly Simpson, former fitness manager turned online personal training business owner. And this podcast is where smart fitness professionals, including trainers and clinicians, discover how to increase client performance in movement, package and position their products and services, and get out of their own way so that they can increase their revenue to live a life that they love without sleazy sales. Welcome to the PT Profit Podcast.

What's up coach? Thank you so much for pushing play on another episode of the PT Profit Podcast. I'm your host, Beverly Simpson, and today I'm sitting down with Amanda Wheeler, also known as Wheels. I know her as Wheels and I have known her for so many years and it's been an incredible. We were just sharing on this like crazy podcast recording day because I haven't seen her Since I think 2018 in real life, but I have been following her on social for so many years. I feel like I, I have gotten to experience her life and honestly, she is an incredible gift to the the fitness industry. If you're not familiar with her work, then get excited because she is just incredibly smart. She has been a instrumental person in developing the Marc Fisher fitness brand. If you are familiar with the Ninjas and we talk a lot about them inside of this episode. Today she shares with us how her role evolved, going from being a trainer and then working there for over 10 years and really facilitating the growth of their location, building their online program in the. On in the, during the pandemic and then also sharing how she also, she was also worked at Strength Faction and now she continues to coach for the business for Unicorns. And she also now is building her own coaching business on her own. And inside of today's episode, she's sharing with us the power of community, both in from a team perspective as well as creating safe space for your clients. She talks a lot about connection and developing power skills and, and we also talk a lot about team building and what are some of the mistakes and misconceptions when it comes to really cultivating a exceptional team because great teams come from great leaders and so there are differences between being a manager and being a leader and we talk about it all inside of this episode. So without further ado, let's go ahead and roll that interview. What's up, Wheels? Thank you so much for joining me on the show today. How are you?

Oh, I'm doing so well. It's so nice to see your face.

I know right before we hit record, we were just, you know, shooting the. And I just can't believe how social media is both amazing, because it feels like even though I haven't seen you in years, I know exactly what you're up to. It is amazing. So for those of you who are tuning in and you do not have the pleasure of knowing your work wheels, could you please share with us a little bit about who you are, who you serve and how you got there?

Yeah. So my name is Amanda Wheeler. Everybody calls me Wheels. I've been a fitness professional for, like, almost 18 years. Like, 18 years now. I owned a gym, and like the mid 2000s, I moved to New York. I started working for an eclectic gym called Mark Fisher Fitness Fitness, where I was the fitness director and kind of oversaw all programming and people management and all the fun stuff that comes along with being a leader at a gym. And I was also a coach for Strength Faction, which is a group for fitness business owners or people wanting to expand their business. So I was a coach there with them for a long time. And I recently retired my coaching shoes in April to start my own personal coaching practice, more with accountability, fear resistance, procrastination. So I work with individuals kind of working on their own projects right now.

That's amazing. I also forgot to tell you, Todd was also on the show.

Amazing.

It's amazing. I mean, this is amazing. I love the fitness industry for so many reasons. So what caused you to leave and bring your own. Start your own world?

Yeah. So, I mean, it had been a long time coming. Like, I'd been with MFF for just over nine years, and, like, for a gym job, for a place that you don't own, like, that's a long time. And I had essentially done everything that I could have done within that business. I created the online program that we ran through the pandemic that ended up being, like, wildly successful, which is a huge blessing. But I just done a bunch of stuff and a lot of the skills that I learned, like, the. I'll say, like, soft skills, even though they're, like, human skills of communication and listening, a lot of the stuff we practice. Mff. I really just kind of fell in love with that and psychology of, like, why people do what they do, why some people can achieve their goals and why some can in fitness and in life. And. And so I started doing a deep dive maybe like, two years ago into just, like, general Psychology and. And just humans. And so it was just. It was a transition that seemed like it was at the right time and it was, like, the right thing to do. So that's what I've been doing since, I guess May. And I love it.

That's amazing.

It's amazing.

If you're not following her, you have to. She does this amazing thing on Mondays where she talks about her favorite snacks and her, like, motivational. You call it, like, mind munchies. And I mean, it's amazing. You have to, like, you have to watch it. It's amazing. Yeah. So I would love for you. Can we dive a little bit? Like, there's so many things. There's so many amazing things that could talk about. Can you share a little bit about what the experience was, if you don't mind, when in that moment of the pandemic of running a gym. And I remember at the time, Marc Fisher Fitness had just opened a second location, and then you had to facilitate creating this online program. So what was the process? What happened? What were some of your biggest takeaways from that experience?

Yeah. So, I mean, obviously the pandemic was just excruciating and terrible for every human.

And.

And if you're a service provider, like a gym owner or any kind of trainer, we had to be there in person, obviously. It was, like, devastating. And luckily, I had been running. I had my own group called Formation Strength that I was running that was all online, which I worked with. It's kind of how I met you, I think with Jill Coleman's group. I was part of her. I was part of her group, and I started learning how to do the, like, work in the online space. And then I transitioned that and I started working doing Mark Fisher Fitness online stuff before the pandemic happened, just because it was, like, kind of my journey. And then when the pandemic happened or we kind of knew things were going to start to shift, Mark literally was like, can you just figure, like, create something for our members to be able to just come to, like, a place where we can gather and still hold classes? And I was like, yep. And I just had no idea how I was going to do it. But we hosted classes on Zoom, where we had, like, up to 40 participants. And in the class, and it started out as, like, three classes a day. And in the first week, it went to four, and then five, and then six. And at the. In the beginning, I was the only employee on staff of all of mff. Everyone got furloughed, but people were coming really in like trolls to come take these classes just to be part of a community. And so we started bringing coaches back and at one point we had up to, I think we had like 105 classes that we offered a week between what we were doing at MFF and then we had a corporate client that we were doing stuff that was like a global corporate corporation where we were doing same thing for their, for their community. So it grew very rapidly because our community is also like already super strong. But I think a lot of it was just the pull for people to feel like they were connected in any capacity to anybody else.

Oh my gosh, that's amazing. So, okay, so what were some of the biggest, like lessons and takeaways? Like, what were some of the things that you had to learn quickly on your feet during that experience?

Yeah, well, one was just how to navigate the online space, like Zoom meeting, class over zoom. Right. I'm like, what the heck? It was, it was really. I mean, it's a completely different skill set because there you can do hands on coaching. And you know, our coaches are absolutely just like unbelievable. Where we were still providing a coaching experience. It wasn't like the coaches demoing the movements and everyone's following along. It's like, like we're saying what the movements are and then we're spotlighting screens of people doing different options as we're coaching people in the class. So a lot of it was just like, I need to learn how to use Zoom effectively and how to get good at technology because it was just a completely different skill set. So we had to learn that like very quickly. So that was a big one. But I think, you know, in a grander, like human sense, it really was like at that point it like fitness was secondary to belonging and feeling like you could come into a group, you could be seen, you could be with other people. You happen to be doing fitness. It happened to be smart fitness that you could do in your home. Like, we were still using science based methods with paint cans and, you know, whatever people had, but it was really just like we already knew that MF athlete community is such a big thing, but just like the pandemic hit home that people want to feel like they have a safe space where they can belong and go to and kind of like escape some of the other things happening in the world.

Well, I mean, that was one of the, the big. That still is, in my opinion, one of the biggest things that is so amazing about Mark Fisher fitness specifically is just there, you know, which I know that you have contributed to their, their incredible ability to create community. Because that is a skill and it actually something that is very challenging for people to, to do in their gyms, especially as you're growing different locations. Right. How do you, you know, and in corporate worlds, like community really matters, so how do you start to, you know, facilitate that? And that is a skill which needs, which is amazing how you were able to, you know, translate that in terms of, you know, bringing that to the online world. And so I'm also curious in your opinion, in the, in the spirit of community, because I. There are different communities to consider. You've got the community of staff and then you've also got the community of the people. So how have you noticed that to be different?

So like, as far as like navigating that or building community within each of.

Them, I would say, you know. Yeah, navigating the differences. And how would you begin to navigate that experience of community with staff? I'll say staff specifically, and if you want, you can add in community.

But yeah, so staff is a great thing and it's tricky. But if you can figure it out, having congruency on your staff is you have to have everybody rowing the boat in the same direction and you have to have people on board and they have to be bought into what you are doing. And if you can get that, it's like chef's kiss. It's like your business will start to soar and it takes a lot of practice and communication. And if you are leading a team, who is where you need to kind of like wrangle them and bring them together. Getting to know the people on your staff individually, where it's like, I was spending time with each of the coaches and it wasn't necessarily a significant amount of time, but I was checking in with them weekly. How are you? Do you feel like you have everything you need to do your job well, what questions you have, what things are coming up? So there's a constant check in and there's like a trust that's built like kind of from the get go when somebody first comes on and we're checking in. And I think that people feeling safe in the space and like they, they trust you and having everybody feel like they're in a good place with their manager, that also permeates into team relationships. Right, because it's like we already have this relationship we're developing at MFF is slightly different because it's like we're all on the same team. Nobody's vouching to try to get clients from anybody else. It was like, it's a training facility. People come in, whoever the coach is, that's who they work with. So we definitely had an advantage there where it wasn't like a box gym where you have a, like old school ballet, total fitness, where it's like, here's your team of trainers. But people are like, you know, fighting tooth and nail the clients in the gym. But it really, it's like, it's the community communication and like the listening practice. So we would legit practice listening and communicating and we would do role playing, like with clients. Like one pretends like we're a client, the other one's listening to like what they're saying, they're acknowledging and validating, repeating back some of the things. And I think it's a hugely overlooked skill in training for sure to be able to communicate with your clients, but specifically on staff to like hear everybody, like be able to meet people where they are. But it's like if you can get your staff to practice those skills together, that transitions hugely into the people that you're training. Right? They already have the skills, they're practicing on the team. So then to do that with the clients is huge. And then the clients then feeling safe in the space and like they're kind of getting to know the other people. It kind of like, I don't say it builds itself, but it kind of does start to build itself. Or if it's a safe space for people, they will open up and. And a lot of it is communication on the coaches end.

What comes to mind is that phrase, the fish stinks from its head. So it's almost like the community will start to sort itself out once you have leadership in place, essentially and community in, in. In the leadership team is what I heard. So I'm curious, in your opinion, right, as these, as people are growing their businesses, I think that this idea of building a team and team building can feel really scary. What of the foundational things that you work with the business of unicorns on, or you know, with people that you work with? What are some of the foundational, like, how does someone go through the process of team building? When do I hire? Who's the first hire? How do you make these types of decisions?

Yeah, I mean, that is the question, right? For anybody hiring, it's like, it's been kind of brutal. So I've heard since the pandemic. Because there are a lot of people who, their boundaries and their willingness to do things are very different now, which is great for a lot of Workers who are maybe like, you know, had shitty schedules or like we're not making money. I mean it's like there was a, there were good things to come out of that. And also hiring is kind of brutal right now for a lot of training gyms. And you know, at mff, something that we did was we essentially brought people up through the ranks. So I actually think, I think I was the first hire at Mark Fisher Fitness who had a strength conditioning background. Literally. I don't know, maybe they had five or six, seven coaches that got brought in before who were all performers and they were actually like groomed, which is like a terrible word to use. But it's like we, we kind of brought them up. So they were ninjas to start. Were our clients call them ninjas. And we saw they had potential, obviously they had charisma, they were like, you know, performers. But they were smart people and we taught them everything they needed to know to be a successful science based trainer at mff. We would send them to conferences, you know, we'd read Charlie Mongraph and Pat Davidson and Bill Hart. Like we, you know, we were making sure people were on top of their. But it's like we were hand selecting the people that we thought were going to be incredible to be part of our community of staff and bringing them up, which is hard, which is hard to do to like teach somebody. But it's like if you want to build a community and you want to have congruency, it's like choosing, you want to choose the person as a human, not necessarily just their skill set because you can be the best coach with like you can have a doctorate, you can have you know, 20 years maybe of training experience. But like if you are just a dud of a human and your facility is lightly can't communicate, you want to make sure people have like human the soft skills, the communication skills to be able to deliver what they're doing. But it's hard. And I know we kind of struggled with you know, doing like referrals or putting things out on like indeed or like hiring. But it was like we weren't getting the types of people that we wanted. Like we had people that were qualified but they weren't people that like fit with what MFF is and what our brand and what our culture is. So it's like the hand selecting of people is kind of huge. And if you have somebody who is interested that is coming up through the gym or knows your program, knows what you do, it's a great start. Obviously interns, you Know places like Cressy places like, it's like if you're pulling through interns, that's a great because you've already. They've gone through your program, they know what you're about and you have had the opportunity to kind of see what they can do over several months. So you can decide if it's a good fit. But as you're bringing people up, it's a lot of work. And I think part of it is just one accepting that it's going to be a huge time and energy suck to start, but in the long run it will pay off. But for a lot of people, it's like, this is actually gonna be more like you need to take things off your plate. But it's going to be more work to bring somebody up to speed. And it's gonna suck for a little bit, but it will get better.

Oh, that's so good. And so what are some of the, like KPIs key performance indicators that you typically put in place so that you can navigate that nuanced, you know, period of time that is like, okay, this is going to be. Take some work to get them on board. And then now we're going to have that compounding tipping point of like everyone's executing the vision. So what does that look like for you?

So we have a whole onboarding process. So when somebody comes in, right when they start, they're taking classes, they're taking semi private training. So they as a participant, if they had not. So if they were already a ninja, they continue to do that. But if not, they're immediately like, they have to take like a classes, four training sessions a month to understand really what the product is. So they're involved in on the, the client end. And then we go through what we call like a ninja baptism, which is like a foundation so class where we're teaching them the way that we teach movement patterns, which is the same as like everybody else teaching deadlifts. It's the same. We just use very specific language. So we make sure, like we have crazy silly language that we use. So we make sure everybody's up to speed there. We get them in on foundations and then we have them teach us foundations. So then we slowly, like we bring in our other coaches, we bring in a couple of ninjas. Like this person is now going to take all y' all through a ninja baptism. And then like me or somebody else is like watching them teach, taking notes, we review it afterward. Okay, this is what works. This is what, you know, maybe we can play around with next time. And we continue to do that and slowly bring them up through the ranks. So after we feel like they're proficient at being able to kind of coach like in a group or semi private setting, then they're co teaching. So then maybe I'm leading a class, but this person is leading a section of class but I'm still there. And they have to do like three or four co teaching classes. The last one where we have them on their own. But again somebody's in the room. Maybe I'm like a participant taking the class just so there's like a you know, fail safe there in case anything happens. And if that goes well then they're kind of off to the races with us checking in. Right. So they're never like there's always somebody in the building. They're never completely left alone until they get really. It's like a 90 day mark and it's like once we're like 90 days in, cool, you feel good. Great. And a lot of that too is just like weekly in services with the new coaches. But it's just like high touch, super high touch where we're seeing them, they're seeing us, we're making sure that communication is there. And I think one of the most important things when you bring people in on a team is giving them I'll say like constructive feedback right away in a loving way where it's like this is what you're crushing, this is what we can work on next time. How did you feel about it? What do you want to work on next time? So getting feedback is just part of how we are in the daily. You're not waiting to give feedback until. All right, well this is your three month review and like these are all the things you sucked at, you know, like it should never be a surprise. It's like we are in constant kind of communication emotion of like this is what you're doing well, this is where we can play. This is what you're doing well, this is where we can play. So it never, they don't take offense to it. It's part of the process of working at mff. It's like there's always feedback great and you know, opportunities for improvement.

So you, you brought up communication which in my opinion. So I'll be curious what yours is in the sense that communication oftentimes tends to be where a lot of people struggle and they are don't even really recognize or realize some of the, the communication breakdowns that you know that are, that are also you know, client to coach, also coach to coach. Coach to boss. So I'm curious, from your perspective, what are some of the common, you know, mistakes and misconceptions that people get into, that leaders specifically get into as they start to build their team regarding communication.

Yeah. So I think the. The best way to communicate is to one listen, right? So you were having a discussion or whatever. Like, I'm listening. I'm hearing what you're saying, not what I think you're saying. And a tool that we use is, like, you're giving your spiel. I'm listening. And then we're gonna pause, and I'm gonna repeat back to you what I think. Like, I heard you say. So somebody's having a problem. Like, I hate my schedule. You know, on. Like, I don't want to work these mornings. Like, I don't like these clients. Great. So what I'm hearing you say is, like, the schedule's not, you know, great for you. Maybe you feel uncomfortable working with this person. Am I hearing that correctly? Yes. Cool. Now let's start to make some strategies, at least for, like, people on the team. But making sure you are both talking about the same thing is you got to be on the same page, right? Because a lot of times people will say something, and then we hear what we want to hear, what we think we hear, and then we have feelings about what we think we heard and not actually what's, you know, going on. So the repeat back, at least on. On a staff, huge. And also acknowledging and validating because, like, people just want to be heard, right? So it's like, you know, I. You know, I hate that I have to teach all the night classes. I don't get to spend time with my family. I say, Doug. Yeah. Like, dude, that totally makes sense. Makes sense you'd feel that way. And I know you love your family, and it is meaningful to spend time with them. So I'm, like, acknowledging I'm validating what they're saying. And then it's like, all right, how can we move forward through this? So listen, make sure you hear what they're saying. Acknowledge and validate, and then move forward. And it's a great structure. And it's hard at first. It's so hard. It's hard. I mean, just to practice communicating with people. It's hard because we always are thinking, like, what do I want to say before that person's done? Like, what is my answer going to be? Instead of like, okay, I'm really listening to what you're saying? And Then like we're gonna kind of go from there. But it's a practice, but it gets better.

And I, I, I feel like it's twofold too, just for me and in my experience is, I think it's one of those things that we all like to double tap on Instagram, like yeah, yeah, yeah, cool, I get it. And we understand it concept conceptually, but we don't live from it. It's not like a knowing. And I also think that it comes from this place of, you know, our brain is efficient and we're trying to automate and so when we have the double edged sword experience of evidence, we just try to speed it up because we are trying to anticipate or think we already know what's going to happen instead of, you know, pushing that reset button of like every experience and conversation is new, even if it sounds familia. And that is a skill.

Totally. Yeah.

And hard.

Yeah. Well, it's like at the end of the day you just need to remember it's like you're dealing with a human who has things happening outside of their life. Maybe something's happening with their family, you know, maybe their own health and fitness isn't where they want it. So there's like some insecurity in their coach. It's just like there's so many other aspects outside of just like here we are just, you know, talking about this gym gig. It's like there are just so many other factors that come into play that it's like we need to see the whole person. Even if it's for this one job. It's like come and do your job and go. But it's like you still have to consider all the aspects of a person to be able to communicate well. Yeah.

And it's challenging. Like you said, it can be a skill. Right. So now, you know, I'm curious too for you. And as you're continuing to start your business from scratch and working through, you know, team building, how do you make decisions on when to hire who and who's the first one to hire?

Yeah. So I mean, fortunately for me, now I'm solopreneuring it up. I mean, no, I'm really just kind of living this life of I am loving and eager to just like, you know, be my own boss on my own team of one that I am, you know, But I think very similarly, if and when I ever decide to bring somebody on, which I help someday, like I'm, I'm gonna bask in this glory right now. But you know, as it continues. If I need to bring people on, I mean, it really is like, who do I know and who do I trust? You know, and it's like, maybe it is like a friend. And I know that's like not always the best choice. I mean, because you want somebody with a skill set, right? But it's like really you want somebody that you can trust and that you don't have to handhold and micromanage. Like if this is just across the board, if you are hiring somebody that you have to micromanage, it's going to make your life miserable. They're going to be miserable. You're going to spend more time and more like mental real estate, you know, trying to get this person up to speed. But I think it's, it would be trust and then, you know, depending on, depending on what the, what the tasks were. I mean, obviously I would create an sop, standard operating procedure to make sure everything's laid out about like, okay, this is the task. This is exactly what needs to happen. So there's no question. So like especially in a gym, if you're bringing on coaches and you are, you have a semi private training model and they need to execute these things in this order. Having it written out where there's no question in a way that is so simple to understand that like a kid could come in and read it and be like, oh yeah, turn on the music. Okay, turn on the club lights. Those may be for mff, but you know, make sure these things are clean at the. Okay, I gotta, you know, wash out the handles. Cool. Like it needs to be so understandable that it's like, that they're not like messing up in ways that are like annoying to you as the, as the leader. Right. So you want to set them up for success and it's annoying to write an sop. I tell you what, it's not my favorite thing, but again, it's like at the end of the day it'll save you so much time in the long run. So I would definitely make SOPs standard.

Operating procedures for those of you who don't know what that means. I mean, you know, it's so important also for yourself too, because I think even if you are solopreneur in you still, the roles still exist in your business, whether you're doing them or someone else is doing them, period. And I think that we all are unconsciously or consciously for that matter. We are, you know, this is so easy for us and that we just think that it's going to be faster Than, than doing it ourselves, than if we hire it out. Which my personal opinion can oftentimes be a bottleneck for you in your business. Right. And I think for me, step one is like, let's just get clear on what these rules are, right? So it's, it's powerful. So now as you start to grow, I'm, I'm also curious in your opinion and how you have facilitated this idea of, you know, building type of longevity and sustainability in, you know, for lack of a better word, a job. Like, how do you turn a job into this career and create a sense of, you know, empowerment for the employee to want to stay? Because it is abnormal, at least in the fitness space, as a former fitness manager, that anyone is going to be in a job for 10 years.

Yeah, totally. One. Well, I think a couple things. One is, do your employees feel valued? Do they feel valuable to the business? Do they feel seen? Do they feel appreciated? Right? So those are, it's kind of, they're like these kind of big things, but it's like, do they feel value? Do they feel like you see their worth or are they just another number? Oh, you're just, you're trainer number 13. You know, we can replace you with anybody. It's like, okay. Do they feel like you value them as an employee? Do they feel like they have the opportunity to bring their biggest skills forward? So they do they feel like they are adding because people don't, like, people want to feel like they're contributing to a business to like make it better, right? It's like if you go in and you're just like, well, here I am, like cleaning equipment or, you know, whatever, you're just like another coach. Then it's like, you don't, you don't have to work there. But it's like, if I can come in every day, I'm like, I, I'm contributing, I'm giving my best work and I feel like I have the opportunity to really shine in a certain area. That's huge. To be like, just to be seen as a person, right? What's happening in your life? What's going on? Like, it's not just the business and then just like the appreciation because, you know, a lot of the shit is like day to day tasks that just need to get done. But sometimes people are just like a little bit more, you know, particular or it's just like a little bit extra. And it's like, man, I see you doing this, I see you like, you know, you're making these little adjustments and like Heck, yeah. Like, that is appreciated. Even though we don't see everything that you're doing that's extra on a daily basis, like, man, we're so lucky to have you as part of this team. And I think if you're in a manager leadership role, and I say this too, like, at mff, I truly felt like my job was to find what sparked people, what they were interested in, what they were good at, and just fan that flame and help them shine. And everybody's going to be different. Right. So it's like, if one person is really great at program design, I'm like, you. Yes. Like, let's go. Let's build up that skill. And it doesn't mean other people couldn't do it, but I'm going to fan that flame. And if somebody else's is like, hilarious coaching, like, in a specific way, I'm like, yes. Like, but it's really like, if you are the best, if you're the manager and you're the best at everything in your gym, like, I don't think you're doing your job. I think your job as a manager and a leader is to see what is great in people and help develop that and bring it out and help them shine. And I think that's a huge part in having people stay. And I definitely felt it at mff, it was like. Like, they were like, go. What do you want to do? Go. We love you, appreciate you. You're bringing this to the community. Like, fan your flames. Go. Can I say F. Can I say okay? And that's why. I mean, that's why I stayed so long. I mean, I just felt so valued and appreciated and, like, I was able to bring my whole self and. And that was. That was huge.

And I think, too, one of the things that you said, I think it's worth pointing out, is that you were able to bring your whole self. I think people, they. They unders. They. They miss that there is a difference between leadership and management, that we're not here to try and control people and get, like, be a taskmaster. We're trying to, you know, people bring so much value to the company. Can you really see that? And I think that that is, you know, you put it soft skills. I had Ali on the podcast, she talked about from the Art of coaching, and she was talking about power skills. Yeah. Because really, that's what it is, is, you know, some of the invisible components of being able to see people.

Yeah.

See people when they're not, you know, you know, maybe what they can't consciously articulate it like, hey, you know, I'm good at this and they just might not even know it.

Right? Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure.

And I think for me, I'll share. For me, just from my perspective is that when I had a manager or a coach or a mentor, and if you're coaching, even as a solopreneur, you. You are a leader to your client. Is that when they can speak to your potential and see through whatever it is that you're bringing into the room that is magic power happens there.

Looks like self fulfilling prophecy.

Yes.

Right. It's like, I'm like, oh my gosh, Beverly, your podcast is the. Like, you're gonna crush it. You're. You're gonna do it, man. It is awesome. It's like you're like, like, yeah, my podcast is a. I am crushing it. I am gonna be like, it's like, you see that? And then they're like, oh, I. It's like you step in. It's. I mean, we. I can go on this philosophical whatever, but it's like, you're not who I think you are. It's like you're who I think you are.

Yes.

Like, you know what I mean?

Yes, I do. 1,000.

Yeah. So it's like you fulfill that role in whatever you think somebody sees you as.

So.

Yes, yes.

And it's how. And it's powerful. And when you, when you know this as a leader, this is going to exponentially grow your business. Because now you're not. You know, people come for content, but they stay for community and connection. People just want to be connected.

Yeah. Period. Yeah. Yeah. Right.

It's almost like the fitness stuff, the business building stuff, it matters, but it's a secondary gain, essentially, you know.

Yes. Yeah. 100. And that's in any. That's across the board. I mean, it's any business. Right. It's like there's a product, but it's like, but it's like, why are you doing what you're doing? Who are you like, who are you serving? What's your community? Like, what's your value and goal? Yeah. And then it's like your product is actually secondary to really any kind of business.

Now we can't. You know, I always also come to the law of hilarity in the sense that, you know, you cannot have one without the other. So the flip side of that is, you know, you're going to have those hard, crucial conversations of performance and, you know, the firing process, you know, what are some of the mistakes that you see people when it comes to, you know, dealing with team, when it comes to crucial conversations, performance conversations, and then ultimately that uncomfortable. Maybe it's time to part ways.

Yeah. So, I mean, just to go back to what I was saying before, like, when we bring people into mff, there's a constant feedback kind of loop that's happening. So we're giving you the things that you're crushing. We're giving you the things that you could work on that will make you better. It's not like you suck at this. It's like, no, this is cool. This is what we're going to play with and kind of like develop to make sure you feel good. So when you're giving, like performance reviews, it should never. It shouldn't be a surprise. You know, it's like when I was doing my end of year performance reviews for 13 coaches, it's like they already know what we're going to talk about. They already know. Like, like, okay, this is what I'm crushing. This is where I have room to grow. And I have had some really, really difficult conversations with people who I loved, who, you know, it's like people who are on your team that you just, like, really value, but they're like, you know, not doing well. And just to give an example, like, you know, I had one coach who had the, the best interest, you know, of the, of the business at heart. But she was a yes person and wanted to feel like she was contributing and not like she was like, you know, not pulling her weight in the business. So she would say yes to things. New mother. And yes, yes, yes. And it's like. And then she was like, falling behind and I was like, I had to sit down and be like, I love you. You. Like, I want you to succeed in this role. Let's talk about, you know, what's happening. We're missing, like a lot of deadlines, but let's like, like find a deeper why. It's not because you're lazy. It's not because you have a child. It's not. It's like, oh, we overextended because you don't want to feel like you're not pulling your weight on a team, like, really as a new mother. So it's like, okay, right? Other people want these opportunities of the things that you. That are like, crushing your life. And it's not only affecting your job, it's like affecting your personal life as well. Like, I don't want that for you. Let's pull back so you can really focus on These things that you can get done, and, like, we can distribute these other things to other people who want to do them. And, I mean, and that's an example of, like, somebody missing a deadline, but it's, like, finding, like, really what's happening. And obviously, we have other things, like coaching, like, people not coaching things in a specific way that we're like, this is. We really want to hit these three points, and, like, we're not doing that. But again, it all comes from a place of, like, improvement and never, like, a scolding. And I will say just doing some business for unicorns things. What's been really super interesting with this is specifically with men, like, gym owners that I've talked with. They've expressed, like, having a hard time talking to their other guys, like, giving them feedback to, like, do tasks out of hesitation of, like, they don't want to, you know, butt heads or they don't want to feel. Yeah. You know, they don't want to whatever. So it's been like, okay, like, you can talk to this guy without, like, bruising his ego. Not saying that men, like, not saying men are like that at all. But these are just the men that I've talked to who have had, like, issues on the team. And a lot of it, too, is, like, respect. Like, I think coaches, if you're working for another guy who owns a gym, I'll say men specifically. It's like, you respect that guy. You want to work there. So if that guy's kind of coming at you or you feel like they're coming at you with feedback, then it's like, you know, there's a little bit of an ego bruising. These same men have said when they talk to, like, my, like, female general manager, the conversation is a little bit softer. It's more. They're more open, which is. I'm not saying anything is true or false. This is just the conversations I've had with some of the people in business for unicorns. But I do think if it's just constant, it doesn't feel as brutal. You know, if it's like, if it's on a daily. If it's on a weekly basis of, like, here's what you're crushing. This is room for improvement. Oh, again, like, you forgot to, like, put away the towels at the end of the night, so this person had to do it the next day. Like, we did that a couple times. What can I do to support you to being able to do that? And, like, obviously, if it gets to be, like, three strikes, like, A three strikes and you're out kind of thing. It's really just like stating the facts without the feelings. Like, this is what happened. This is why we're having to make this choice. We love you. Best of luck. You gotta go.

But that must be so. I mean, that must have been so hard. Especially, you know, in listening to what some of the stuff you've said earlier about sometimes it's your friends and sometimes it's, you know, you have to be able to draw those clear boundaries between like, I don't want this to affect our personal relationship versus our business relationship. Like, how, how hard has that been for you and for, you know, the people that you experience. And how do you hone that skill of boundary setting?

Yeah, I mean, so I had, I had to personally fire two people in the pandemic. Two coaches, one I. We basically got hired at the same time at mff. They were beloved by the Ninjas and like, you know, it had been a long time coming, but just could not really, you know, get some of the their together of like, you need to show up to teach the class. Like, you just gotta, you just gotta go up the teacher class. You gotta come to work, you got a job, you gotta come to work, work. And it was brutal. And it was like. And, and I didn't even. It was like in that case, because I knew this person and really like adored this person. I was just like, yo, this sucks. But like, we can't do this anymore. Like you and I know, I mean, they, they understood. They were like, I get it. Like, it's you know, my 15th time that I didn't show up for class. Like, it's got to go. But, but, and so sometimes they just know. And then I had another one too who was a performer who was just adored. He was a great addition to the team, but just booked these last minute shows and had to piece out. And the first time he did it, we're like, all right, we'll cover your. But like the second time it happened, I was like, like, it's just not fair to the team now. And like, we love you and we'll support you. Like, you're literally the best. But like, you have to think about the collective, not just one person, because we're thinking about one person, then the team gets resentful. Like if somebody's messing up and it affects the whole team. Like the team gets resentful and then it's like if you're not taking care of the situation and that's putting us in a Shitty position. Like now we don't trust you to, to handle a problem.

And it sounds like, you know, based on the feedback loop that you have put into the business, that it doesn't oftentimes come as a surprise. And I'm just curious however, though, that just because you're giving feedback doesn't necessarily mean it's always received. How often have people been really, you know, confused or wondered how on earth this happens? Like, does that come up often for you or for the teams?

Honestly, I mean like, we were super fortunate mff, because we, these are just listening skills, feedback skills. Like we practice literally from like day one, which is something that we implement and it's, it takes so much time and effort. But like I have had crucial conversations like when I was not managing staff to staff where they were like, you know, you, you know what I mean? Where it's like what like, you know, and those are hard and it's like, I'm going to stay. I think something that we practice too is like in a crucial conversation, it's like, this is my fact, this is what I see that happened without my emotion in it. This is my perception. No judgment against you as a person. I am not going to feel any way about it. I'm just stating the facts and I am stating like what I wish would have happened or like a different outcome, you know, that we were going for and sometimes taking the emotion, like really practicing taking the emotion out of it. Even though it's so heated in the moment where it was like we had this 25 meeting minute meeting scheduled, this was 25 minutes that, that there was no plan, there was no agenda. We actually didn't get anything done in it. And this is very useful time for me during the day. So it would be awesome like next time if we have an agenda going into it so we know what we want to accomplish so we're not wasting everybody's time, something like that. And there, that was a very, there was a real conversation I had with somebody where they were like, you know, there's a little bit of pushback but ultimately like we kind of got there and came to a little compromise. But yeah, it's hard, it's super hard. But it really is just, it's like the more you do it and the more people receive is like the better you get at it. But it's gonna suck at first. It's gonna be hard, they're gonna be hurt feelings. But it's like the more you practice, the easier it gets, the better people are at Receiving, like, feedback and yourself as well. You know, it's like you get better at it as well.

Yeah. And I. I'm also curious, you know, have you noticed that? Has it transcended into your personal relationships? Like, 100%. Yeah, 100.

My wife. Well, because my wife worked at. We met at MFF and she was on the biz team. You know, she doesn't. She left in, you know, years and years ago, but it was in the height of us practicing these communication skills weekly. And so she has the same communicate communication skills that I do. And so, like, in our. Like, we joke around in our marriage, we're like, God, maybe we communicate too well. Where I'm like, oh, is this, like, boring? I'm like, oh, to be mad at you sometimes. Or like, you know what I mean? It's like there's no. We're like, we're so reasonable and we communicate so beautifully. Like, sometimes I just want to feel mad at you when it's like, no, we can just like, talk through because we've practiced for so long. But yeah, of course it. I mean, it just translates into every other area of life.

So it's so true. I mean, I think it's just one of these. Skip Communication is one, in my opinion, an undervalued good skill that I just think needs to continue to be refined and practiced. It's like no one just squats once and then never squats again. I mean, we're squatting forever. Communication is the same thing.

Yeah, it's an ongoing. And it'll be different with every. Everybody. Yes. Right. So it's like, it's truly different with every person you encounter. So it is a constant practice. Like you are practicing daily with each individual that you're interacting with in your life. Life.

And I'll just share too, from my perspective that, you know, I was a fitness manager for the box gyms. That's why I laughed. You know, I've been like, oh, yeah, double tapping. Knowing this, like, all the time. I know this. Blah, blah, blah. But then when I had my children, it was like, oh, wait, my kids came into this world and it was like, oh, this is a different. Yeah, this is a different ball game. It was like a new level of awareness around the importance of communication. I always say that I. I love to hate them, but I truly. They're my biggest G in. In human development because. Oh, ground up human.

Yeah, totally.

You know, so, so cool. So, Wheels, this has been amazing. I want to be mindful of your time. Thank you so much. We got through it. We did it. So thank you so much for pouring into me and into the community today. I really appreciate it.

Of course. Yeah, it's awesome. I'm so thankful to be here.

So for those of you who want to go deeper and go and connect with you, what are some of the best places I can send them?

Yeah, so my handle at Tick Tock and Instagram is a wheel. Snacks. W H E E L S S N A C K S I do like, I have snacks and I talk about, like, things like psychology, things that are useful in fitness and in life. And then I am a coach at Business for Unicorns. So it's for gym owners. And these are mostly people with brick and mortar facilities, but I coach there. I'm part of their team. And so that's. That's where you can find me. Email is wheelsamandaweeler.com but mostly on Instagram and Tick Tock is kind of where I live.

Okay, amazing. And I'll be sure to link all of that up in the show notes. So thank you again. I really appreciate it.

Sweet. Of course. Thank you.

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