The Paradox of Success

You're listening to the PT Profit podcast, episode number 276. Today we're breaking down the paradoxes of success. How to integrate them, how it pertains to you so that you can start to generate revenue today and make the impact that you want. 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 and 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 if this is the first time that you're hanging out with me today, welcome. I'm super excited and pumped that you're here. I can't wait to dive in because we have 10 seemingly paradoxical experiences that I keep seeing consistently in three ways. Number one, I want to just go ahead and call it out, say for myself, this is a perfect example. I have hit four times on this episode because I've been letting my perpetual big desire want to both get it right and to get it perfect. And that type of thinking is exactly what keeps people broke, stuck, and not moving forward. Because think about it. Growth requires skill and skill requires action. So if you are perpetually stuck in the weeds, perpetually stuck in your head, you're dead. You are not taking action. And if you're not taking action, you are not requiring outcomes. And outcomes will give you skill, either the lesson that you need or the success that you want. Plain and simple. And how many times have you thought to yourself, man, if I just take the action I asked my clients to do, then I would be just as successful. Okay, so this is me owning that, acknowledging that, and recognizing that these are the same components that I notice inside of myself in this context and also in the context of growing my business. Every time that you are growing and you get to some type of the next level, you're going to get into some type of constraint. And for me, I was so fixated and focused on my clients that I was noticing consistently in my own behavior and in my own actions and outcomes. I was letting my stuff go to the wayside. And it's so, so easy for people to do that, especially high achieving parental type of people. It's really easy to put yourself on the back burner and then almost look like you are speaking from an ivory tower, which is not what we do here at B. Sims and Fitness. I am a service leader. I'm in the trenches. I'm constantly taking my own action, sharing my own experience and helping you get further along so that you can start to make the impact you want to make inside of the fitness industry. Because when you make the impact that you want to make and the revenue that you want to make will have a ripple effect in the world and be an amplification of helping people because good people do good in this world. So number two, I started noticing that in my own coaching containers I was watching these really high achieving smart coaches get stuck in the weeds, get stuck in in action, refusing to do the action items that required for them to move forward. And I noticed that my coaching for one person almost conflicted with the coaching that I had just given to the person before. And when you are in an input environment that can feel conflicting and confusing. Then I kept seeing educational content in the Internet webs, which also seemed seemingly paradoxical. For example, these 10 things were about to break down inside of this episode. Because what I'm hoping you take away is that it's really not about what other people are doing and it's really not about what is right. And it's what it's really about is figuring out what's going to work best for you, how to take action, how to measure the performance and how to care about everything and nothing at the same time. Because often it's both how do you decide and what specifically am I talking about? So let's dive into it. So the first one that we're going to talk about is number one, the truth about value. If you've been in my container for any amount of time, you've heard me say just add value is keeping you broke. You've also heard me say things, okay, this is where we need to add value. So this gets confusing because some people, they will create so much educational content that makes them sound like their encyclopedia. And that's like becoming Charlie Brown's mom, where everyone is like, and I'm willing to bet that your amazing educational hooks like five ways to desired outcome, five ways to get blood at a block. Those are really powerful and awesome pieces of content and yet nobody is engaging and nobody's paying attention. And then you're left feeling like, maybe I'm incompetent, maybe my stuff isn't good and no one wants my stuff. Or maybe you just add so Much value. And you teach them everything that they need to know and they walk away high fiving you, thanking you so much for your, for your pieces of. Thank you so much for your wisdom. And feel like, let me go try this on. And then you make them feel like, oh man, I don't need you. This is amazing. Or maybe you overwhelm them so much that they feel like, I can't even do it, so why even bother? So we have to find the Goldilocks experience of where we continue to solve a problem, introduce the next problem, and demonstrate the next step to be the solution. That's what we're doing consistently, day in, day out. And so in order to do that, you have to fully understand what does adding value mean? Well, first, let's just unpack what that means. The first thing that we need to do is recognize your client's problem that they know that they're in. And then what is the outcome that they want? Here's what happens. People keep creating content for a solution that people don't think that they need to get, an outcome that they don't really want to solve a problem they don't think that they're in, which is why no one's paying attention to you. Honestly, adding value truly comes down to these three things. What is the fastest outcome that you could provide to demonstrate a deep sense of trust in your offer that helps them see that your way is the best way, the fastest way to get to the desired outcome no one's looking up, what's the second best way to lose fat? What's the second best way to get strong? The second way to add value is a more than just telling someone their misconception. It is to show and shift and demonstrate that the perception, perspective that they're in is a misconception and that the mistakes that the actions that they're taking are actually mistakes. When you can do that, you subconsciously connect yourself and position yourself as the authority to your ideal client's subconscious because it connects you. And it's more than being relatable and being vulnerable, and it's demonstrating a deep understanding of the problem where your client is. And this is not about what your favorite color is. This is about, can this person actually solve my problem? The third thing is the experience of what it's like. You could either go to a Super 8 or you could go to Ritz Carlton. Do you want to be a Ritz Carlton? You want to be a Super 8? Neither are wrong or bad. You just need to be clear about what market you're in. Because low ticket doesn't mean low value. Look at Disney plus. I'm a mom. Disney plus is very valuable and expensive. Compared to what? So don't get that twisted. Number two, the paradox of time. Time is just an illusion versus it just takes time to build a business. So which is it? Honestly, it's both. So let's just unpack for a second. The illusion of time, that time doesn't exist. And so what do I mean by that? It's like Einstein. He talks about the law of relativity when it comes to time in the way that we measure time and think about time. You could spend two minutes with your favorite person in the entire world and have it feel like a moment has passed versus putting your hand on a really, really hot stove and keeping it there for two minutes. Two minutes. And you and I both know that the experience of that said two minutes is going to be very different. So that is the context of what it means to believe that time is an illusion. It is the relativity of time, of experience, of time. As for example, if I go into onto Amazon and I type in I want to buy my product, this is what I'm going to practice. Bye. We hit send. And then we don't have any type of urgency around the passing of time. We just let it go and experience and know that that package is eventually going to arrive. And then if, if it takes longer than anticipated or expected, that's when we start to get concerned and we move our attention. The differences in data and expectation of what it means to be successful or not. So what do I mean by that? People get twisted up in likes, comments, shares and bookmarks because those metrics do not. They are dopamine popularity metrics that do not pay your Visa bills. But that doesn't mean. And so what happens is that people end up trying to go for tips, tricks, hacks instead of focusing on the content that will attract, connect and convert people who've never heard of you before and turn them into a client faster. The people who are meant for you because you're you, because your process is yours. Unique, new and revolutionary. And that is not going to come from tips, tricks and hacks and hashtags. It is going to come from focusing on, on the razor's edge of caring about everything and nothing at the same time. It's both. It's always both. The integration of both and always. And. And also in the order of where this is. Because here's the thing. If you are focusing on always growing a huge massive audience and that you need tens and thousands of people to see your stuff, then that's like trying to fill up a bathtub with water without plugging in the drain. When the truth of the matter is that you likely just need 10 people, 20 people, maybe even 30 if you're really undercharging and 200 eyeballs. You never know who's watching your stuff, you never know who's watching your content. And there are people on the other side of those profiles and people forget that. And it's easy to be a typewriter tough guy, but harder to have those connection based conversations with people who are real people. Want to be your clients, do more of that than dancing like a monkey and expecting to have millions of dollars in your bank account. People often come at me and they want to criticize me and say, oh, you only have 2,000 followers, whatever, 500 followers, it doesn't even matter what the context is. And they're telling me, oh, that I can't listen to you because your stuff isn't good. And I used to really personalize that and be like, oh man, I need to work harder, I need to actually put my attention. But then I realized, oh, you're actually looking at the wrong account, you're looking at the wrong numbers because those followers I can't put in my bank account. And yes, where you put your attention grows. So if you want to grow, you want to grow invisibility, yeah, you can work on the volume and get your content out in front of more people, but that's going to require you to actually create content. And most people are stuck in their head. But if you're stuck in your head, you're done. So get out of there and into your heart and actually take action because the action will listen an outcome. And from the outcome you can use the data to make decisions and test something else, but you have to care about everything and nothing at the same time. Easy to say, harder to do. Okay, so number five, the millionaire brand. The power of. The power of polish versus you can send. You can spend $10,000 on a. You can spend $10,000 on a program that has no sales beach. So which is it? Is it the polish of a million dollar millionaire brand or not? Well, just like all these paradoxes, it's the integration and power of both in understanding you what your brand needs at this moment. If the polish is preventing you from getting started, then that's keeping you broke because it's both. People are investing in the speed of implementation all wrapped up in the experience of what it's like. And perception is reality. So if people perceive this is expensive, that there is polish, then there is a common interpretation that therefore it will be high quality, high level. Now this is a double edged sword, just like all of these things, because there is now an unspoken expectation of what this experience is going to be like. And if you cannot deliver, then the polish doesn't matter. So the deliverability of the implementation to get to the desired outcome will trump everything always wins. Focus on that first, then you can layer in that component of polish. But if polish is preventing you from hitting record with your iPhone, getting your voice out there, putting your products and services in front of people who need your help, then that is keeping you broke. And this is oftentimes what happens to really smart, high achieving, perfectionist coaches because they're letting their perfectionism get in the way. Be the component of fear to actually take action. Action will elicit outcomes and the outcomes will have learnings and you will get the success that you want or the lessons that you need. Regardless, action is required. So now if you, if you've been around the block before, you've heard that people buy on emotion. Well, here's the truth about the brain. An emotional experience is not evoked through talking about, through using emotional words like overwhelm. An emotional. An emotion is evoked through two things. The power of imagery. Because the right side of your brain is where the emotional life lives and that is access through imagery. So photos as well as the thought, get into, get into the feeling by eliciting the thought. And the thought is created through the specificity of your communication. So for example, if I said close your eyes, pretend you're holding a lemon in your hand and lick that lemon, your body will have an emotional response and a physical response to the action, the thought, the imagery, through my words and voice instead of just showing you a photo of a lemon. So it is really the combination of both and what comes first, the action and communication to encourage people to take action and implement so that they get the result that they want. That can happen with polish or without. It really comes down to the conviction of you and the action that you take. Number six. The less I work, the more I make versus hustle culture and work until your eyeballs bleed. So which is it? Oh, this one is my favorite. Because like I said earlier, you cannot outwork time. And we've all heard the concept of less is more because the smart and successful coaches tend to want to work harder. And so that would be like going to the Gym and trying to work out seven days for seven hours and then expect that off. I just work out harder, then I'll get the results. Or your clients who say, okay, well I just need to cut my calories, so let me just cut them to 1,000 calories. You said eat. You said eat less, move more. So which is it then? Starvation mode doesn't exist. But if you've been in this space for any amount of time, then you've also heard the decision fatigue that we are bogged down by, our decision fatigue. So what we're really having a conversation about is how do you make decisions with and what do you prioritize? Because it's not about working harder, it's about working more efficiently with the time that you're already using. Because most people are either scrolling on social media media asking themselves, what am I going to post today? Why is content creation so hard? Or they are spending all of their time and energy focused on I just can't do it. I'm never going to be able to do this. It's so hard. And working harder versus spending their time focused and really inward and executing on the things that they say that they're going to do in order to acquire the skill that they need to get the impact and success that they want. So it first comes down to accepting and acknowledging that A, you're enough and B, that you're going to get the lesson that you need or success that you want. And then C, relentlessly executing at all costs. Costs because of commitment. Because that is the warrior's way. And that doesn't mean that I'm going to run myself into the ground, that I'm going to go to the gym with the flu or get sick and then keep going. And you need to recognize that your word is your wand and get committed. Because the people who are successful are the ones who commit and stay committed and stay consistent. I don't know, sometimes quitting is the best option, but you can either feel your fears or feel your dreams. You often can't feel both at the same time. So which one's it going to be today? Which one are you committed to? Because everybody's committed to something. And commitment, the warrior's way, is it takes what it takes until it takes or I will die trying. And it's not even I will die trying. I will try doing. And yeah, that might actually feel like hustle because sometimes, because change requires you to do something different, which brain based, your brain will keep you protected from that. And so that will require a level of uncomfortability. But that's not the same thing as going to the gym with the flu. So give yourself grace. It's both. It's both. It's restoring integrity with your word, getting committed, doing. Doing what you say that you're going to do doesn't mean being perfect. You can always restore your word and keep going. Number seven, the difference between just post every day is not a business strategy, which if you've been around me, you've heard me say that a million times versus post every day, three to five times a day. Which one is? Again, it all comes down to the your intention. And for me, and the way that I think about it is that every action you take is going to give you a lesson or the success. And oftentimes sometimes both. And I've been of the mind, in my experience that success is the worst teacher because if you something pops off and you don't know why or something, or you're unconsciously competent, oftentimes that can't be translated. But when you're in the trenches and you are taking action and you're learning from something and then you're taking a new action, that is often where the skill is acquired. And if you are passionate and care about transferring that type of skill, which if you're here hanging out with me, then you are, this is how you can start to help other people get results. Because you can break down what it actually takes to acquire skill instead of being unconsciously competent, which happens to a lot of super successful people. Which is why oftentimes having a six pack is about genetics. Not always, but sometimes. So think about it this way. If you were one post away from getting in front of that ideal client, would you want to post yes or no? Oftentimes the desire to not post comes from this constant being in a con. This, this constant, this constant rut of being in a content creation real or being in a content creation wheel and agonizing and spending hours of time on a piece of content that literally gets no reach and that can be draining. So I get it. So instead when we are strategic and when we can care about everything and nothing at the same time and look at what went well, what didn't look what didn't go well and really look at your content both from an objective I and caring I and then course and then course correct based on the experience and data that is oftentimes going to help you have exponential results. Because the truth is most people, people are not willing to do that. So you can't get it wrong. But be honest and strategic with where you fall and why you fall that way. Number eight, the difference between insanity, doing the same thing over and over and over again and expecting a different result versus I need to be strategic, stay the course and learn the lesson. Again, it comes down to the data and it also comes down to alignment. Sometimes the best option is to quit, sometimes it's not. Then if you're in a perpetual state of quitting, then you might be running the risk of throwing the baby out with the bath water and getting and and then, and then what happens is you get into the valley of despair, meaning you take action. You get some evidence, and then that evidence informs you based on some interpretations of what you're experiencing. And then you want to just throw it all out and go back to the beginning and start over. Because you want to go back to uninformed optim, meaning that you don't have evidence as to whether or not this is going to work or not. You take action. The action then creates an outcome, that outcome gives an effect of disappointment, and then you make it mean something. And then you keep throwing the baby out with the bathwater, meaning that you start over instead of staying the course and getting out of the hole of the squat and then have exponential results. And so how do you know the difference? Well, it comes down to the data and it comes down to the metrics and you getting clear on what are the performance metrics and are you continuing to refine performance and just getting 1% better with each action that you take based on the metric that you're measuring in a controlled amount of time? Now, the truth is most people are measuring okay, one post, seven posts when you may or may not need a little bit more longer of a controlled time because growth is dependent on visibility, value and volume. And do you have enough volume of people who saw your stuff, of people who who connected with your stuff, of people of offer presentations and asks to really assess whether or not this is performing well. How do you know? Data KPIs Key performance indicators that you're measuring, which are in the context of you and your goal. Oh, number nine, would you stay for this? How to content versus how I content versus the content isn't about you Seems like a paradox, right? Well, integration of both. So what does that mean? What makes something new unique and revolutionary is not you reinventing the science of biomechanics, which I've said over and over again in previous pieces of content and in other podcast episodes. It's you. You are the niche you take, the contact, your context you take in content and through your context lens of action and experience and sharing what happened based on what you learned automatically positions you as someone different than the space so that you are not then a carbon copy of what other people are doing. So here's how I like to look at it, is you learn something, how do you feel about it? What do you learn about it? What happened when you put it on your client and share that? That will automatically make you different because you and I can say the same exact thing. And when we layer in our context, it will speak differently to somebody else and it will also be something completely different because it's my creativity, my context and my lesson. And here's the truth of the matter. If you're not going to do it, somebody else will. Well, so if someone is going to buy something anyway, why not yours? So this leads to number 10. Oh, and I got a bonus one for you. But number 10, which is success leaves clues versus stop copying other people. And you are the niche. So which is it? Well, here's what I want to offer to you is I want you to go and I want you to study the people that you are compelled to and I want you to look at it from your context and ask your yourself, why? What is it about this person, about this experience that I like? What did they do? And think about it like you were breaking down the biomechanics of a spot of a squat. What is your feet position, your pelvic position, your rib cage position? What were the actions and the experiences that you went through? And then what is that in the context of your client? What does your client want? What is the problem that they're in and what can you share to help them go through that journey to subconsciously connect you? And then the last one, which is when is it appropriate to delegate, automate or delete versus learning the skill yourself so that you don't throw money at a resource, or so that you don't throw money, time, energy and effort? So you don't throw money at a problem, hoping that that's going to solve it. How do you differentiate and decide which one's going to work best for you? Well, it comes down to being discerning in the allocation of your resources. Where are you getting the most return on investment for your time, energy, effort and money? Is it in the maximizing your leverage of coaching and helping your coach and how and your coach helping you identify blind spots and remove roadblocks? Is it in the allocation of Learning the skills so that you can help help your team once you delegate, automate and delete it to increase their performance? Or are you just hoping someone else is going to fix it and then when you get that asset back, you have no idea if it's good or not and then no idea what to do when you're. When it comes back and you can't fix it and it didn't give you the ROI that you want. I can tell you today, inside of my business, no matter what the role is, if someone were to leave or quit, I would be able to step into that role and take it over. And I'm not too proud because I am a responsible business owner and it is my responsibility to help my clients get results and to help my team feed their family and to generate revenue. Because I'm a business owner and it's my responsibility as a business owner to generate revenue. Which comes from the context of wanting to help people, not just take their money. So it feels like a paradox when in reality all of these lessons that we just came through today is the context of integration of both. Where we live on the razor's edge, where we care about everything and nothing at the same time. And for me, when it comes to starting and growing a business, it really comes down to these three things. What can you get convicted on? And go all in on yourself and be passionate about living in the aim hand where you can go all in, help people and continue to learn and grow because true masters became a master the day they decided and realized they knew nothing. The second thing it comes down to is that you can be polarizing and convicted without criticizing, without putting people down, without making people feel like they're dumb or stupid and still draw a line in the sand and make a case for what you believe in, without making other people feel dumb for what they believe in. Because all of all people are operating from mistakes and misconceptions, which is why they're still in a problem. And problem that's a good thing because you're here to solve problems. You are a solution finder. 3. Your success is inevitable. And when you operate knowing that everything is for your highest good and that you're going to get the success that you want or the lesson that you need, you can't get it wrong and you will show up differently. And in order for you to acquire skill, you need to take action. And nobody learns how to swim from reading a book on swimming. You need to get into the water, get on the bike, learn to ride the bike. So you can be unconsciously competent and share your gifts with the world because when you do that, you will raise industry standards and help more people. People out of your head into your heart. If this episode helped you in any capacity, it'd be a huge favor to me to help more people. So screenshot this Tag me at Be SimpsonFitness on socials. Let me know what your biggest takeaway was. Thanks so much for hanging out with me today and I'll catch you on the next episode.

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