The Personal Side of Training with Chris Liddle

You're listening to the PT Proffitt podcast, episode number 150. Today I'm sitting down with Chris Little, and we're talking all about the personal side of training. 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 for joining me in another.

Episode of the PT Profit Podcast. I'm your host, Beverly Simpson, and I'm super pumped to bring this episode to you today. If this is your first time hanging out with me, thank you so much, so much for pushing play. I'm super excited because today I have Chris Little, who is a personal trainer and online coach based out of Edmond, Alberta in Canada. And he is a online coach with 18 Fitness, creative director with me, social media contractor and host of the Lifestyle Chase podcast. So this is something I'm really excited to bring to you because. Well, for a couple of reasons, and honestly, I don't even know if he knows this, but one of my favorite things about Chris is that his uncanny ability to be. And I do share this inside the podcast, but his uncanny ability to be personal and to. To really share his journey and his vulnerability as well as connect with people. And I was listening to a really powerful podcast or a live stream, I should say, all about how we often hear the words business isn't personal, but you're running a personal training business, and so the more personal you can be, this might actually help you. So now this is not at any cost, of course, right?

We.

We're always talking about the pendulum. We're always talking about, you know, one side of the extreme. So this is not, you know, sacrifice of your boundaries, but I'm speaking it more in terms of that we tend to, when we run a business, we tend to be very transactional instead of personal, and we forget that there are souls on the other side of the transaction. And the truth about me is that oftentimes when I get very clinical and I get very into performance and I'm really looking at data. I am data driven. I can sometimes be transactional. And so that doesn't mean I don't have a cart, doesn't mean I don't care. Of course I care. Nobody who works with me. Nobody that listens to my podcast or spends time with me would even remotely say, I don't care. What keeps me up at night is the successes of my clients and my students. And I ask myself, and I lay awake at night thinking, how can I serve them better? So it's not that I don't care. It's just that I can get very, very singular, focused, and I can be sometimes have been perceived to be transactional. And so I was drawn to the opposite side of. Of that spectrum, and which is what brought me to connect with Chris and bring Chris onto the team, because he has a very incredible ability to bring the personal side of things, the human connection, and can create those types of relationships. The truth is, I can't be more excited. So I'll share a couple of things that he shared inside of his questionnaire that he's so amazingly put together for me. But he is introverted, shows up extroverted on social media, and he's got an arts background, which does not surprise me, because so do I. He was an improv club in junior high and a drummer since seventh grade and acted in a. In a dinner theater once when he was 18 as a handyman in a show called Squabbles. That is so amazing. All right, so without further ado, let's go ahead and roll that interview so that you can get firsthand the sense that I had when I first spoke to Chris.

What's up, Chris? Thank you so much for joining me on the show today. How are you doing?

I'm good, Beverly. Honestly, I'm honored to be on the show. I'm super pumped. There's been a lot of past guests that I've listened to that I've really enjoyed, so I'm just looking forward to having the conversation today.

Oh, I love that, Chris. This is going to be so good. I'm super pumped. So for those of you who have not had the pleasure of working with Chris, listening from Chris, I'd love for you to share a little bit about who you are, who you serve, and how you got there.

The cool thing with just my bio and my about me is that every three months, it evolves, it changes, and I've learned to just sort of be short and sweet about it. So the best way to sort of put it all together is that I coach people in person. I coach people online in the US and in Canada. I do a lot of social media contracting. I do some podcast production, and I'm just working to build up some momentum in my career and do things that I'm passionate about and that basically summarizes what I'm all about.

I love that. So how'd you get into training?

It all started out when I first began in the fitness industry. I was actually working for a fitness magazine here in Edmonton. I was doing that on the side outside of working at a warehouse. So it's kind of like a part time commission based job. And what I really wanted to do was get into spin instructing because that was kind of what changed the flow of my life. Like that's, that's where I got inspired to make changes in my own wellbeing and that's where I was able to overcome a lot of stress. But throughout that pursuit, I just had to like take any opportunity that I could. Um, if anybody listening has ever tried to be a spin instructor at some of the boutique studios that are out there, it can be pretty competitive and it's not always easy to kind of get that opportunity. Um, throughout that journey I was like, well, why don't I just control what I can control? Like if I can't be a spin instructor, why don't I just get my training certification? Um, during that time I actually, it was, it was a funny chain of events because when I commenced getting my training certification I actually got an opportunity to be a spin instructor.

And I was just funny how it works out like that. Okay.

Always. And I was still working for the fitness magazine. So at one point early in my career I was doing full time hours as like a warehouse operations person. I was doing part time hours for the fitness magazine, basically selling advertising for social media and print. And I was doing three full time courses online through one of the local schools for training and doing the homework for one of my certifications that I did just kind of like a weekend certification and spend instructing at 6:00am I was like the 6:00am guy. And eventually it got to a point where I was like, okay, it's time. And without really a backup plan, I left the warehouse job. And I was like, I'm just whatever it takes, I'm going to do whatever it takes to be in the industry. And it kind of just brick by brick, it layered on, it was kind of like a bumpy road. But I've definitely gotten a lot of momentum in the time that's passed since.

I love that. Okay. So I'd love for you to share a little bit more if you don't mind. Share a little bit more about your journey. In terms of, you said this is something that like really helped you. So I'm curious if you wouldn't mind giving us a picture of what it was like before you got into fitness and after. And then my second part. Question. I always do this. People are like, beverly, stop it. But I'll lose it if I don't. If I don't ask it. So the second part I wanted to ask you was that I feel like a lot of trainers will get into this habit of, okay, I got one certification. That's it. One and done. What inspired you to continue to sharpen the saw and continue to learn and grow?

Awesome. This will be fun. And I hope that I remember both parts of the question. So I answered them both. So the first piece was honestly, like, the place that I was at in my life when I was starting to notice the benefits of fitness and the change in routine. I would best describe it as complacency. Kind of feeling like you had met the marker for where you needed to be at your life. I think I was, like, 24 or 25 years old or something like that. I was in a relationship. I was happy with my income. I could just do things that I wanted to do, go on trips. And I was like, yep, checking all the boxes. But something that I would notice in myself is that in times of stress or in times of anxiousness, I would just bottle it up. I wouldn't have a way to deal with it head on. So whether that would be the stress in homeownership or the stress in just social situations or the stress in workplace stuff, it would almost be crippling, like, anxiety kind of thing. And it got to the point where it's tough to know, but at some point, the relationship came to an end. The stress with work or the stress with homeownership escalated. It was a tipping point where I knew that I had to take control. Um, and my exposure to the spin class wasn't because I was, oh, yeah, I'm like, a spin class kind of guy. It was because, like, in that past relationship, I had been brought along to some classes, and I was able to see firsthand, like, the impact that that experience had on me, which was very insightful. It was just like. It kind of takes you into this mode where it's like, okay, everything shuts off. Reset button, and now you can build.

Up, build up, build up.

And it was just like. It encapsulated the. The concept of, like. Like, the compound effect or compound interest through your fitness. And through that experience, I started to realize, like, these things that used to be, like, Big demons for me aren't even that bad. Like, I can. I can take it and I can deal with it day by day and overcome it and strengthen myself. And so that's kind of what got me wanting to be doing that for other people. I think by nature, I'm someone who wants to help people in as many ways that I possibly can, whether that's in fitness or otherwise. And when I realized how empowering it was and how much of a relief it was to feel like that confidence, having that happen made me want to do that for other people, and I was just going to do it no matter what it took. And to hop over to that next part of that question, we talk about the value in certifications. I would have to say the first thing that really made me just kind of level into how important that was was feeling like I was dumb. So starting my career, I started alongside a lot of really talented individuals. And I would have to say, like, I was insecure in the sense that I felt like I was the dumbest person in the room. And because of how hard I worked to even just get my start in the industry, like, I had to just get creative in what I did. It made me pretty hungry to get smarter as fast as I could. So, like, the after I got certified, just so I could get a job, I went and I got another certification. It was the cfsc, the Mike Boyle one.

I have that one.

And, like, it's such a good one. Just in the sense that it kind of gives you a foundation to build on to. Like, it's not necessarily like a person's one ticket, but it's like, it's something that gives you sort of some direction and how to program for people and just like some novelty.

One of my favorite things about that certification at that time, specifically now this was. I don't know, I mean, I've been in the industry now for 10 years, but at that time, there wasn't a lot of practical application. So there were still so many certifications that were learned by, you know, we read a cert or we read a book, and then we go get tested. No one learns how to swim without getting in the water.

Well, I mean, that. That sort of encapsulates everything that I valued in that certification because, like, to give people a snapshot. The first certification that got me working was, it was called the Can Fit Pro certification. And it's a great way for people to get started. But what it was was very textbook based. And so there wasn't as much opportunity for Just practical application of it. So when I got that certification and I got to working with clients, I still felt like there was room to learn more. And then when I was studying for the CFSC one it was pretty intense and just like having to demonstrate in the practical as part of the certification was, was much more intimidating than just like the tricky worded questions for the initial one. And then building on from there it was just like the environment that I was in. With the first gym I was at, I had the opportunity to essential uh, get like it was like an internship to start with, like a paid internship. So I was kind of under the leadership of other trainers and from, from there I kind of just stayed under the wing of friends. I know that Dean Guido kind of guided me to, to make a lot of decisions as to who, who I learned from and that's kind of what led me to Kyle Dobbs, which is how I came across you. And it's just, it's been like this string of connection to connection to connection to connection. And I would have to say everything kind of started with my, my friends Dean Guido and Andrew Coates and they're both based in Edmonton and they both been part of my career since the beginning.

I love that. And what I love now about the Internet and one of the things like, of course, just like everything, there's going to be a double edged sword to everything, you know, the law of polarity. So, so. But one of the good things about social media is this. We're all now interconnected and it's so easy for us to find really high level professionals and learn from people all over the world. We just have to be discerning in who we learn from and the connections that we make, which I just think is so powerful. And really what separates the coaches apart from the ones who continue to struggle is that hunger to learn and desire which comes from wanting to help people, which I feel like so many people miss Absolutely.

I mean when you talk about the kind of discerning who you're going to learn from, one thing that I found to be front and center for me is kind of sort of learning how people are as humans. Like that's, that's a big piece for me. Like I could find someone who's like really book smart but if they're not like people smart, it's gonna probably deter me from wanting to learn their information. And oftentimes the way that I find the people that I want to learn from, whether it's like a mentorship or a product, is I'LL just go and binge listen to podcasts. And especially as a podcast host myself, I've had the opportunity to really see firsthand how different people are. I've been able to really connect with people and get to know them on another cause. I'm able to ask them, like, really meaningful questions and even just like, seeing how people react when, when somebody in the industry goes through something tough. And I think, like, our kind of, like, circle of people that we all know mutually, little moments like that where we, we help others out are what bring people together, like, from, from a value standpoint. And it's just, it's neat to see. And I think that's very important in the fitness industry, even though it might kind as like fluffy rainbow cloud stuff.

Or stuff that doesn't matter. But that's actually some of the, you know, that's actually some of the work that you do that I find really inspiring. And I think, and I know that it helps a lot of fitness people because so many fitness people will get stuck in that trap of I just have to post a ton of workouts and my mindset tips and my nutrition tips. But no one ever says, you know what my favorite book is? The encyclopedia said no one ever. Right? And yet that's how so many fitness professionals put out, you know, present their content. But what you are able to do is highlight the human beingness of trainers, which I feel like gets missed a lot. People just expect them to be robots and forget that, or people too, having human experiences. And you've figured out how to add a layer of vulnerability without being vulnerable for the sake of it. You're not processing on the outside, but you're inviting and, and allowing people to have a human experience, which I think is actually really hard and nuanced and challenging for people to do.

I know it is. For me, it's definitely very tricky. Like, a truth that I've come to terms with is a person that might not have the most life experience in the fitness industry is going to probably run far away from like, all of my content because I don't just put out just like the exercise science stuff. Like, it's just going to be something where they think that what I am doing is not going to pay off. But, like, where the tables turn for me is that one of my superpowers at this point is connecting. Like, I, I can connect with other industry professionals and figure out how we can, like, leverage each other's skills and build each other up. And that's like, that's the the ticket for me is like, rather than finding ways to pull people down, I want to find ways to bring people up. And the other thing is just like the approachability in the online space for having an account the size of mine. Like, I've had a lot of success with having new clients just through my Instagram account. Like just putting up a post and just having people, it's something that they're looking for. And most of my newest in person clients have been complete strangers until we got to meet through Instagram, which is pretty cool.

I love that. That's one of my favorite things about the Internet. I have met so many amazing people through the Internet and that has been such a gift, especially during this time of lack of connection. I think it's been imperative. So the other thing too, I'm curious that I feel like you do in your content really well, which I feel like a lot of coaches struggle with, is that you're able to connect with the actual client instead of colleagues. So you have taken so many certifications. I know you care about the science of training, and yet you have managed to communicate in a way that speaks to clients and not just to colleagues. How would you say you've been able to do that?

So I like Instagram. Social media can bring people into a space where they feel very insecure, like just out of the gates where they have to prove themselves to somebody else. And I would have to say in the first couple years of my career, that was very prominent for me. And you post something and maybe it comes off as stupid and you lose some followers and just kind of shuts you down, slows you down, and then you become hesitant to create content. And what happened for me is when I focused on like, fostering those connections in real time, like just through DMS and through being able to talk to people on video calls that I knew that no matter what I posted, I'd still have like a strong connection with like, mentors and friends in the industry and that going forward, none of my content had to be for them. And then it was just when I looked at it that way, then I was, okay, who is my content for? And I was, well, it's primarily like, if I go through something that's that's exciting, then I'm going to to express that because people want to see people happy. And then the other point is, like, what was it that got me started in fitness? Was it the people that were saying, how do you do a squat? Or was it the people that said, this is how you literally how you book a consult with me, or this is the book that I like, or this is what a training session looks like. And so I. I would say over the last year or so, I've really tried to leverage the approachability factor and caring about things that matter to people. Like, there's all kinds of holidays that we're celebrating, there's charities that we're doing. There's all these things that. That if a trainer pays attention to them, that means a lot to a person because it's like, it goes back to that whole thing of, like, people. People remember how you treat them, they remember how you make them feel. And that. That's a big one for me. So it's just like, whether it's. There's so many times when somebody was just really struggling to find a routine for their fitness, and I sent them, like, a whole bunch of YouTube videos and was like, hey, this will get you started, and then I'm going to be here for you when you need it. But I just want to make sure that you're not left hanging. There's been times when, like, clients have had a family emergency that had to leave the country, and I've just sent them a PDF workout. And these are the things that I do to make sure that people know that I see them and that I care about them. And then, yeah, just kind of after a long time of that, it adds up. And I try to just be consistent year over year with, like, what matters to me and how I show up in the world. And knowing that it's like, I'm not going to be the Instagram account that gets 10,000 followers right away. I'm going to be the Instagram account. That's when I need, like, groceries. Like, 30 of my followers and friends are going to be there to help me out. And so it's just like, the foresight to know that we're not going to get validated through our content necessarily, but it can be extremely powerful if we do it with the right intentions to do what we came into the industry to do. Not to show up somebody else, but to be like, okay, this is going to be helpful for this amount of people. And this is why I'm putting it out.

Oh, absolutely. And I think that you just hit the nail on the head. And I think it's one of the things that I see when people are transitioning in their growth and as they're expanding, going from like, their first 10k months to multiple, you know, multiple six figures, is that transition right there where they go from worrying and being concerned about what are other people going to think about me and step into who can I serve today, how can I serve them? And it doesn't matter what the popularity metrics are going to be. And it's, it matters more the conversion conversation, connection, conversations and pieces that are going to be available to me once I step into this place of service. I think that that is, that's the key right there.

Well, absolutely. Like, I mean, when we're looking at our content, at the analytics, a lot of times the people who you, the people who are your prospective clients, the people who want your help don't necessarily press that like, button. They don't.

I'm so glad you said that because that is so true. My least engaged posts are the ones that have the most conversions. And I know this because they DM me and say, I just read this post and this is me.

And it's funny because like, you could look at it and you might even see in that instance that they literally did not like it, but they looked at it and they read the whole thing. And like just sometimes people will screenshot a post and they'll save it in like their bookmarks or something. Like, people have a different way to build their empire. And unless we are intuitive enough to know like the, the big picture, we're missing out on opportunities to, to build momentum in like our pursuit towards our goals. And it's just like the only way I've learned that is through experience and repetition, just in having to understand that I might not have this person work with this year, but if I stay consistent and if I stick to my values, I'll probably work with them two years from now. And it could be in a remote capacity or an in person capacity. And always just making sure that it's not a rush. Being that these people are still in your community, they will support you and is probably going to be when they're ready. And if you are consistent in your approach with them and if they know that they can count on you, they'll be that much more ready later. Whereas sometimes people get in this like anxious mindset where they're like, okay, everybody come into my program now or everybody do this now. Sometimes they can almost like scare people off because, well, I can't do it now, but I want to do it later, if that makes sense. Kind of rambled a bit there.

No, you didn't. It makes perfect sense. It's, it's one of those things that, you know, I always talk about in terms of how everything is energy, right? So when you are. It's like, I use the analogy of going into the bar when you're in. When you're in the bar, no one wants to be that desperate person. Like, let me buy a drink. Let me buy you a drink. Let me buy you a drink. But if you are that, that magnetic human that's like, hey, connection first, service first, can I buy you a drink? Then it doesn't, it doesn't seem. It's just a different energy. And that really ultimately comes down to your decision, your intention right now. One quick caveat here. We can't have this conversation without looking at our relationship to selling. So this is. Does not mean that selling is bad or selling is not a service. You can also step into that and still present and invite people to come into your world and ask them when they're ready, as opposed to being urgent and desperate, if that makes sense.

Yeah, no, it's super clear. I mean, being able to articulate ourselves and being able to storytell what it is we do and what role we have in people's lives makes that a very smooth conversation in the sense that just like when you're plumber comes in to do work, that plumber tells you the scope of their work and how much it costs, and you're like, yeah, I need that work. And then you sign the invoice or whatever. It's no different with the service industry of fitness and wellness. We have services we provide. We are able to illustrate what that includes and how much it costs and what times they'll hear from us or what they'll use the app, et cetera, et cetera. And it just. The more organized and structured we are with our end of things, the more clear it is for other people. And people don't know what we sell unless we're able to tell them. And then they don't know. Like, it's just that that's a big piece to the puzzle. It's been very helpful for me. I can still be my authentic self on a consultation call. And if you're confident about what you're doing and after, like growing and building and getting momentum and working really hard, I am quite confident. If you're confident, it doesn't feel like a sales call. It just kind of feels like, like a handshake, like, let's go, let's do this. Let's get on the rocket ship and go to the moon.

So true. I love it. And so now I'd love for you. You know, this is a great Segue, because I'm curious, you know, I personally think that confidence comes with competence. So how are the way, you know, what are some of the ways that you would recommend to someone who, who's new? Right? So that's so easy to say. It's things that we double tap and we like on Instagram. But if you're brand new, how can you acquire those competent skills? Like, what would you say if you were starting over today as a trainer? What would be some of the first things that you would do?

So I. My approach and the reason why I have found the wins that I've found in the industry so far is because I. I'm not afraid of failing. I'm not afraid of, like, making mistakes. I'm not afraid of having to start over. Like, I've had to rebuild, like my client base based on gym moves, based on gym closures, based on Covid. I've tried things and they didn't work, so I had to try something else. And the more bandwidth that we have to get back up again, the more capacity we have to be very in tune to what it is we do, what is we bring, what direction we want to go and why we come with the value that we come with. For myself, the toll of having to work so hard has brought with it an unwavering understanding of this is what my hourly rate is, or this is what my monthly rate is. And it's just, I know that I can change a person's life or I know that I can provide a service that is going to be incredibly meaningful for them. And you wouldn't be able to have that emotion if you hadn't fallen down countless times, if you hadn't had to pivot, if you didn't have to hear people's feedback. Like, there's been plenty of feedback where I've heard that I was a very green trainer, I didn't look like a trainer, all these things. And it's just like, build yourself up, look for people, look for the helpers in the industry. There are a lot, but you're not going to see them if you're not approaching it the right way, if you're not in an abundance mindset, looking to learn and grow, they're going to be hard to find. But if you are, they're going to be everywhere you're going to. You're going to find them in the podcast you'll listen to. You're going to find them in the interactions you have on Instagram. You're going to find that you'll just connect with them abundantly. And that was a big turning point for me in 2020 is like, I made so many connections in the industry because I was looking for them. I was looking to learn, I was looking to grow, I was looking to connect and find people that I could lean on for the emotional hardships and all the different things. And so hopefully people are kind of latching on to some of the cookie crumbs there for, like, how to really foster that confidence.

Yeah, that's so. That's so good. So I'd also love for you to share a little bit about, you know, what are some of the educational. How. How are you discerning? Because it is true that there is so much information and sometimes it can be really conflicting. So if you're new, how do you do you discern what, what is valuable to you and what to release and bless? But no, it's not for you.

So I need to focus on my client base first and foremost. I find that sometimes we'll overthink, like, what we need for, like, a mentorship or certification because it mirrors what our desires are. Desires are. Or because our colleague got it. Like, maybe five of our colleagues got a certain certification. It came cool book or a cool piece of paper and we're like, okay, well, I better get that too. But then if it wasn't going to help your client get through an obstacle, is it really valuable or is it not? And like, a quick example is like, for a trainer to get, like, a nutrition certification just so they can talk about, like, protein in, like, a coaching call. Like, they're not doing meal plans, they're not going out of scope, but they're able to add a layer of, like, nuance to the nutrition side of things to give people a better understanding of, like, what macronutrients are so that they can go on their own and make better choices. And then the other thing that's especially important in the online space is getting a strong understanding of the communication style and the delivery of content. Because if, like, the material might be great, but are you actually going to go on the coaching call or are you actually going to look at the material? Like, a lot of people buy books and then they don't read them where they buy a mentorship and they don't go to a single coaching call. And like, for, for most of the mentorships I've gone on, like, I've gone to the live coaching call, every single one of them, because it's given me an opportunity to network with other, like, minded professionals. It's given me an opportunity to ask questions in the moment. And then for the times that I've been too busy, I just make sure I watch every recording and I almost like what I do. And this is just a me thing is every time I'm doing stuff, I try to tag the people involved in it. And it's more so to hold me accountable so that they know I'm out there grinding, I'm working through it, I'm going to watch that stuff. And then it's also a way to stay connected with these people that teach me things and stuff. So it's comes down to two things. Being able to assess, like your business needs, like, do you need a stronger understanding of how to like map out your sessions? Or do you need a stronger understanding of like biomechanics or how the body works or how to cue a squat? And then being able to figure out which way do you learn best and which personality is going to bring you into learning from them the most. Like, personal personalities matter. If somebody is just a dry speaker and they just do not have anything that intrigues you or leaves you wanting to come back, you're just going to pay money for something and then never make use of it. So it's important.

And I love that you said that because it's such a good thing. Because I think so many people get tripped up with why when someone else could be doing it. What do I have to offer when there's someone else already ahead of me, which is just. I totally get it. I empathize. I've been there. I've been there recently. Even at multiple six figures, I get there too.

Right.

I think that it's important to remember that because personalities matter, there's plenty for everyone. It's a good thing because you're going to resonate with your people just as that whoever, whatever other coach is going to resonate with their people, people. And it's just demonstrates that there is a room for everyone, which I love.

Well, I mean, taking the abundance mindset approach in all things is never going to hold a person back. Like, I think sometimes people are thinking, well, I can do the abundance mindset for a period of time, but then I need to just like be cutthroat and cut people off and like just it gets that way and we're nobody's perfect. So we're all gonna fall into these cycles of like, insecurity and then confidence and insecurity and confidence. But at end of the day, if we are positioning ourselves to Be looking for the strengths in others. It means that as a self aware person, we have taken care of ourselves to know what we bring to the table, which is going to help us with our sales calls, which is going to help us with our day to day, which is going to help us with positioning ourselves for opportunities going forward. So the more often you keep yourself in that abundance mindset, the more good things are going to happen for you. Like recently I heard somebody talking about how sometimes people get described as being just like somebody that's lucky, like somebody that they just get all the breaks, but it's because of the work that they've done consistently to position themselves and opportunities to get things to happen. It's because they're consistently making content or because they're consistently talking to people or consistently putting their best foot forward. Even if it doesn't look flawless every day. Sometimes we get kind of worried that we can't put out a piece of content because it doesn't look perfect. But that could mean we don't put out any content and we scrap half of our day scratching our head trying to wonder how we're going to make this thing perfect and we miss out on an opportunity to get in a.

Rep. Oh, and that's so important. I love that you said that.

Right.

Is just let it be messy, let it get in the rep so that you can learn, you know. And I also think too is that one of the things that I think so many people get stuck on, and this is across all industries, it doesn't matter what industry you're on, is that that drive and that need to try and get it right or try to get it perfect. However, that whatever you're saying in your mind, that will cause you to take more time to decide and people will get stuck in indecision. Not recognizing that indecision is also actually a decision and a choice. And when you can step into this place of trusting yourself 100%, knowing that you always make the right choice because you're going to get an outcome, whether it's what you want, the lesson that the success that you want or the lesson that you need, you're going to get it. So when you can step into that, you'll get the right but faster.

Well, I mean a quick visual that might help some people and I've seen a lot of those visuals going around on Instagram, but essentially if we look at it as like a 1 to 1000 ramp and one is like at the bottom here and it's just a little speck and 1000 is like a tall stick. In order to, like, there's nothing that we can do to make it, like, go up right away. No matter what, it's going to be this, like, fairly, like, the average of our outcomes is going to be fairly consistently upward. And in order to make that happen, we have to go 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 up to 1000. So whether that 500 is flawless or whether it is flawed, we're not going to get to 501 without that 500. So it's deeply meaningful, even if it's at our 50%. And it's just something that has made it very easy for me to comprehend, is in my podcast, like, I think I've probably published somewhere. There's some episodes I've taken down because they're the short segment ones. But in total, I probably published like 300 episodes or more. I think I've interviewed like, 220 different guests. And I've had Jordan Syed on the show a few times. And oftentimes we'll talk about, like, the long game and being able to really focus on just keeping at it because, like, he'll be very open and what it's taken for him to get to his point in his career. And it's been a lot of repetitions. And so I think the first time he was on the show was like my episode 100 or something, or like somewhere in that, maybe episode 8, 80. And then he came back and it was probably like episode 201 or something like that. And so we had this discussion that I would probably see him again when I get to episode 1000 and probably a few times in between there. And it's just having the understanding to know that there's no ifs, ands, or buts as to you having to get to that 1000 or 10,000 or 20,000 with your reps. But the one thing that you do have control is the cadence or the tempo. And that's where it gets exciting. If you have a work ethic and, like, the boundaries to do what you need to do to succeed, you don't have to wait forever. You can kind of expedite the process, but you get at what you put in. And if you're tired of making mistakes, build your network to have people to help you be better a little bit faster. That's the value of the mentorships. That's the value of staying connected. That's the value of having, like, meaningful conversations with people that help you face adversity in this industry.

I Love that. And that's powerful. And I am curious, I'd love for you to unpack a little bit more about what do you mean when you say same mistakes? What would you identify as a mistake?

So, like, from a micro level, like in a middle of a training session, I would say those moments when we have a plan in our head of what that training session is going to be and we start it through with the client and they're starting to show like body language that they're not having a good time. But we're like, oh no, I need to do these pails and rails, or I need to do these hip cars because that's what my, my role model taught me to do or that's what the gym owner taught me to do. And we're just kind of stuck on that train of thought and we're forgetting what the big picture is. We're forgetting we are here to service this client. And if they don't want to do pails and rails, they don't have to do pails and rails. They can do a goblet squat and hold it at the bottom for 30 seconds. They can do so many other things. That's what I would define as like being like a mistake from like the level of just a one hour instance. Like what, what can we change within 60 minutes of our career that could have a meaningful impact? And like, I just, I would learn that through just how people felt leaving a session when you can actually own up to the fact that they could have had a better time. And then it was just being more receptive to their feedback, their body cues with remote coaching. That's why I love video calls, because you can pay attention to their body language, their eye contact, the tone of their voice, how like the, if they're speaking with a higher pitch or a lower pitch, background noises, all these different nuances that can create stronger retention. And it just, it works two ways with us as coaches. Our eye contact, our body language, our tone, our level of sleep that we've had. And yeah, like, and then just from a, like a zoomed out lens, it would be in those connections. Like, I've been burned a few times in the industry just by making bad connections. And I've really thrived in making the right connections. And when it comes down to it, those right connections, I'll just like highlight Dean Guido. He was a right connection. That's never let me down. And it's compounded to so many other things. Things. But just being able to, like, if, if you're Coming across an opportunity to work at a gym or connect with a person or work with somebody or collaborate with somebody and something is like, I don't feel good about myself when I'm in this space that matters because that is going to add up. The compound effect of a poor decision is just as powerful as the compound effect of a good decision. And like I always use that word is just like it's such a, a, such a concept that what we do today matters so much for what happens a year from now.

It's not like that butterfly is that, it's that butterfly analogy. Right. Where they say the flap of a butterfly wings could potentially start a tornado. Right. Analogy is right. So it's so true and so good and powerful. And also, you know, I, I also would say too that it goes back to trusting yourself and just trusting that every decision you're going to make, no matter what, what, whether it's good or bad, you will learn something from it. You will get something out of whatever the outcome is. So it's worth just going all in on you faster.

Absolutely. I mean, something that maybe people don't highlight in their own pursuits of business or career is that when you're looking at what you can do today to impact change in the future nature, sometimes it's just making sure that you have taken care of yourself, like setting those boundaries, that you do get relatively enough sleep, that's kind of like a gray area for a lot of people because we do have to work really hard and we do have to put in a lot of effort. But getting maybe a restful sleep and having sort of a routine where we can like wind down from our day because if we look at the next day and how that starts, if it's influenced by these good habits, then the outcome is going to be better. If it's influenced by bad habits and we continue to build on that outcome, well, the long term effect of that is not going to be good. The best example is if somebody was in the industry and they instead of facing their challenges head on, they just tried to numb all their challenges. And it's just their trajectory on the industry will undoubtedly be different. And if they suddenly made a change, like I know locally there's a lot of cool fitness professionals who have just started their sobriety journey. And I've seen their, they've basically 10x their numbers. Like there's no denying that that helped them. And it's always going to be on an individual level. Like this isn't to be preachy, this is just Saying that I have seen snapshots of people's careers where they change just something in their day, day. And then it made a meaningful impact on every day that followed. And the outcomes were dramatic and it made it worthwhile for them and their lifestyle to sustain that change, no matter how difficult. No doubt is it. It made a big difference. And that, that means more than some certifications, that means more than some other things. So it's just like being able to look at it from a holistic level. It's very, very powerful. And that is the difference maker for a lot of people. That's the difference between upgrading your home and not upgrading your home. So good.

So powerful. I love that. Okay, so I'd love for you too to share a little bit about. Well, first I just want to unpack the sobriety component too. I think it's really powerful when people share their own experience, their own journeys, and not from a place of like, wow, this is so hard. But it really just deepens the connection with people when they can see that you're not just a teacher because it's not just, you know, wah, wah, wah, like you'll sound like Charlie Brown's mom. And you know, you really, when you open yourself up to share a little bit about your process, your journey, it's going to really add and deepen the rapport you have with your clients and reach them so that you can help them as opposed to, you know, standing out in the echo chamber of noise.

Right, for sure.

Yeah.

I'd love for you to expand a little bit more on your. You said that you train remotely and you train in person. What do you, are you focusing primarily online? Primarily in person? What are your favorite things and how do you, how do you create such an awesome connection when you're online?

So I, I get joy from working with people in person. So no matter what happens with the rest of my business, I'm always going to have in person as a part of the puzzle because that's, I mean, that's where I foster my like cueing skills. Like to be able to have first hand knowledge of the exercise, to be able to say, okay, like this person didn't quite latch onto that cue. And it's likely that someone through my remote space is going to relate to them. So maybe I should like stop just sticking to one cue for queuing a dead bug or for a squat or for bracing or breathing or whatever it may be. So that keeps me fresh. But from the sense of business, I kind of put a cap at it. And kind of keep it to a minimal, like maybe 15 sessions or less per week. And then when it comes to connection through remote sessions, basically what I've been fortunate to have is, like, a strong friendship with my friend in the industry. His name is Alex McBr. And we basically rally with each other to find better ways to connect and to find more educational resources. And we're looking to, like, we look at different resources from, like, communication skills, we look at. At speaking skills, we look at psychological stuff. Like, he. He has his degree in psychology, so he's able to kind of, like, give me some insights as to what. How that education contributes to the. The training experience. And we're able to continue going through different resources to continue to build on our craft. And then at the same time, I learn about exercise science and I learn about different things with exercise, but at some point, like, you kind of run out of new information. But if you become a really good communicator and really emotionally intelligent and some of that comes with life experience, then you're able to have something that's very meaningful with people. You kind of become their, like, best friend in their phone, and you got their back through everything, and they know it. And it's just the body language that we have and the words that we use and the timing and the things we listen to, the things we document and pay attention to, like knowing a person's birthday, knowing that they have a dog or two kids, or that the kid has a baseball game on Thursday, or all these different details, they. They really matter. They really add up.

Yeah, it's good. And I also think, too, that, you know, as fitness professionals, we don't realize it, but we often are the first line of defense for so many people in lots of different, different, different areas, both mentally and physically. Like, I know for moms, for example, they'll probably see a personal trainer before they see a physical therapist or a pelvic floor physical therapist, because they just don't know what they don't know that everyone knows that they need to prioritize their health, so they'll go to a fitness coach first. So we can oftentimes be the first line of defense, which is a very. It's a. We need to know our responsibility to that person in. It's a very powerful position to be in.

Yeah, well, I mean, like, in my experiences with noticing just how broad of a role it can be, that's. That's what's really made me value the networking that I've done, being able to know basically someone that works in every profession. And being able to have had that connection with them, to know, like, okay, I know three professionals in this space, and this one will be the right match for this client. And then the next client might need help with, like, a. Like a physiotherapist or a physical therapist, depending which country you're in. And I'll have, like, the right personality for them, or I'll have, like, when it comes to, like, I've trained some new moms, and sometimes they just need to hear the story from a new mom and not hear my story and not hear my wording. And so I've just. I've actually sought out specific podcast guests for specific clients. And then I've been like, okay, if you like their story, follow their social media. These are their services. Feel free to buy them, work with them. I'm never going to hold you back from working with somebody that could help you have a happier life. And then there's, like, something that I don't think I can emphasize enough is the mental health aspect of things. So for myself locally, I have a strong understanding of what services are available to people in my circle and, like, internationally, again, strong understanding. And when it comes to my podcast and how I brand myself, the most likely AD partner that I work with would probably be, like, a counseling service or a therapy service, because that's what I think would create the most meaningful change for someone in their life.

Life.

And it's something I do practice what I preach in that capacity. And I've taken several counseling sessions to help me not only work through things in just my own life, but also things in my career space. And to be quite honest, one of the most helpful things in that experience that I did with my counselor is he gave me the space to tell my story of my career in detail. It took us an hour and a half, and he gave me extra time, too. So he was a saint that. But afterwards he said it back to me, and it gave me, like, this. I have never had closure like that in my training career, ever, because this was an unbiased opinion. And he was like. Like, essentially, he was very stunned with what I had been able to accomplish in a matter of a few years. And I needed that at that time. And it gave me the confidence that I needed. Needed to make my next steps. And that was such a powerful moment. Um, so I keep that as, like, a sort of, like, ammunition for anybody that needs it. And we don't know what we don't know. So as a trainer, to have access to that stuff and to have those connections and to have firsthand experience as to how powerful that is. That's only going to move the needle forward. That's going to make you more powerful and confident. That's going to equip you to make your people happier, to increase retention and to increase like, scalability as to their referrals. Everything like that. It just, it's, it's underrated. It's a big thing.

Yeah, I, I couldn't agree more. It's totally. I mean, we have to look at it from a holistic perspective. And the mental, the mental components for people is just important. And I also think that it's powerful that it also is talked about in, in the, you know, the, the male community, because I feel like a lot of feelings don't get, you know, a lot of, you know, feeling experiences don't get talked about enough or they're not prioritized a lot for the, for people who identify as males.

Yeah. Well, I mean, something that might help someone if they're just. If they're just trying to get over some of the, the obstacles that they're facing either in their mindset or just frame of mind. When you see a colleague that is either discouraging you or doesn't like your content or doesn't like how you show up in your career or is pointing out all your mistakes, just think to yourself, I don't owe you anything. If my colleague stands next to me and they don't like how I show up to the fitness space, I don't owe them anything. Like, I don't. I'm not indebted to approve their approval. I don't need them to validate my parking pass. They don't pay my bills, they don't regulate my, my activities. Like, I don't owe them anything. And then if you're able to really, like, remember that it helps you focus on what's important because then we look at like, who we are serving our clients who are paying for us monthly or by session, we owe them something. We owe them like, a strong level of connection. We owe them the ability to give them space to tell their story. That's been something that's helped me a lot with strategy. Sessions is letting my client tell their story of the week and then with that gives me the opportunity to define or figure out how I can best help them in that moment. So, yeah, just make sure that you're not letting people that are your colleagues, colleagues and sometimes even friends just like, get to your head because it's not going to help you with your goals. And it might just be momentary. It might just be a bad day where something just sets you off, but you don't owe them anything.

I love that. I love that. That's powerful advice. And you also shared, too, the importance of listening. You talked about it without talking about it, but it's really, it's powerful, active listening. And when someone feels heard, this is when. And they will feel loved. So I think it's just really powerful. So I want to make sure that I'm super mindful of your time. So thank you so much for pouring into us, into our community. I'd love for you to just share a little bit more about where I can send someone if they're interested in connecting with you, working with you, going deeper with you. What are some of the best places to send them?

The quickest way to find me is on Instagram at Christian Little. Or you can find me on substack chris little.substack.com or my website, invigoratetraining.com but if all else fails, connect with me on Instagram. I'd love to hear from you. If you listen to this, send me a message because I think that's really fun when you get to actually talk to people that listen to the episode.

Yeah, for sure. I love that. Okay. And we'll be sure to link all this up in the show notes.

Thanks for having me.

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