S2 Ep 30: Creating Your Legacy In The Fitness Industry

Welcome back to the Marketing Muscle Up Podcast Show. It's Richard here, and today I've got a very special guest in the house. Welcome another Tarek Michael Jujuja from. Functional Training Institute. Welcome to the show, Tarek.

Thanks, Richard. My pleasure. And it's always good jamming with you.

Yeah, totally. Now, for those who don't know Tarek, let me just read out a little bio and kind of take you through my story of who Tarek is. Well, I've known Tarek probably for a decade now. And some of you may know Tarek, and I think a lot of you may know Tarek around the world from the co-founder of Functional Training Institute and a specialist in functional education, and he's taught globally around the world and continues to do so. And over this time of a decade that I've known Tarek for, he comes across— and Tarek, this is what— this is where I've always kind of pigeonholed you as, maybe, but you're a collaborator. You're a person that is focused on collaboration and no ego. And in a, in a fitness world where it's full of ego, where it's full of people, um, trying to better everybody else, you're there and you're looking at a different approach. And that's, I think, one of the reasons why I've seen Functional Training Institute go from strength to strength over the years. And that's what I wanted to chat to you about today, Tarek, if that's okay.

Yeah, my man, absolutely. Collaboration's been something that's been close to me personally as a value or even a character strength, but also for FTI and how we've evolved since 2009, navigating through the challenges that all good businesses will go through. And it's quite easy to to kind of be thrown in tooth and claw in the industry, you know, and start to point fingers and say, I'm better than this person or this group. But in the end, we need to look at that and appreciate our differences and also our approaches to things. But, and I think that's really small. So I prefer not to certainly dabble in competition of that nature. I think, Healthy competition is different. It's in contrast. And healthy competition links well with collaboration because it does look at a win-win where there's a win-win, but it doesn't look at a win-lose situation, which typically the hungry winner will always seek. So, it doesn't work all the time. Sometimes you need to just go separate ways, but do it respectfully. and say, look, we can't work together. And that's how I think I've earned respect in FTI, is that we didn't want to just go, well, if we can't work with you, then screw you, kind of thing. It's, where is that opportunity? And that's key because I'm a networker as well, and I enjoy that. I enjoy those interactions that have helped to build certainly FTI and other ventures that I've been involved with.

Tarek, let's just actually touch on FTI before we, uh, keep jamming. I mean, uh, I think when you say— was it 2009 you started, uh, Functional Training Institute, Tarek? Is that correct?

Yeah, exactly. So I started, uh, in 2009 with Dan Henderson, um, and, uh, you know, we, we'd met at least a year earlier than that and, and formed the idea, you know. So it was really an idea that was based on a mutual, uh, friendship, a mutual passion for wanting to help the industry.

I remember back in the early days, I remember, I think I was doing some coaching or business coaching with Dan at the time. And he said, I'm doing a— and Dan actually was probably one of my earliest business coaching clients. And I remember Dan, again, massive on collaboration type of guy, came and said, hey, Richard, How did you do this? And, you know, jumped in and we did some great sessions together. And he said to me, I've got— I'm doing this kettlebell thing. I remember at the time doing this kettlebell thing with this guy called Tarek. I didn't know who Tarek was. And I go, okay, that's cool, Dan. Um, and he had his studio at the time, uh, Coastal Bodies. And, uh, it was kind of then I realized that— and I remember the early days, um, this was before we're talking about CECs and qualifications and kettlebells being mainstream. And there was such— I think it was called Sydney Kettlebells at the time, Tarek, is that correct?

Yeah, very small beginnings. So we started off with Sydney and then, uh, you know, we, we soon expanded. But I remember meeting you, uh, in the boardroom, at least the shared boardroom in Duty Street in Sydney. Do you remember that? And we, we had our very first jamming session with Dan.

Yes, Duty Street in our, in our com— com marketing office, or meet your personal trainer at the time.

2011. I remember the date. Yeah.

That's a decade anniversary, mate.

Mate, there you go. So more than a decade perhaps we've known each other.

Totally. And at the time, I just want to kind of listen to these listeners, is that this was a brand new concept. And I think you guys, Tarek, I mean, sorry, Dan, and you bumped into each other somewhere at a course or a local park or whatever. And it went from there. But I guess what I'm trying to get across here that there's two things. One, we've got longevity and you have longevity and you talk about competition before and we talk about collaboration, not ego. And and I want to kind of like hone that into a fitness professional, a personal trainer who's maybe doing it for three, four, five, six years, Tarek. And and there is competition in the marketplace and they are. coming across different ways they can do training and different ideas, and there's so much education, there's so much resources now. How do you decide, you know, if you look at your journey, how do you decide of what to pursue and what to give away? And, you know, who to kind of, I guess, partner with if you want to partner or what clients to attract? Because there's a lot of mixed messages in this zone. But I mean, you've successfully been able to continue growing for the last decade and, and, you know, getting and reaching those fitness professionals. What are your, what are your thoughts on that?

Yeah, I've got a few thoughts there to share. I mean, uh, you know, another one of my personal values is discernment, you know, and, and seeking discernment is, is really crucial because Again, as I was alluding to earlier, you may have a choice of partnering with someone or going with these different choices. And so you need to be discerning, I believe, to go, well, I'm going to give this a go because I've done my bit of homework and it feels right as well. So I think discernment. I think The landscape's changed dramatically. We know that. And what I do know as a fact, and I've been speaking to other owners of gyms, managers, high-level managers, CEOs, that in our country, in Australia at least, actually the amount of trainers now, the demand is high, but the supply is low. Because people are now exiting the industry because they're feeling that there's no security. And so, if we wind the clock back, you know, 5, 10 years, there was so much, there was too much supply and perhaps not enough demand. So, I kind of think the competition now is somewhat reduced in that sense. I define it as healthy competition. And I think there's more of a need for trainers and coaches to get into the industry and get into the exciting, evolving industry that it is, because it's not just the fitness now, it's allied health coming together with fitness. And we can perhaps talk further to that, Richard, in a moment. But I draw on another value here, which is resilience. And I do feel that the fitness, the health professional, call it movement specialist, needs resilience. And that's been very evident in the last 20 months. Without that resilience, it's very hard because mandates are coming, you know, and what have you. And they've come and we hope that they ease off and eventually everything goes back to to some form of normal. But in the meantime, in addition to collaboration, which I think is more pertinent than ever, there's resilience and the resilience to overcome those challenges. However, within that resilience, there's that flexibility, which I believe to be still flexible, not rigid in the resilience, but flexible in that resilience. And therefore, my third key value that I believe health and fitness professionals need is adaptability. So resilience, collaboration, adaptability, I feel, are 3 really powerful character strengths that trainers can perhaps call on.

Wow, really good insights there. And you're right, over this period here, this— that you've had to make at this point, you would have had to make a lot of decisions in your fitness business. a lot of decisions if you want to continue or stop or pause or not accept a mandate or decide to leave. And there's so many people that have, you know, made that clear and evident. And, um, you know, I, I personally call it the concept of dying on the hills. A lot of people have died on this hill and, and are still doing so. Yet there is still a lot of people that need our help as fitness professionals. And, you know, what you're saying is resilience and adaptability And these are really great traits and these aren't like your tac— these aren't like short-term tactics. These are long-term strengths. And I guess where I'm getting to is 10 years, I think you've lived those things for a long period of time. Does it require that, Tarek? Does it require— what does it require to have those traits? Is it trial and error? Is it making bad decisions? Should we accept that we're going to fail more times than we succeed if we try to live that way, Tarek? What's the shortcut to get us there?

It's following your bliss. You know, it's following your passion and, you know, knowing that, you know, getting to your true north is, you know, it's going to take It's going to take a lot. It's going to take you to places where you've got swamps to overcome, you've got hills, you've got mountains to climb. You know, everyone thinks true north, true north, so easy to get to. But think of it as traversing, you know, at times inevitably tricky terrain, difficult terrain, the swamps. You know, you've got everything from mountains to climb. And it's not all rosy. And I could tell you that that hasn't been necessarily 10 years of rosy. I've thoroughly enjoyed it. I've grown and I continue to grow, but I'm certainly not going to give the advice that, hey, it's all rosy and you can get to your true north quite easily because it does take, as I mentioned, those character strengths and then many others too. Everyone would have their own unique character strengths. These are just what I've observed, especially the last 18 months. So hopefully that kind of gives you somewhat of an answer is follow your bliss, follow your passion, and don't look back all the time. You know, it's no point looking over your shoulder and, and, and going, oh, you know, they're close behind me because that's fear. And so we want to, we want to draw away from fear and that, that kind of competition is based on fear. Healthy competition isn't based on fear. That's the key difference I feel.

Yes, very interesting, guys. This is great. Um, bliss, passion, follow that, and that will kind of get you through that terrain as you're talking about. Tarek, um, quick question before I move to my next one. Let's talk about FGI, back to FGI for a second. How many thousands of students did you take, have you taken through that program and still continue to do? Any idea?

Yeah, good question. I mean, you know, as we discussed earlier, the, you know, kettlebell course, it was a single course face-to-face. There was no online at least for us, back in 2009, that was only a recent phenomenon, as recent as early 2017 that we got our first learning management system. But we started to grow our portfolio of courses and offerings, as you know, Richard. And then we started creating systems. So we created the Master Functional Trainer in 2011. And that's grown and been a phenomenon. And then we formed the Movement Restoration Coach, co-founded with Rehab trainer. So if you look at the net effect of how many people have gone through our courses online, face-to-face globally, it would be in the thousands. I mean, I can't on this call give an exact figure, but certainly in the thousands that we've been able to impact since 2009. And so yeah, it's been phenomenal. I mean, I could tell you in China alone with my partnership there, we've impacted, I'd say, 500 to 600 at least, and that continues to grow. So, to sort of give you an idea, it's— yeah, you know, and to look back though and reflect on that and appreciate that is amazing. But, you know, I'm not one to just, you know, sit back and simply go, well, that's great. I appreciate that, but I continue to move forward and see how I can innovate and provide value, you know.

Well, let's actually talk about that now because that's a good, a good convo. Um, a lot of people have said, no, you from Functional Training Institute, you know, showing, showing them how it's done through battling ropes or courses or on the phone and presenting. But, but like all of us, a decade is a long time. Now you're also adding another element into your You know, kind of bag of tricks, should I say? And that's a program that you've got called Legacy. And very interesting when I heard about this because this is, you know, this is the next level of progression for people who are great coaches already in the functional and the physical space. But this is like another kind of level. And it's interesting because this is not, you know, we're not talking about growing the business in a tactical way. We're talking about probably the most important thing, which is someone's mind and what their journey is. And tell me about what Legacy is. What does it mean for you? It's something that hasn't really, I don't think, been done before the way that you're doing it.

Yeah. No, I appreciate that, Richard. Look, the Legacy program the concept was born out of my years and years of learning and growing and traveling in order to be a high performer and to ultimately instill, collate all of the principles, all of the learnings, and put it into a form of a program that could help, as you say, already established coaches become even better and to realize their potential. And so, the quest and the outcome of legacy is threefold. It's clarifying your purpose. So, again, following your bliss. What is it? What is your mission? It's really, really crucial, Richard. And I'll talk about this in more detail in a moment. Defining your character. And already I've discussed character strengths. They're so important to to one's longevity and to one's branding. And then living your potential. Our vision at FTI is helping people fulfill their potential. Legacy Program is to look at an individual within a community and how they can live their fullest potential. So, they're really the 3 pillars within the program. And we're really focusing on how to really create unique systems, high-level productivity, I myself used to wear so many hats. So how do we really effectively delegate? It's less on the tactics and certainly higher level. I didn't want to call it lifestyle coaching or life coaching because it's beyond that, I feel. It can encompass some of that, but it's leadership. I feel that the outcome, one of the big ones is to create better leaders, to create amazing leaders. And whether you're a sole trader, whether you're a studio owner, whether you're a manager of a big gym chain, it doesn't matter. And you could be in the wellness space, you could be in anything, and the program is for everyone. And so those pillars, Richard, or those 3 pillars form the base pyramid. And this is inspired from Patrick Intempo, who's a great marketing philosopher. You may know him, Richard. Patrick Intempo talks about your cornerstone being your stand. Your stand is your brand. We then layer another element of that, and that's your branding. And that's what I've always appreciated and respected about you, Richard, is you didn't just throw out marketing. You were always about branding. It took me, to be honest, a little while to actually all of a sudden go, aha, I get that. Because a lot of people don't get it so easily, and I didn't get it so easily. Even before that though, there is your stand because if that's not in place, the brand's fickle, the brand can be pulled apart, it can be taken in this direction and uncertainty can happen. Then from there, we have our marketing and then on top of that, our selling and growth, etc. That's the inspiration of legacy is really funneling, probably not even use that word, but building Broadening and building off this cornerstone of clarifying your purpose, defining your character, living your potential.

Yeah, that's great. Your Stand Is Your Brand. Yes, great book as well. This is like deep, Tarek, I reckon. It's deep, mate.

Let it be deep.

What's been going on here?

Look, you know me, I'm never I don't like to grovel in shallow stuff. But, and here's the thing, Richard, is that our industry, we're doing more than simply making people look good. Oh, definitely. And we're even doing more than making people feel good. What we're doing is we're transforming from the inside out and we're enhancing the somatic intelligence, the movement intelligence, which is a form of intelligence much like your intellectual intelligence, your your IQ, your emotional intelligence, your EQ. It's an important part of life, physical education. And that is deep in and of itself. And to actually grasp that is to go, well, we're not just about— we're not cosmetic. We're beyond that. And I want fitness professionals and coaches to realize the potential that they have, the ripple effect of of how far they can go, how many clients they can impact. I mean, we talked about— I talked about FTI impacting thousands, but imagine each of those coaches impacting potentially hundreds within their community. So it's a multiplying effect. It's not just been thousands, it's hundreds of thousands of people that I know that FTI has been able to impact through our systems.

Yeah, so good. I mean, this is pinnacle, and I think through this whole 2 years You know, I was talking to, um, I was talking to someone yesterday and talking about it. You know, they rang up and said, Richard, how are your crew been taking it? Um, you know, we just want to know what's, you know, how have you felt? They've got a few, um, clubs that they own. I said, how, what's happening in the marketplace at the moment with all these new variants and things coming up? And I said, listen, overall it's, um, it's good. Overall it's okay. If You know, by now, if you listen to this podcast, you're probably giving a lot of what Tarek has already talked about. You're already working with your community, you're helping them, you're serving them, you're pushing them, you're guiding them, doing more than fitness. And so you're still in business because of that reason. And what we're talking about here is, you know, having the purpose, the character, the potential to take that. And that's what you're referring to here. And If one thing I've learned over the last 2 years, Tarek, is we are different people right now and we are in a different position. Let's talk on that a little bit. Your thoughts on that. You said, you know, before, don't look back, look forward. Don't look back, look forward. Find your bliss, find your passion. Is now the best time to find your passion and your bliss? You know, where before it was like, yeah, we'll get to that, we'll get to that, wait for retirement, blah, blah, blah. We'll sell more memberships. We'll sell our business before we get that. I mean, Tarek, you're a jet setter and I admire that about you and you're always pushing it. I mean, should we be looking for like, what's our 10-year plan and say, how do we do that now? Is that what—

Yeah, definitely. I was a jet setter and I'm happy not to be so much of a jet setter these days, but that served me well. So look, Look, I think it's interesting. I think we need to think bigger, not smaller, and we need to be more in the game of strategy. And so, I think there's a tremendous opportunity, Richard, for us to— for people to reflect and go, well, what served me well? then? Is it serving me well now? And will it serve me well into the future? What new things do I need to add to my skill set and seeking out specific skills that will help one be more competent and therefore more confident? That competent confidence loop that Bashar talks about. It's really important to look at that and go, What specific, not what new skill, but specific skill do I need to help me to grow? And what tribe or community can I align with? Because community is massive too. I feel that the lone wolf, it's difficult. The wolf is only as strong as its pack and the pack is only as strong as the wolf. Right. I think it's important that the individual becomes part of the community and maybe a part of different communities to get different perspectives as well. And I think that's key as well, not to get caught in one community, one perspective, because there are multiple perspectives. And that's the advice I'd certainly get people, the listeners, to consider.

I love that a lot. I love that a lot. It's something definitely that I'm working on at the moment is, you know, what got us there is not going to get us to the next step, learning from where we've gone to and what new skills do we need to bring in today. And I think there's no option right now that there's plenty of help out there if you want it. But it's interesting what you say because you've got to find the right communities to be involved with. And I think that's a solid decision. Yeah. that somebody would have to make to actually position where they want to get to. And I think that's interesting. One decision, one new community will really change your next decade of your life. And that's what we're talking about here, Tarik. We're talking about the next decade, right?

We really are. So you talked about that 10 years and it's this, Richard. I believe it's the balancing, being a little flexible on this continuum of, let's say on one side of the continuum, on the left, call it, right? You've got you've got your own capabilities, what you can go out to with your clients and into the world, but then you go, what you're lacking. And so this is, on one hand, you have the abilities and the confidence, but then there's the courage and the humility to go, hang on, I need to go and learn from this person, from this organization, in order to acquire those new specific skills. So I do believe it's a balancing act. And certainly in between that is discernment, is going, well, this group or this person shouting at me with marketing, they're shouting, they're shouting. Am I going to get lured in or should I do my research? And people are different in their decision-making. Some people will get a referral and say, Richard told me about this course. I want to do it too. And so they trust that person. Others will do their research because they're more knowledge-seeking. Others may be more impulsive. And I'd suggest people not to be too impulsive. I mean, here I am, I sell programs, but I don't allow people to really be impulsive. I would say to them, look, does this sit well within your heart space and your headspace? If you need to talk to someone, talk. It's not about— it's not the pressure business. It's not the business that it once was, Richard, where— No. People can be pressured, pressured, pressured into buying, but they may need to be led or influenced into making a decision. Completely different than being coerced, right?

Yes, yes. Led or influenced. I love that. Guys, this is great. I hope everybody's enjoying this high-end strategy. I certainly love a good strategy, Tarek, that's for sure. That is my game. Big strategy. I love it. Love it. Now, Tarek, Listen, we could jam all day, which we will get and have some more conversations. But because it's the end of 2021 and, um, you know, you're definitely an impactor in this industry, I, I would like to know from your viewpoint, what do you think the future is for, you know, what do you think the opportunities, we should say, what are the opportunities in 2020, 2022, I should say, if you're a fitness professional, if you're in the game of growth and And fitness, what's the opportunities that you're seeing from your desk?

Yes, look, what I would say is the mindset shift is don't get caught in what can happen with prior experiences, because that's not the case, that tomorrow is another day, and not get too caught up in the pain that we've collectively suffered. in the last 18 months. So I would say that as a grounding, right? And there's been variables in the way people have suffered. So going into 2022, I'm actually launching a digital platform, which I'm really glad that you're speaking on as well. And it's things around online that I still think is evolving at a really fast pace. I don't know if this is too soon, but I do think that virtual reality is going to take shape, at least in the next 3 to 5 years. And I think people should start looking into virtual reality and looking at the technology where you and I could be literally feeling like we're in the same room. So all the neurotransmitters are kind of in gear and It's incredible where that can go. So, I think taking the courage to blend one's business is to coach. Maybe even if that's doing an initial assessment, not a physical one, of course, but an initial conversation via Zoom to get comfortable with online. I do think that that is pivotal, Richard, is number one, is get comfortable. Look at what's evolving, look at what people are doing well in this space, and to really take that courageous step. Get comfortable with the uncomfortable. It's easy to go, I don't like online, I don't like online, but it is evolving and it's fascinating where it's going, Richard. And I think that would be number one.

Yep.

Number 2 is, as I said, with collaboration we discussed, is collaborate. Look at opportunities. And what I mean by that is you may be simply liking your one-on-one coaching, but what about if you collaborated with someone who does group training? Have a conversation. What are the possibilities? A nutrition coach. Go out there and network and reach out to others who are doing different things who could complement what you do. Rather than thinking you can do it all on your own. You may add additional diversifications to your business, but again, try not to dilute the number one thing that you're doing well and collaborate. And be clear though, when you collaborate, get an agreement together. I mean, I've learned the hard way. Put it in writing, always everything in writing. Make sure it's a win-win scenario. They read through it. I'm not talking about a legality document. I'm talking about a mutual agreement that does get signed off. Yeah, that's probably what I'm thinking, Richard, that there's probably some, some other, other things there. Um, but that's, that's what I'm getting at. That's what I'm feeling to share with the group.

Love it, Tarek. That's been outstanding. Uh, it's been awesome. And, um, uh, look forward to continuing, you know, these strategy conversations because I always like when people have been in the game of doing for a decade. People have been reflecting and seeing. And I think that's my lesson as well, just to add onto that, is that in a period of uncertainty over the last 2 years, my concept is see who has come out of this period in a better shape they went in. See who's actually grown from this. Because to me, there's the clues for success. There's what's happened because as you're saying, they're taking on the blissfulness, they're looking at the opportunities, they're collaborating. And because you have to in this time because it's all uncharted territories. But I think the one thing that I like about it is that, you know, one of the first things that I always ask Tarek about anybody, I said, tell me about your background, what you've done. And so it doesn't matter if you've been out of the industry or in the industry, it doesn't matter. But what have you done the last decade that's going to help you to move to the next decade? And, um, you know, as we wrap out 2021, um, start thinking about, yeah, what are those skill sets? What are those number one things that you've been talking about, Tarek? What's your bliss? And that will definitely always get you to the finish line and beyond. Tarek, listen, uh, quick plug. Where can people— I mean, we know about, um, Functional Training Institute, but Tell us about Functional, tell us about Legacy. Where can people find out more?

Yeah, look, if you're leaving any links, Richard, it's legacybytarek.com would be one. You could find me also on, I suppose, Instagram, which is Coach Tarek. So that's affectionately how I'm known these days, Coach Tarek. And then there's functionaltraininginstitute.com as well. Uh, that would be probably the surest way, Richard. Um, yeah, but I love this stuff and would love to continue to contribute and think this is more about thinking at a higher level, but, but it's, it's within everyone's grasp. And I feel that if we're just skimming the surface, then, then our business will be skimming the surface and everything else. But if we, if we want to go above and higher and higher and soar to new heights, our thinking needs to be a lot larger. Thinking about looking at the forest rather than just the trees because it's so much more. You get more visibility.

We love that visibility. Love it. Guys, if you have enjoyed this episode, definitely go check, say hello to Tarek on IG. Give him some love. And most importantly, have you enjoyed this? Just share the episode and say, hey, share this episode with your friend, colleague, and tell them what you liked about the episode. My name is Richard Toutounji from ComMarketing, and I've really enjoyed this episode, Big Thinking with Tarek. Legacy by Tarek, go check it out. And thanks, Tarek, like always, always good to connect. And it's been a little bit since we last connected, but definitely you made up for lost time, Tarek.

Really have. And I enjoy these episodes and these discussions and love your work, Richard. So keep it up and shout out to the audience, you know, keep growing and keep learning from the great man Richard and others who, you know, share in his philosophies and beyond.

Thanks, Tarek. See you guys. We'll catch you next time on the Marketing Muscle Up podcast show.