Why I quit my job...

Most men live lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the songs left in them. That quote makes me think about the story that I wanted to tell today, which was why I quit my job and started Gym Launch with Alex. The reason I started with that quote is because I think if you are in a job right now and you're not sure what to do, you're not sure if you should quit, maybe you started something on the side, maybe you have a business that you're working on, maybe you kept the job and you have a business that's maintaining, growing, or at least profitable. I hope this video resonates with you because I was in an interview the other day and someone asked me, you know, why did you quit your job and start Gym Launch with Alex? And it brought me back to really thinking about how I used to feel at that time. And I think it, you know, I was hoping it would be beneficial for anyone who's in that spot right now and trying to figure out what they need to do. So I'll tell you the story and then how I kind of thought through the decision. Backtrack. I went to college, I got a degree in exercise science. I did not like college at all. I didn't try my hardest, to be really frank. Like, I was really average, mediocre. And the reason for that is because most of what I was learning I knew was just absolutely not applicable to what I wanted to do. So I was just in there to get it done, call it a day, and get out. And, you know, I don't even know if I— like, I think back now and I'm like, man, I think I just wasted time. I kind of wish I just started doing what I was doing. But, you know, neither here nor there. So I went to college, I got a degree in exercise science. I thought, I want to be a personal trainer. I want to help people transform their lives. I want to go into something in business. And the reason I want to go into something in business was two things that happened to me, which was one, watching my dad actually in his job and in his life. And, you know, he always told me he wished he had started a business. He had wished that he had gone into more entrepreneurship. And I saw people like my dad and many others who were in jobs where they felt like they they were almost, you know, it's almost like even if you could like the job, you still feel trapped because of all the things that people put in these roles to, you know, essentially golden handcuff people to them. And so I lived in a town where I feel like I was surrounded by that and I looked at it and I was just like, I don't know what I want to do, but I know it's not fucking that. Like, that looks terrible. And I would rather be broke and be poor than say, this is the life I'm going to assign myself to. Because I feel like I will literally die with potential left in me. And one thing that I have always subscribed to is like, I do not want to live this life without seeking my full potential and seeing what I'm actually capable of, right? That was the first thing, is watching all these people, living in a town of people who essentially went to work, didn't like it, felt unsatisfied, exhausted. It was almost painful to watch. And then they would go home, either go to the local pub, go to the local bar, watch TV mindlessly for hours, and then go to sleep and then wake up and do it all over again, maybe get drunk on the weekends. And watching that, I was like, fuck no, I don't want to do that. That was the first reason why I knew that I would go to college, but I didn't want a traditional job. The second reason was that I remember being at a job fair and it was the first year of college and it was, you know, essentially you're picking what's my path going to be like, why am I even going into this major? And I remember one of them was they had a physical therapy, you know, tent or whatever. And so I went there and I was like, all right, I think that's the most high-paying job you can get. Maybe I'll get one of those, get some experience and open up my own clinics. That was kind of the thought. And there was a woman there who, she was the head of a clinic, and she had gotten out of college 6 years prior. And I, I asked her, I said, you know, like, how is it? She's like, it's fucking amazing. She's like, I work only 6 hours a day, you know, 6 days a week, and dude, I am making, 6 years out, $85 grand a year. And I remember she said it like she was so proud of it, and in my mind I was like, that's fucking terrifying. I was like, you've been up 6 years, you're only making $85 grand. Dude, that sucks. And, you know, knowing and looking at the jobs and the limitations, I was like, there's just no way I'm gonna make any money in this shit. So I knew immediately going through the phases, I was like, I'm gonna have to start a fitness business on my own because I don't know how else it's gonna happen. And so with that intention, I actually moved out to California. I didn't have a job, I barely had any money, I didn't know anything about California, but I was like, I have to go out there and I have to learn from people who are the best, and I'll work under them, I'll work where I have to go, because then eventually I can become the best because I've learned from the best and I can have my own business. And so I moved out to California and this was immediately after, it was the day after I graduated college. I packed up my Prius, moved out there, and I went and applied at every gym that there was in the area. And applying at all of them, then I tried out and I think I worked at like 3 of them for like less than a week because I just wanted to see which one I liked the most. And, you know, after, multiple instances of just absolutely being disgusted at people telling me to hike up my shorts and pull down my shirt, which I will not do. If you know me, I don't solicit my body to make business. I was like, okay, this isn't working. And so I actually ended up working at a 24 Hour Fitness. And through the 24 Hour Fitness, you know, I realized very quickly that I had not been taught marketing or sales. So I had none of those skills. I just knew how to fulfill and I knew how the human body worked, which nobody gave a fuck about, right? Like literally zero fucks. And so I was immediately like, I've wasted all this time in college. I knew it. I shouldn't have gone. Should have just gone and learned fucking sales, right? Because that's what I'm doing now. And so after the first week, I was absolutely terrified. And I remember going in the bathroom stall crying because I was like, fuck, I can't. Like, this is too much. Like, I wasn't used to the rejection that I was getting. But I eventually got good at it, right? And so it's like I told myself, I'm not gonna give up. I'm gonna power through. I'm gonna make this work. I need to learn. And so I did, and I powered through, and I built up my clientele over the years. And then eventually it got to the point where I realized, like, hey, if I stay here, I'm just— all they want to do is push me up the corporate the ladder. Nothing wrong with that, not my style. And so I said, I need to learn from someone who's like the absolute best in the area. And so I found a gym where I had heard that the owner was like one of the absolute best. He was a fantastic trainer. He knew business, like they were organically growing. I was super pumped. So I went there to learn from him and it was actually a fantastic experience. It was also a fantastic experience in the sense of I saw the, the side of the business that I hadn't seen before, which was the struggle, right? It's like when you're far enough away in a corporate world, you can see, it seems like people just come in and they go through the door, right? Like I'm the one selling them, but I'm not like, you know, the thing that makes, you don't, there's no illusion. There is an illusion essentially that everything is secure because you're in this giant building and they have all these people and all this payroll and whatnot. And so you don't even think about that. But when you're a small gym, you see how fragile it actually is. And so working there, I built up actually an online clientele and I had an in-person clientele. At that point, I was actually making less money than I had been before because 24, you know, the commissions are much higher, and I built up enough clientele that most of them didn't come with me. Um, I was like, fuck, this sucks. And I remember waking up every day and I just had this intense feeling in my gut and my stomach. Like, my stomach was always constantly hurting. I could barely eat anything because it was just literally— like, I thought that I had like gut problems or whatever, but I was just so nervous all the time. Um, because one, I felt like I wasn't making enough money, and living in California was 5 times as expensive expensive as living in Michigan, which is where I came from. And then second to that was I felt so unfulfilled. Like, I remember going to work and coming back from work and thinking to myself, like, is this it? Like, is this what I'm going to do with the rest of my life? And like, is the next step that I'm just gonna own the gym and have other people do this for me? And like, I'm just gonna come in every day and do the same thing? And like, fuck, man. Like, that seems too small for what I want to do. Like, is that going to fill the rest of my life until I die? Those are the thoughts that were going through my head. And, you know, I remember so many times of just having this overwhelming feeling. And it wasn't because the work was hard and it wasn't because I was tired from the work. It was because I was emotionally drained from knowing that it wasn't right for me, but I'd committed all this time and energy to it. And I thought to myself, I was like, fuck, what's next? Like, what do I do from here? Because I don't— what kind of business do I start? I thought to myself, well, maybe it's that I go all in on online. Or maybe I start like a different kind of gym and I franchise it from there. And so those are the two paths I was looking at. I was like, fuck, I've got to take everything I've done for the last 7 years. I've got to turn it into something. And that's actually when I met Alex, and that is when Alex presented me with the idea of starting Gym Launch. And people always ask, like, why did you do that? Like, I left everything after knowing him for 4 weeks. Everything, right? Like all the clientele I built up. Everything I had known to go do this thing where we were going to jump from gym to gym and fill these gyms up. And there was no stability. And people ask me, you know, how did you make that decision? And so I kind of want to break down like literally how I made that decision, because there were multiple people who I consider mentors and close confidants in my life who helped me talk through this, because honestly, I was terrified. I was terrified of making a decision that other people would judge me for, which I had to remove that fear of judgment of others. I was also so— I think I was just so much more terrified of staying where I was and being miserable that it was almost like more incentivizing to take the jump. And so if you're trying to make a decision like this right now, I think here's what I would ask myself. Um, and here's what I did ask myself. Okay. The first one was, which opportunity allows me the most growth? I remember thinking through that and I was like, honestly, that's an obvious one because you know, as terrified as I was to go do this thing with Alex that like absolutely made no sense and I didn't understand what it was and it was not a real business yet, I was like, it's— I will grow so much more if I take this risk, right? Because any— I thought to myself, okay, which opportunity allows me to grow more? Sometimes I tie that in with like, which one do I fear the most? And I was really scared of failing and, you know, looking like a failure to my parents. Because I think when you're in your young 20s, you really have that. It's like fear of judgment from others. You're just coming out of high school and college. You've still got this large group of community around you who, you know, You're not on that different path yet, but you're kind of starting. And so there's a huge fear of judgment. But I knew I was like, the opportunity that will allow me to grow is the one where I just take this leap and I go do it. Right. And like, when's a better time? Like at that point in time, I was 23. I mean, shit, I'm 29 now. If I were 29 and I were to take that, I would do it too. You know, I'm young as hell. And so I think like if you're asking yourself, the first question is which opportunity allows you to grow the most? Right. And a lot of times that's the one that you're most scared of. The second question that I asked myself was, I was like, all right, what's my track record of how I react in stressful situations? And I was like, fuck, I mean, every time I've been in a situation where my back's been against the wall, where I've had to make it work, where I moved out to California, I had to make money, right? Like, I've been able to make it work. I haven't crumbled under pressure. And so to think that I would go and do this thing and quit my job and give away all my clients and then start this other thing and just fucking crumble It like, there's no evidence from the last 23 years of my life to support that. And so I think it's knowing yourself, right? For some people, I don't recommend that they quit their jobs because honestly they have crumbled under pressure before and it is a pattern that they have. And so maybe you keep that job and you start doing the other thing, uh, until, and you do both until one makes enough money that you feel comfortable, right? And it's knowing like, what's your discomfort tolerance, right? I had a very high discomfort tolerance. It doesn't mean that I'm not uncomfortable. I'm uncomfortable. Fuck when I'm making this decision, when I'm doing these things. I'm sweating, I'm anxious, I'm feeling it, but I am able to do it, right? And some people haven't trained themselves yet to act in those situations. And so I think it's knowing yourself and saying, if I put myself in this, uh, in this what my brain perceives as dangerous situation, how am I going to react? And look at the evidence to kind of claim, like, how have you in the past? Majority of the time, right? Everyone slips up, but like majority of the time, how do you react? The third one is asking yourself What is the absolute worst-case scenario? And then what's the probability that that would actually happen? Okay. And so I remember talking this through with— I actually had a therapist at the time, probably the only good therapist I ever had. And she basically walked me through and was like, what's the worst thing that's going to happen, Layla? And I was like, all right, fuck. The worst thing is that I literally quit. I started doing this thing with Alex, and then, you know, we make no money. He says, fuck you, get out of here. And I have to go end up— I can't pay rent. And so I have to, you know, end up on my dad's couch because like, I'm not gonna be homeless because I have family and friends. And so I guess I'd end up at my dad's couch. She was like, well, what would that be like? And I was like, honestly, it wouldn't be bad because like, you know, they cook for me and they clean. I wouldn't have to take care of all the shit. And so like, I'd get on my feet and I'd get a different job and I'd figure something else out. She was like, how bad is that? And I was like, it's really not that bad. It's like, okay, well, what's the worst case scenario if you don't make this decision? I was like, fuck. I mean, the worst case scenario is I end up I'm fucking doing this for another 5 years. That sounded a lot worse to me. When I panned that out, the worst-case scenarios, and kind of pairing them against each other, I was like, dude, I do not want another however many years of feeling miserable and feeling like I'm unfulfilled and feeling like I'm in the wrong boat. Like, I just felt like I had all this potential and I was doing a really good job where I was, but it felt like the opportunity wasn't big enough, right? Like, I was just like, fuck, there's just so much untapped potential and things I want to do that in this bucket I just can't do them. That's the third one is looking at the worst case scenario. And so for a lot of you, um, especially if you're watching my channel, you probably don't have a huge worst case scenario. You probably have people that you know that you could stay with if you couldn't pay rent, you couldn't do this, or you have a ton saved up, right? Versus if you have a ton of people relying on you, you don't have much money saved up, and your idea is not even panned out yet, you don't have even anything making any money at all, then I would say like maybe consider, you know, building something up more and not just taking the jump because it's more likely for that worst case scenario to happen. Right. And so that's how I would think through that piece. And then the last piece to think through is, um, you know, I think you have to consider this, which is if I were not in my job, would I make more money in the other opportunity that I have if I had the time? Right. So would I make enough money to support myself if I quit my job in my other opportunity? And at that point in time, you know, the model for Gym Launch, as we, as we knew it back then, right, had been proven out and it was very lucrative. And so I was like, if I did have the time to go do this, I would be able to make that money, right? And so it's just a matter of switching what you're doing and saying, okay, now I can do that. Versus if you are— have been doing something, it's not making money, even with more time you put into it and you take away from your other job, it's not making more money. I think that's something you want to reconsider, right? And so those 4 questions were honestly what prompted me to leave my job and start a the business with Alex. Now, the caveat I will say to this is, I think I was just, you know, like all of the logic in the world of the questions, I think that we are much more emotional than we like to let ourselves out to be. I think I was so miserable that I was honestly way more terrified of staying where I was than I was quitting my job. And so I think at the end of the day, every question I asked myself, I was interpreting with knowing that in the background, like that was the thing driving me from the inside. And so I think that sometimes if you have that much pain where you are and you feel like you're literally like, I feel like this is sucking my soul up, right? Because you know you can be doing so much more and you have so many more skills, you have so many things you want to do and you're not growing. I think sometimes everything else can go out the window because you will have the will and you will have the drive to make whatever the fuck you need to make happen to make it out on the other side and to make it work. And so it's just a matter of knowing yourself. And so, you know, if you're in a situation right now where you're like, should I quit my job? Should I go do this thing? Think through that shit and then really pan out. You know, I think a lot of people don't like to go through what's the worst case scenario because people are like, oh, if you visualize the positive, it happens. Like, oh, don't visualize the negative, it might happen. Like, you know, I don't visualize my leg falling off. It doesn't fall off. Okay. And so visualizing the negative is a really useful exercise because then you can say, how will I react when it happens? And I want to tell you, after I quit my job and we started Gym Monster, there were a lot of fucking terrible things that happened, which I'll talk about in more videos. And it's like a year and a half, 2 years of absolutely just eating shit over and over again. But I felt better eating shit knowing I was moving forward. When I eat shit and I know I'm staying in the same fucking place, I feel miserable. I feel dead inside. But if I can eat shit and at least know I'm trying and I'm charging forward to a better future, I would just pick that any day over staying stuck. I hope this video was of use to you. I hope that if you are contemplating this, you can really reflect on this and really ask yourself You know, and make a decision. Like, I think indecision is the worst. It's worse than any decision you can make, right? You either decide that you're going to continue doing what you're doing, or you decide that you're going to take the leap. Make the decision. Give yourself a deadline, right? Because indecision will degrade your confidence more than anything else will. So with that, I hope you have a fantastic day, and I hope that you make the decision that aligns with most of who you want to be in the future.