22 December Instructor Newsletter

Note from Rachel

This is a huge Bumper Newsletter! I hope you enjoy!

I love to do a round up of the year’s events and highlights, have a look back, take stock and really look, honestly, over what happened. What do I want more of, less of, get rid of, continue with both personally and professionally. I also asked all my mentoring groups to come up with their fitness business highlights for this week’s newsletter. What strikes me in all of my mentoring is that we are all the same – tons of fitness ideas, in fact so many you never know where to start, insecure about getting “it out there”, aware of what others might think, incredible work ethic and juggling teaching, business with life, friends and family. We all pretty much start at the same point and it’s how you push forward that makes all of the difference.

This week I have some great articles from my mentoring gang, plus continuing Andrew Crawford’s amazing series that has been so well received. I hope you enjoy today’s newsletter please feedback to me

click here to watch my VLOG

Genius Ways to Command More Attention! by Rachel Holmes

More writing Ideas for your newsletters, tweets and status updates. Continuing my writing and newsletter article ideas themes as this has been such a popular theme over the last few weeks.

Some words make your audience jump on and read right away, these words are known as POWER WORDS and they spark curiosity, interest and or excitement within the reader.

Why?

To use a term from neurolinguistic programming, some words have strong emotional “anchors.” We associate them with a certain emotion, and anytime we hear those words, we feel that emotion again. It’s essentially the same effect as Pavlov’s dogs salivating when he hears the bell.

And the best place to put them is in your headlines, tweets and status updates..

You only have half a second to grab their attention

You’ve probably heard you only have seven seconds to grab the reader’s attention.

That might have been true once upon a time, but it’s not anymore.

The majority of readers decide whether or not your content is worth reading based purely on the headline.

Here’s how:

Pack your headlines with power words

Look at the following headlines and I’ve starred the power words – some are appropriate for fitness some are not.

10 Smart*Tips for Creating Brilliant* Choreography – Smart evokes feelings of pride – Everyone wants to be brilliant.

The biggest Threat* to your Fitness Business / Waist Line over Christmas / Online Fitness Marketing etc etc – Threat makes us feel anxious, feelings of panic, it makes us feel like we need to act.

Genius* Ways to Improve your Fitness Business Systems – Everyone wants to be a genius!

Now, take a look at those same headlines without the Power Words

10 Tips for creating good choreography
Don’t Do This with Your Online Marketing/eating habits over Christmas
How to improve your Fitness Business Systems.
They don’t jump of the page anywhere near as much as the headlines with Power words, do they?

Genius Headlines You can use for your Blog Posts/Newsletters/ Headlines/Status Updates

You could use the same headlines but insert your own words to suit your marketing.

The Minimalist Guide to (Outsourcing your Fitness Admin……….Choosing the best exercises for you, Healthy Eating)

11 Ways to Simplify your (Social Media……..Fast Loss Plan)

10 Short Cuts to Create a (Girls 6 Pack…..A systemised Fitness Business…A licensed Program)

How to ……..Headlines (insert your words in the brackets)

How to (be the best Group X Instructor……Stop weight gain at Xmas….)

How to be a Brilliant (Fitness Public Speaker……Bootcamp member)

How to use (Facebook to attract new clients and customers…..Choose the correct workout trainers)

How to use (Twitter to network with local businesses)

List Headlines

7 Secrets to Running (a successful Community Fitness Business… a 10k…)

10 Killer Exercises to (Sculpt your thighs….Flatten your mid section)

10 Secret (Supplements you Must take to aid fat loss)

The Top 5 Ways (to market your community classes)

Question Headlines

Are you wasting too much time on (social media/Weight loss programmes/admin tasks)

Are you not doing (enough Training for yourself?)

Use one of my examples and make it fit your fitness marketing and start writing an article from here. Let me know if it helps:-)

Employing Your Child

by

Andrew Crawford

As a Fitness Industry Accountant my job is to ensure your compliance with the rules governed by the land in terms of Accounting, bookkeeping, record keeping..etc …for your Self Assessment Tax Returns.

However, I am also a Fitness Industry Tax Adviser. This meant years of additional study in the area of TAX on top of those years I studied as an Accountant.

My role in this area is strictly Tax Planning and I take my work very seriously.

Tax Planning is where you organise your affairs in the most tax efficient way possible. In other words, Tax Avoidance.

So today, I’m going to show you one of the many techniques you can use in your business today to LEGALLY minimise your tax whilst extracting profits.

Are you ready?

Every time I say this, I see people counting on their fingers the number of children they have.

So..here goes…

“Everybody gets a Personal Allowance”

What does this mean to you?

Well, if you have children, stop giving them pocket money and let them work for you instead.

How does this work? (Excuse the pun)

On a Saturday or Sunday, they can work in your business doing the stuff you couldn’t do during the week. Things like filing, updating websites, shredding paper, data entry, cleaning the company vans/cars, sweeping, polishing….etc…you get the picture.

They will learn about your business whilst undertaking their work. Ensure that there is no heavy lifting and the working conditions comply with Health and safety regulations.

There are certain restrictions to bear in mind. They cannot work before 7am or after 7pm and the hours cannot take up school time. You as the employer may also need to ask the local authority about permits….yes, even though you will be employing your own child.

You will need to do things properly. That means putting them on your payroll and completing Form P46 (new employee without a tax record).

Get the P46 form here….

http://www.fitnessindustryaccountants.com/ard/documents.asp?AID=1987&SID=11&FID=37234

The business, whether company or sole trader, will get tax relief for the full cost of their wages.

The beauty of this method is that your child has their own Personal Allowance.

That is £7,475 for the tax year 2011/2012. In addition, there is nothing to tax…!!

No National Insurance, as children under 16 do not have to pay it. As the employer, you don’t have to pay national insurance either…result..!!

Ask the Tax man to issue a National Insurance number, until such time as this is issued, you can use a temporary number. Get this replaced by the year end.

Can the business give the child any benefits in kind? Yes.

Things like mobile phones or laptops. However, the business must own these items, so it must sign the contracts with the mobile phone company.

Just a note to say that you can also give your child who is under 18, shares in your company, however, the dividend is taxed on you. If they are over 18 they can get the full dividend available £42,475 (£35,000 + £7,475) in 2011/2012.

The area of tax is very large and I want to get you thinking a bit more about it….

Remember, I have already done the heavy lifting for you…It is now up to you to tap in this resource for your benefit.

There is more exciting revelations to come in 2012 and I thank Rachel Holmes for giving me the opportunity to spread the word….Amen to that..!!

Visit our website at: www.fitnessindustryaccountants.com for more FREE resources and articles.

‘Like’ our page at: www.facebook.com/fitnessindustryaccountants

Andrew Crawford can be contacted on twitter @tax4fitness or info@fitnessindustryaccountants.com

Have a great Christmas !!

Andrew Crawford

It’s Started…Katie Bulmer Cook

Hi C2Go’ers,

I hope you all found my last article on producing a DVD useful; like I mentioned in the article, with the snow season upon us it’s the perfect product to have in place to ensure your clients can still workout with you and you don’t lose income over the winter months.

As I write this article I’m looking out of my office window to see some very tiny snowflakes falling! They are very small indeed but it’s a sure fire sign that the ‘winter wonderland’ season has started!

And as we all experienced last year, when it starts it really starts!

So what else can we, as fit pros do to continue to provide our clients with great service when the snow comes and we have to cancel sessions, classes, camps etc?

Well just like the idea of creating a workout DVD…we turn our services into products!

But we have to move fast if we want to bullet proof our income during the winter!

So this week I thought I’d share with you another product idea I’ve been using in my business…A Cook Book or should I say an e-Cook Book. Quite simply a collection of great recipes that are quick and easy to make, to help give your variety in their diet while also enabling them to get great results.

There a various ways you could this:

· A each of you clients/class members/campers to come up with a recipe each (give them prior criteria of any food groups you want included/excluded), collate them and offer a discount to everyone who contributed.

· Create it yourself from scratch.

· Outsource it to a fellow fit pro/nutritionist. You could do this by either paying them a one off fee to create it or offering them a lower initial fee then a profit share basis after that.

Once you’ve created you cook book you could sell it individually or put in together with another product like a DVD and sell it as a package, I have just put mine in with an online Facebook training program. You could also use it to add more value to existing products, e.g. pay for 10 classes upfront and receive the cook book free/discounted.

A general cook book that covers starters, main, desserts, snacks etc is great, but you could find more of a niche, e.g. vegetarians, spicy food, winter warmers or things that take less that 15 minutes to make.

I hope this has given you some ideas!

Let’s get cracking, the snow is starting!

KBC xx

p.s. I’m lovin’ Twitter right now, please follow me at katiebulmer1

The Fairy Tale of New Year by Jill Gardner

2011 has been THE most challenging year on a personal level and I felt like I had found rock bottom! And my initial thoughts are that I will be quite glad to see the back 2011 for many reasons. However, whilst it has been a difficult year it has also been a journey of discovery and growth for me – the obstacles, heartache and challenges I have had to face have meant that I had no choice but to grow, learn and adapt! I was out of my comfort zone but guess what? Like a well-trained muscle, I have had to become more resilient, more determined and have learnt new skills I never knew I had! This is what I tell my clients all the time. Step outside of your comfort zone and YES I needed to do the same!

So in the summer of 2011 I was sitting at my laptop at stupid o’clock wondering what the hell to do. I was on the brink of walking away from the business I was once so passionate about. How could I help people if I couldn’t help myself? Sifting through my backlog of what seemed like a million emails that I had been avoiding, I inadvertently opened one from Rachel Holmes talking about her new mentoring programme! Immediately I deleted it. How could anyone help me? I couldn’t afford it anyway…….

But over the next 24 hours a little voice was nagging me…….. “It may be what you need?” “This could be the thing to get you moving again and help you get your mojo back!” “Take a chance…….you NEVER do” “Stop procrastinating now”

So at exactly the same time the next morning I found the email again and replayed the video. Something clicked in me, the voice in my head had persuaded me to give it a shot and so with my heart pounding I got my credit card out!

I received the welcome email immediately and already I was feeling the incredible warmth and passion from Rachel as I read the details of what I was to expect over the next 12 weeks! Excited? You bet!

Over the next 3-4 months I watched the webinars as regularly as I could. There was homework…..lots of homework. It was a real challenge at times and I fell behind on a few occasions. But this was OK. Rachel was there to keep gently edging me forwards. There was a lot to take in and I was learning so much from our mentoring support group on-line and from sifting my way through my notes and to-do lists.

You know, since starting the programme I could write a book just on the ideas and suggestions that Rachel and I came up with during our mentoring calls. And I have now reached the stage where I am about to cherry pick the ones that sit with my beliefs and the ones that I am truly passionate about. The one thing I have learned more than anything is to go with your passion 150% – give it your all and then some! Here are some of the other core skills I have accomplished:

· Article writing – something I now LOVE doing! It’s like a tap has been turned on and I can’t stop J

· I have honed my niche market. I know who I am looking for to work with!

· Vlogging , recording my fat burning recipes and workouts ( I now have enough material to put in a book!)

· I have branded my own work-out ready to launch in January

· I have learnt how to outsource – so now I have help with admin, which frees up and YES they are better at it than me!

· I have opened my eyes to other social media streams and am now networking with 1000s more people via Twitter and You Tube etc

· I have started a book – both a recipe and lifestyle guide based book and website

· I have honed in on my current offerings such as the fat burning cookery

· I am now presenting on a regular basis at a fitness retreat further widening my brand awareness – taking it from local to national! I also have followers on facebook from across the globe!

· My mindset has now shifted to ‘can do’ and ‘how’ from ‘can’t’ and ‘don’t know’

· People are approaching me because they want to work for and with MY business and me!

· I have met the most amazing Fitness Professionals from across the country where we are all sharing our ideas and helping each other to find solutions

· I have discovered where my unique skills and which areas I am better to outsource! I have learnt how to exploit my strengths to help me drive my business to the next level!

So what’s going to happen in my Fairytale 2012? Oh my goodness. For the first time in a long while I am very excited about where I can take my ideas and my business. But here are just some of my goals:

· To continue to feel happy with the direction I am going in with clear goals and objectives

· To continue to develop new skills and keep moving forwards

· Continue building my brand and my loyal tribe!

· Make a series of DVDs with workouts and advice (but with a twist so watch this space!)

· Record a series of webinars and MP3s to include in my fat loss coaching

· Write and produce an e-book/book

· Brand and promote my new class and format with bespoke music.

· Continue to be a source of inspiration for anyone else out there that is ‘stuck’! I have been ‘stuck’ for a couple of years now and finally feel like the glue has been dissolved, I have found my voice and I can now be who I want to be. I will plough ahead with my dreams of helping others to eat well, live well and burn fat!

Jill Gardner – The Fat Controller

Tips for exhibiting at a Baby Show by Claire Mockridge

Hi there everyone,

As you know, I’m an Ante/Postnatal Fitness Expert, so my main clients are either mums-to-be or new mums. One thing a lot of Ante/Postnatal Instructors struggle with is marketing and advertising to this client group. Today’s article is about exhibiting your services and products at a Baby Show. Even if you’re not teaching pregnancy and/or postnatal classes at the moment, but you’re considering exhibiting at a Trade Show, or Health and Wellbeing Event in the New Year, keep reading, because you may learn a thing or two, as I’ve done several Exhibitions to promote my classes.

You’re in for a treat here really, because this bullet point-style article is the first in a series of 3 articles I’ve written about exhibiting your baby business at a Trade Show. Today I’ll talk about the things you need to do to get ready for a Baby Show and things you must do in the lead up to the day.

-Contact the Show organisers and decide which stall would be best for you. It’s got to be within your budget, in a quiet section eg away from music activities/demos going on so you can talk to prospective clients, and ask them what your competition at the Show will be. Generally, the Show organisers have a cap on the number of photographers for example, and they rarely put 2 stalls advertising a similar service/product in the same area.

-Get a roller banner or 2 designed from a graphic designer to showcase your classes/products. You want to portray a professional image here. Some stalls spend a lot of money exhibiting their wares at these events, so you want to “look” good.

-Consider getting some “branded” clothing too, making sure your logo is on the front of your shirt, unless you’re planning on standing with your back to prospective clients!

-Do a stock take of your flyers/postcards/business cards etc. If you need to order more, do it now.

-Advertise in the Show Guide/goody bag if it’s within your budget. Just a small ad with your logo and “POSTNATAL FITNESS CLASSES” or whatever, and your website, is all that’s necessary. Or, you could pay to have your flyers inserted in the goody bags, if that’s all you can afford. You want as much presence as possible.

-You want to give women a reason to come up to you on the day, so I’ve already touched on some of the eye-catching stuff above. The most important thing to obtain from women who walk up to you is their email address. The best way to do this is to give away a free prize in exchange for their email address. Make sure you let them know what you’re going to do with their email address after the Show eg placing their name on your weekly Newsletter which lists answers to FAQs during pregnancy etc. It’s the “adding value” factor you’re selling here.

-For 4-6 weeks before the event, constantly remind your Database that the Show is happening, and give them details of where your stall is eg “see you at stall number 17” etc. Use Facebook and Twitter to build hype etc. Tell everyone what your prize is.

-Make a list of everything you need to take to the show, from pens to peanuts (you don’t want to get hungry – trust me!). Being the “systemised” business person that I am, I have a laminated list of everything I’ve ever taken to a Show before (I know, how sad is that?!). All I do though is bring the list out before each show and work my way through it. For about 2 weeks beforehand, I set up a storage box in my spare room, and just put everything in it, as it comes to mind/gets ticked off the list.

-If you’re selling a product eg a home workout/DVD etc, consider employing a “sales person” for the day, if you’re not good at selling, or if you just hate the idea of having to sell things yourself.

-Get a helper organised for the day, too if possible. I’ve done many shows by myself, and there comes a point when you do just want to stab yourself. It’s a long day to be spent on your feet, without a coffee/food/toilet break.

-And finally, think wisely about doing a “demonstration” of your services on the day of the Show (regardless of what the Organisers or anyone else advises you). I personally, haven’t had any success doing demos on the day, and it’s just money down the drain, in my experience. Baby activities eg singing lessons, music classes, messy play sessions and things for babies and children go down a treat and are well-attended, but, doing a Pregnancy Pilates and/or Postnatal Buggy class indoors, just doesn’t bring in the punters, unfortunately.

I hope that’s given you some hints and tips for exhibiting at a Baby Show. Next week I’ll be back with article 2 which will cover what to do on the day of the Baby Show to make it a success.

To connect with me in the meantime, find me here:

Twitter: www.twitter.com/clairemockridge

Facebook: www.facebook.com/clairemockridge1

Blog: www.clairemockridge/wordpress.com

Join Claire’s new Facebook Group

Claire Mockridge

Dan Thompson 5 Star Bootcamps

This year has been another amazing year. My goals for 2011 were really to move forwards another step with my boot camps. I had already had a pretty good year in 2010 by most people’s standards and wasn’t sure if I could go forward much further without working silly hours that I had moved away from thanks to my boot camps. I planned for 2011:
add 5 boot camps locations to my existing 3
get my Boot Camp Bible diet published
win my local business awards
work a 20 hour week
Safari holiday
These were relatively few targets but big targets. I have been there and done that, working long hours to join an exclusive 6 figure business. I can assure you it’s hard work and mostly overrated in my opinion. The money is great but you’re too knackered to do anything! Life is too short so I decided to do it differently so I got more things done on an automation.
I started off the year with the goal of expanding the 5 Star Boot camps to another 5 locations and sure thing we have expanded to Bedford, Harwich, Clacton, Saint Albans and Mersea Island with 8 boot camps in total now. I plan to add another 5 boot camps next year and already have a couple of people lined up for locations. (I would love to hear from you if you’re looking to set up a boot camp!). I believe it is important to expand slowly with the right people. My team is one big family.

In September I took nearly 3 weeks off to complete a life goal of going to Kenya on safari! It was one of the best things I ever done. I was lucky enough to see some really rare events like a lioness taking down a gazelle to feed her family!

I went on to win Young Entrepreneur and Highly Commended business at my local business awards in November! Next year I go on to the County awards!

In November I also felt like I had reached my limit in my thermometer. I wasn’t really sure where else I could go with my business. I decided to take a change in direction and started working with Rachel Holmes with her mentoring course.

In December with a kick up the arse from Rachel I finally published my Boot Camp Bible on paperback via www.lulu.com and on the kindle via www.amazon.co.uk. The latter turned out to be a stroke of genius. We launched last week and within 48 hours became the No.1 Selling diet book on Kindle! I never thought in a million years I would be out selling books like the Atkins diet, 4 hour body, etc!

It just goes to show if you write down your goals you’re more likely to achieve them. I have my goals on my white board in my office. As I achieve them I wipe them off.

My goals for 2012 are:
add another 5 boot camps to my existing 8
bring out a follow up recipe book for the Boot Camp Bible
win the County business awards
bring out some marketing online seminars for personal trainers/group exercise instructors
Keep working 20 hours a week
I don’t have a holiday goal for 2012 as we’re planning a massive holiday in 2013 for our honeymoon. Vegas, New York and Barbados.

Plan ahead and you will achieve!

Dan Thompson
www.fivestarbootcamps.co.uk
Feedback to Dan on Twitter @5starBootcamps

Tanith Lee – TLC Fitness Fitness and Wellness for Menopausal Women

As I sit here reflecting on this past year I feel like nothing has really changed for me and my business. Isn’t it funny how you forget about your achievements?

It’s easy to dwell on our failures, which are the best lessons in life!! I have invested in many courses to increase my knowledge on hormones, nutrition and training. I love teaching classes and having an
impact on peoples lives and health. My passion is still there, albeit some days I need to re-ignite it. I have learnt that I have to be a shining
example to my clients, friends and family. I have to ‘walk the walk’. How can I expect others to follow my advice if I do not follow it myself? To me
that is being a total fake. Yes I am human and make mistakes but the difference now is that I can get up and continue.

The main change for me this year is how I have view my business. For many years I had a job, yes I was self employed but I was still only earning an
hourly rate for the hours that I actually worked. No sick pay, holiday pay, pension fund etc. It’s a tough job being a group X instructor. Pretty
unsociable hours and hard work but it’s the most rewarding job which is why we do it. When I decided to become an instructor I was not given any
information on how to run a business, marketing, goal setting and systems. I have had to learn all this stuff as I’ve gone along. I found Rachel’s
newsletter invaluable for tips. I listened to other successful fitpros and read books. This still wasn’t enough!! I half-heartedly made changes to my
business but when I didn’t see instant results I gave up disheartened. Why couldn’t I get clients into my classes, why couldn’t I get them to stay,
why, why, why?

I knew that I wanted things to change but I did not know where to start. I did a few online courses which helped me systemise parts of my business and
started to make me think differently.
I found that I had lost my way again this year. I was again full of self-doubt and seriously considered changing career. But to what? I could
not imagine doing anything else. I had two options, stop moaning and step up to the mark or quit. So here I am ploughing forward with renewed enthusiasm.
I used to hide away and ‘feel less’ than other instructors/trainers who I perceived as better than me. I didn’t voice my opinion in case people
questioned me. I now know that is a pile of crap! Who am I to think that anyone is any better or worse than me? I am me and I am good at what I do
and I have as much right at the next person to do well and achieve amazing things with my fitness business. Signing up with Rachel’s mentoring
programme has been incredible on many levels. Not only have I found the information, encouragement and support from Rachel outstanding, the group of
other fitpros working together has been the best.

2012 is going to ROCK for me. I know what I want and where I want to be in 2012. I have goals, strategies and people behind me who give a sh*t and I am
super excited!

So if you are in any doubt about your future prospects as a fitpro be reassured that there are many others who have struggled but are now rising
to the top of their game. Get involved with other fitpros, set yourself some goals, ask for help, work together and brainstorm ideas. Find someone
who inspires you and start doing what they do, stick with the winners and push any self doubt away!! If I can do it so can you.

Tanith x

tanith@tanithlee.co.uk
twitter @tanithleefitnes

Laura Amarda Buch – AntiGravity Yoga

011…what a year!
I became a fitness instructor at the age of 18 and for the past 14 years I’ve travelled the world (like many of you) looking to bring a new concept to my classes to keep my clients interested and up to date in the world of exercise…. but I always regretted not being able to come up with a programme or discover a programme’s potential that would allow ME to bring it to the rest of the world…
In 2008 I discovered ANTIGRAVITY AERIAL YOGA in New York… and since then my whole world has been turned upside down …literally!

After almost 2 years trying to convince head office that I was the right person to represent them in Ireland, I got trained and started offering classes to my clients… initially I thought all of my younger/pole fitness girls would be my main market, as it is fun!…however how wrong was I?… after a couple of weeks teaching Antigravity yoga I realized my main market where women and MEN! of all ages, shapes and fitness level…
Then recession hit big time here…like in most parts of the world… and of course I was terrified to think I had a fabulous product that was more pricey than any other class…. so this is what happened:
– clients with lifelong back problems were claiming relief for up to a week after taking the class
– women who seemed to have lost their identity, were feeling confident again
– men were hugging me at the end of the class thanking me for such wonderful gift

WOW…that s all I can say! some of the testimonials are so incredible I’m afraid to put them up as people may think I wrote them myself 🙂
So I’ve come to terms that once people have tried it they cannot afford not to do it!
It brings them happiness (through inversions as it releases endorphins), it brings them fulfilment and pride (through being able to succeed at doing back flips and inversions), it allows them to conquer their fears, it makes them fly, smile, and be present …live the moment.

Head office in New York were so impressed by my progress they have asked me to spread the antigravity yoga WINGS also in the UK… and this is what I’ve just started doing 🙂
To sum up, if you are looking for a new form of exercise to excite your clients you must give this a go… it will open your possibilities as an instructor and in turn it can be very profitable.
If you would like more info on how to become a certified ANTIGRAVITY AERIAL YOGA instructor or would like to give a class a go please visitwww.antigravityyoga.co.uk

Please add Laura Armarda Buch on Facebook if you are interested in Anti Gravity Yoga and follow @LABFitness on Twitter

I Hope you enjoyed the Newsletter.

Love always

Rachel xx

Tweet me @RachelHolmes