Recently, I was reading through one of my planning journals from 2013 and one entry stood out to me:
"Who do you want sitting in front of you as your client base?" "Who is your ideal client?" My Answer: I want people who want to pursue health & longevity. People who want to learn to eat and exercise for their health as their first priority and through those changes they reap the benefits of some less important desires such as looking good ."
I remember exactly why I wrote that. I was getting frustrated working with people who simply wanted to "lose weight" and wanted some easy-peasy program to do that for them. They wanted a meal plan, a shake, a pill or some magic exercises to melt the fat away and give them the body of their dreams. No matter how hard I tried to convince them that learning to eat nutritiously and exercise smart could lead to the body of their dreams, they didn't really want to invest into a lifestyle change. So many simply wanted to lose weight quickly and they wanted the guru to lead the way, but many struggled. The dedication & consistency that leads to a healthier lifestyle just wasn't there. I have had many people tell me that I should just work with those people, anyway. After all, appealing to that market can be very lucrative and maybe they will actually learn something. Unfortunately, I found that the ones who wanted a quick fix were quick to quit.
Once I wrote this "want" down and committed my plans to the Lord things started to shift. The majority of the people who sought out our program were beyond excited to change their lifestyle with nutrition and smart exercise. People sought me from out of state, from down the street, or through word of mouth. Although our program makes no promises of a beach body or a quick fix; the rewards, relationships, improved health & well-being of my clients are immeasurable. They certainly haven't showed up in masses, but I believe that the ones that I am suppose to work with, find us!
"Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans" Proverbs 16:3