Avoid This Career Goal Mistake

Chances are you’ve set yourself some exciting career goals for 2024: new clients, increased revenue, learning and teaching a new type of class, etc. Goal setting with clients is a big part of our jobs and I know we do it well as fitness pros, but I also suspect we fall into the trap of outcome-oriented goals when it comes to our careers and businesses. 

Let’s avoid this goal-setting trap by setting the oh-so-critical process-oriented goals that will propel us toward success! 

We’ll use the following example which you would of course adapt to the goal you’ve set for yourself and your career in 2024.

Outcome-Oriented Goal = Make more money by teaching a new class/program.

To achieve that combination of goals, you’ll need to set up these process-oriented goals: 

Planning

1. Exactly how much money do you want to make? Will this be thanks to additional classes you’ll be teaching per week and/or because this type of program generally provides a higher rate per class? 

This is a critical step because program trainings can cost upwards of $300 which can be made up in 2-3 months if it’s additional classes per week or can take over a year to pay off if it simply adds $4/class to your current rate. 

1. What types of programs or offers are valuable to club owners and managers? It must be something you’re highly interested in AND seen as a current trend that will either bring in new clients or have the current ones visit the gym more often. 

If you’re a solo-preneur ask yourself what will add value to your brand and business, vs simply dilute what you already offer your clients. 

1. When is the next available training and when will you likely be ready to add this class to your offers? 

There will likely be a practice and preparation period needed between the date you finish the training and when you can promote and implement the new program. 

Execution

1. Sign up for the chosen training and book yourself plenty of time to learn, read, prepare, and develop your skills in the weeks during and following those dates. 

Otherwise, you’ll be like the fitness clients who haven’t booked time in their calendars for their workouts and bank on motivation… we know how that goes. 

1. Choose the date that you’ll be ready to offer the new class/program and the rate it’s valued at; meet with your manager to finalize compensation and scheduling. 

You’ve already covered most of this in the Planning stage, but getting everything firmed up is critical. 

Adjustment

1. Once you’ve launched and have taught a few weeks of the new program, is its success meeting your expectations? Is the revenue growing towards your goals? Do you need to adjust the timeline or make changes to your marketing? 
2. Have you realized that other offers or classes are now less fulfilling, and your passion and projects are moving in a new direction? 

As you know it’s perfectly normal for outcome-oriented goals to be adjusted along the way, especially if the journey towards that destination covers a few months. What is now most relevant for us will likely have evolved and make the success that much more meaningful. Take some time to celebrate along the way and build your career towards new heights.