Dinosaurs were still roaming God's great earth when I started lifting weights. Do you remember when sand or some kind of white powder ever leaked out of the not-so-tight plastic cap on the 25 pound weight?
I did not think so.
But I do.
We used picnic benches for everything: the shoulder press, bent over rows, the bench press, canned curls. Every once in a while, Mike, our garbage man, would drive, standing on the back of the truck, jump off and give us instructions. He was a well built guy who got a major kick out of helping us. He was pretty smart about it too.
Today, some 40 years later, I look back on Mike's lessons, the physical growth experience I had from training and I find that it's easy to draw some parallels to developing an internet based health coaching business.
I'll tell you what I mean.
Let's say, just for the purposes of this article, that the major muscle groups are chest, shoulders, hips and legs.
Further, the bench press is the basic chest exercise; overhead press is the foundational shoulder exercise, and squats are the basic hip and leg exercise.
Now, I say, "Go and start off with exercising every other day for 90 days performing those three exercises: the bench press, the shoulder press and the squat."
In 90 days, what would you look or feel like?
It's more than likely you would not have changed.
"Why," you ask?
Because as simple as those instructions were, execution was not easy.
Nobody taught you proper form.
Nor did you learn muscle recovery diet.
Nobody told you about sleep, about proper rest and when it should be active rest.
When you decided on the number of repetitions, you did too many and could not walk or comb your hair for three days.
Nobody told you about supplements.
So after a week or two, you decided, "Heck, this is not for me!"
But what if Mike was there for you as he was for me and my friends?
Sure, some of you would have still decided against this type of training, but a lot more would have overcome the obstacles needed to get into shape and would have reached their goals.
There are a few lessons here: some principals that will never change.
Perseverance is one. If you are determined to reach a goal and you find the right help, you will succeed (barring any unstoppable forces such as death).
Another is coach-ability. You must be willing to take advice to reach your goals, not from everyone but at least from people who know what they're talking about and have your best interest at heart.
A third unchanging principle is regular execution. Action. Unless you're a celebrity with deep pockets and a team of expert professionals executing your vision, then you'll need to take regular action – just like building your body, it can not come overnight –to build a reputation through the development and demonstration of great content, drive interested people to your landing page, give them something they find appealing and valuable, and then sell them on a training, a product or a coaching program that helps them overcome a problem they're struggling with.
Sure, today's dinosaurs have laptops and iPhones, but the successful ones employ, among other strategies, undying principles to succeed.
To become a great health coach using an internet based marketing strategy, build a business that lasts. Knowing that it will take perseverance, coach-ability and regular action.
