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Pay my Rent through Ecommerce in 2016

A detailed account of a Fastlane process...

AustinS28

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I'll have a booth at the NY Times Healthfair on 6/2. Found out today. I'm more interested in meeting someone to help me get press than actually making a sale but lol I want both!

--

Ecommerce - I'm failing on my goal --

I need to restart. I've done 0 work after the initial manufacturing of my goods and listing them on Amazon. I'm managing a few product sales a month and basically breaking even...

It's funny that as I write this I get an email that another unit has sold and I see I have a 5 star product rating.

Anyhow --

I realize a few flaws in my approach.

-I'm unorganized with my time.

-I emotionally jump into things and don't do the proper research into how to get started wasting time and money.

I realize something I need changed.

-I'm a slave in my current business whether it produces 6 fig sales or not I'm selling my time. I can't do this forever.

--

I started breaking my daily to-do list into time allotted slots. I'm going to see if this increases my productivity. I got a lot done today. Most tasks were small but the idea is to allow them to equal big accomplishments each week/month instead of the current method of waiting and cramming tasks into all day marathons.

--

I'm going to give myself a little more me time. I'm on constant overdrive and do not feel it's always healthy.

--

So I have a few tasks this year that I need to do.

1 - Build my fitness business so it becomes its own organism (this is going to take longer than a year).

2 - Become less financially dependent on my fitness business and revamp ecommerce.

Goals

1-2 months research and solidify product/ideas
2-6 MVP, build a mock-up site, while figuring out the best course of action for manufacturing/drop shipping etc.
6-12 - solidly Adwords campaigns, marketing approach, Make a sale.
12+ make more sales repeat the process until it's perfected, grow and launch new when it's working on its own.

--

I've been taking the same approach I use in weight lifting to instill confidence.

I've been through some ruts throughout my fitness training.

The thing that's always brought me back to higher levels and a rejuvenated attitude is starting of on a routine that allows me to win every time I'm in the gym. I ease off the gas of self pressure that wants me to be the best right now. You need time to become the best and a lot of process!

That's a problem for me. I'm too self critical and hard that it causes me to be irrational at times with my decision making.

I need to focus on the small wins to instill confidence for the big ones.

Winning and failing is often a perception. Depending on how you see things definitely alters your success.

Onward and upward.
 
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Pete799p

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After reading post after post about what desk to buy I had to put in my 2 cents

Stop procrastinating and get to work

Seriously just like buying new sneakers won't make you dunk the "right" desk won't make you rich.

Want to know what my desk is...http://www.target.com/p/folding-table-black-20-x-48/-/A-13896

That's right a folding table.

Yes I know there are three more pages where you inevitably bought a desk but maybe this will help others
 

AustinS28

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After reading post after post about what desk to buy I had to put in my 2 cents

Stop procrastinating and get to work

Seriously just like buying new sneakers won't make you dunk the "right" desk won't make you rich.

Want to know what my desk is...http://www.target.com/p/folding-table-black-20-x-48/-/A-13896

That's right a folding table.

Yes I know there are three more pages where you inevitably bought a desk but maybe this will help others

Thanks for your .02

Since I started this thread -

I've outsourced, wholesaled and branded a fitness product that I am currently selling on amazon. Went through the process of contacting Chinese manufactures, buying samples, ordering, selling.

I have grown my 6 figure personal training business I created and have operated for two years in Manhattan. I've gone from dead broke and seriously in debt, to having almost all of those debts paid off and cash to start new ventures.

I started an online publication for personal trainers, outsourced some of the work, but created the blog on wordpress. In the meantime I built another site on wordpress. I’ve learned how to build a site from scratch optimizing it.

I’ve learned how to drive traffic with Facebook ads and google adwords. I’ve excelled at in-person sales. I’ve grown my personal training business through networking and purchasing booths at health fairs where I literally “cold call” people at the health fair enticing them to sign up.

I might not be rich, but procrastination is not something I do. I work constantly. I haven’t had the success I’d like on certain ventures, but I have definitely learned a lot and am and have acquired skills I foresee that will help me in much more successful businesses in the future. Whether it’s me growing what I currently have or opening up shop for something new.
 

AustinS28

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Some personal progress a little unrelated to starting a business, but something that shows some of the success of my current business. Goal to eliminate my credit card debt before I turn 26 at the end of July is about to come true. I made another $1700 payment today that isn't reflecting on these graphs...It'll have me down to 7% utilization. I'll chunk another 1200 payment next month and by July it'll be gone. I was immediately in debt when I got my first credit card in college. Just stupid spending all too often.

Then I financed part of my move to NYC on credit card cash advances. God times were tough. I am so thankful to see some light at the end of this tunnel.

2crosah.png


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In other news. I should have some big updates in the next couple of months, once I figure out which supplier I am going to use for a few products I am going to test and launch. Website purchased, shopify account created, logo made. Just want to get the best deal on the inventory and test out Facebook ads. I may do a few trial runs before I have products in to see what the response is.
 
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ZCP

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Which client(s) might be interested in becoming trainers for you? Gets you out of the business....

Do you have a nutritionist to pair with or on staff? Monthly fees for meal plans.....

Sell leads to personal chefs / meals. Residual income......

Ask clients what training equipment they need. Potential new business....

Hire out the small stuff (VA, IT, books, etc.). You focus on the big stuff......
 

MotiveInMotion

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Thanks for your .02

Since I started this thread -

I've outsourced, wholesaled and branded a fitness product that I am currently selling on amazon. Went through the process of contacting Chinese manufactures, buying samples, ordering, selling.

I have grown my 6 figure personal training business I created and have operated for two years in Manhattan. I've gone from dead broke and seriously in debt, to having almost all of those debts paid off and cash to start new ventures.

I started an online publication for personal trainers, outsourced some of the work, but created the blog on wordpress. In the meantime I built another site on wordpress. I’ve learned how to build a site from scratch optimizing it.

I’ve learned how to drive traffic with Facebook ads and google adwords. I’ve excelled at in-person sales. I’ve grown my personal training business through networking and purchasing booths at health fairs where I literally “cold call” people at the health fair enticing them to sign up.

I might not be rich, but procrastination is not something I do. I work constantly. I haven’t had the success I’d like on certain ventures, but I have definitely learned a lot and am and have acquired skills I foresee that will help me in much more successful businesses in the future. Whether it’s me growing what I currently have or opening up shop for something new.

Sounds like your doing very well for yourself man... Nice to see the progress, and don't worry about the negativity. If you're progressing and continuing building what you want, helping people, and adding massive value, (you are) then you know you've only got competition with yourself.

Big ups!
 

AustinS28

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On a flight home from Palm Springs California. Spent a nice weekend out there and in LA with my girlfriend...it was nice to not think about work during my stay.

Which client(s) might be interested in becoming trainers for you? Gets you out of the business....

Do you have a nutritionist to pair with or on staff? Monthly fees for meal plans.....

Sell leads to personal chefs / meals. Residual income......

Ask clients what training equipment they need. Potential new business....

Hire out the small stuff (VA, IT, books, etc.). You focus on the big stuff......

Dude some great ideas. I've got some of this stuff already in motion. I have equipment for sale and 1 person on board that I will be shelling extra work to. I need to free up my time to focus on the big stuff.

Sounds like your doing very well for yourself man... Nice to see the progress, and don't worry about the negativity. If you're progressing and continuing building what you want, helping people, and adding massive value, (you are) then you know you've only got competition with yourself.

Big ups!

Thanks man, I appreciate it, 1 step at a time....
 
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AustinS28

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I hope I'm doing this right, otherwise I'll figure it out through trial and error.

I found a product I like and think has some potential. Most important thing - I'm just going to try it out. Nothing is going to be perfect from the start.

I am getting quotes and samples from wholesalers.

There are other sellers on amazon, but it's not a huge market....the mark-up on the product is decent enough to make some good returns.

I'm avoiding some mistakes I made in the past. Which include -

Not doing math - I purchased a product that was so cheap, but even with the mark-up I hardly made a cent on every purchase because of shipping and seller fees.

New product is much more expensive so with the mark-up I can eat a lot of those costs and still come out with nice returns on top (especially with what other sellers on amazon are selling them for.)

Currently

Domain purchased
Logo Designed
Mock-Up Shopify Account Created -- I ripped some images from my wholesalers and posted two products....made a pop-up to capture emails and give a discount for when the products are back in stock.
Facebook campaign created to test market.
Negotiating with wholesalers....

---

A little nervous because I don't know if I am doing this stuff right (shopify and facebook ad campaigns)....

Next update about this will be when I have the products.
 

AustinS28

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I made passive income for the first time today. $261.60...might not be a lot but it's a damn start to much bigger things and it's kind of surreal.

My business is getting too much work for me to handle. It's a problem, but a great problem.

I have been getting leads and referalls every week. I contracted a friend to handle the extra work. He's doing the training and the sales, I am taking 20% commision.

Next person I contract I'll take 40-50%...the reason I am doing 20 right now is because he's my best friend and has helped me at events. I trust him and am comfortable using him to try out this system.

Had a booth at the NY Times Health Fair and captured 24 Leads.

vwq1xs.jpg


Have another new client starting Monday. I'd like to gross 200k-300k in sales next year.

Kind of feel a small snowball effect going on...but lets not jinx things. It's been a long road and many hours.

This weekend, I am redoing a lot of my website.

I feel like 75% of this thread has been about that, but I have not been happy with anything. I need a lead gen landing page. The developer I hired didn't pull through. Then I made a site and it wasn't great. I am confident now that the new theme I purchased is perfect for what I am looking for and after creating 1/2 dozen wordpress websites that I can make this a lot better a lot faster than before. While the former projects may not have generated revenue, I learned so freakin much.

Onward and up...
 

AustinS28

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Some updates ---

Things are running smoothly.

I am still searching for my "it" project...Something bigger than me, something that fits a need in the market, that helps people, that I can create and sell. I spend a few hours a day at the local Starbucks thinking about this stuff and have some ideas which I will execute when ready. I’m paying my dues and researching…

In the meantime I'm just building my skills. (Sales, Marketing, Copy, Web Development....)

On the Training front -

Google Adwords has been a disappointment.

So I took the plunge and signed up for Yelp Ads and I'm nervous. $750 a month with a 12 month contract (that is more than I have ever spent on ads in a month and there really isn't a way to test like google without just diving in)...I can scale the budget back to $300/month, but 750 projects 20 new clients. I get a video team to make a pro video for yelp of me and my business. 20 clients in a month would be absolutely amazing and better than any approach I have tried online. So If I pay $750 and $700 to cancel if it produces nothing, O well, I'll chalk it up to a loss and write it off. If I pay $750 and even land 5-10 new customers....My other trainer will have a full roster and the ads paid for themselves many times over. I will be happy.

The Yelp guy and his manager purchased a session with me since they are located in NYC as a gesture that they believe this will work, and will potentially use my services.

I have a phone call tomorrow with someone who can possibly help me with getting my business into Hudson Yards which is still under construction and could be the biggest thing to happen for me.

I am grinding right now. I don't want to work my hours anymore, I'm hungry for expansion. I'm doing everything in my power to reach the next chapter with a passively run PT business and then something else (product/tech) that I create. I am such a thinker and believe my calling is creating innovations and am building the skills to do so without even realizing it for when the moment comes to execute.
 
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mws87

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Great progress, man. Stoked to see you making some moves. One thing really stuck with me in the beginning of your post. . .

Some updates ---

Things are running smoothly.

I am still searching for my "it" project...Something bigger than me, something that fits a need in the market, that helps people, that I can create and sell. I spend a few hours a day at the local Starbucks thinking about this stuff and have some ideas which I will execute when ready. I’m paying my dues and researching…

. . . and it was actually relieving to read that. I'm glad I am not the only person who constantly thinks about this stuff, it drives me nuts sometimes. I think partly due to knowing the answer is likely very simple (look at most product spins/twists/improvements/etc) yet not knowing the exact way to find the answer. Curios to know how you don't let this stuff drive you mad (or does it?)
 

AustinS28

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Great progress, man. Stoked to see you making some moves. One thing really stuck with me in the beginning of your post. . .



. . . and it was actually relieving to read that. I'm glad I am not the only person who constantly thinks about this stuff, it drives me nuts sometimes. I think partly due to knowing the answer is likely very simple (look at most product spins/twists/improvements/etc) yet not knowing the exact way to find the answer. Curios to know how you don't let this stuff drive you mad (or does it?)

I think the answer is that there really isn't any right answer. I think many ideas can work if they are executed correctly. I have the habit of getting overly excited about ideas, jumping into them, realizing I was doing things completely wrong and then just dropping it. Or seeing a competitor doing the same thing I thought of and giving up before starting (which recently I've realized is wrong).

I am now on a mission to execute my next idea win or lose. The biggest fear has been "what if it doesn't work." I have this fear of living my life chasing dreams and then never really amounting to anything as a man. I have some current ideas, but want to take them on a different process of actually building out an MVP and following through with the idea to the finish. Worst that can happen is learning what not to do.

I finally feel like I am getting very established in my current business and it's been hard for me to break out of my comfort zone and start using finances to grow. Even with my current advertising of my business that is generating profits, forking over $750 a month to Yelp scare the shit out of me because I am not rich and would be upset if I lost it but I figured I'd never know if I didn't try.

So anyways, back to your question. I constantly reflect on the improvements I've made day to day, year to year and realize they are very apparent. I've gotten better at a lot things just by jumping into things that didn't work or by growing my current business. This gives me the confidence that "I can do it." With that confidence I also realize that process/execution is just as important if not more important than an idea. So once I find what I'd like to do that meets my criteria (fits a need in the market/fixes a problem), I know I can execute - so patience is something I've been learning to appreciate, because Impulsively jumping into things has also led to impulsively and maybe prematurely jumping out.
 

ClickDale

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Lately, the question I keep asking myself that I want to discover, “If I typically make several $1k plus sales a week to individuals, what can I sell for $10k, $50k, $100k? What can I sell to a business or what service can I add to my current platform that would be worth a lot more money to those who can afford it.” I know for a fact that if I could figure out the answer to this, executing the sales and generating the leads will not be difficult for me.

Awesome thread! Thanks for sharing your journey! This is my first post on the forum.

Listen...i was thinking about your roadblock that you mentioned in a previous post and i had a few ideas:

(1) offer a higher priced service called the Platinum membership/service and offer it to new members. A select few will purchase it mainly because they can afford it and think nothing of it. Dan Kennedy's platinum members would brag that they were platinum members...so he kept raising the price. Maybe you can add a custom meal plan, audit their meals, and share some personal shake recipes or something.

(2) maybe you should mentor personal trainers. Charge $3k for hands on training on how to build a six figure personal training business. Some people need their hands held. If you found 3 individuals a month, that would be an extra $9k a month.

(3) hire trainers...focus entirely on sales...perhaps you personally only train platinum members...sell the business for one big payout...and then go teach how to build a six figure business.



(Edited by moderator for readability.)
 
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AustinS28

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Had my most successful event this week.

I set up a booth at a health fair for a major law firm - raked in 38 leads. Had some great conversations with some people and hope to convert a few.

The difference between this event and some of the others...The salary of associates starts above 200k/year, they can afford my services.

I just put my leads in a spread sheet and plan to send some nice emails/phone calls on Monday.

I looked everyone up on linkedin/the company website to help target my emails a little bit better.

I have almost 200 emails collected from face to face interactions from events (and I have only done a handful). Most have not converted, but I feel like this list will lead somewhere at some point. Might even make a newsletter and send it out a few times a year based around fitness and corporate work.

I find that me and my partner are getting a lot better at talking to people the more of these events that we go to. The results are obvious that people enjoy coming to the booth and filling out a form, whether they convert or not, we know we are liked which and if all that comes from this is building a new skill set enhancing communication, I'll be happy (well I need some conversions).

This brings me to my next task. I built a business that is not automated, I am doing well, I have grown a lot, I also work a lot. I don't know where to go next and I keep searching.

It dawned on me recently...instead of searching for a big break through or quick fix. Maybe it is time to work on my skills and when that time happens, I'll be much more prepared.

I plan on diving deeper into creating a bigger online presence for my business and will be doing the research necessary.

If I come out of personal training and into my next business being an expert in SEO, sales, marketing, web design, networking, I can't complain. If I am not where I want to be today, I am still building the skills that will make a bigger business whether this one or something else, that much more successful and that is where I need to keep my energy.
 

AustinS28

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Let’s break down July a bit and the path forward.

Personal Training

I landed one new client this month. He came from a referral. My roster of clientele is slightly bigger than it’s been, but personal training slows during the summer months. I have most of my regulars — some are out of town.

Health fair a few weeks ago led to 4 appointments. They have gone well so far. I divided the work between me an my partner. The customers are still receiving trial sessions so fingers crossed they lead to sales. My expertise says the person I am seeing will buy and I am usually not wrong when I know I’m going to land a sale.

Yelp Ads

Yelp was a mess. I wasted $500 in two weeks before cancelling. I knew I was being sold on the phone when the guy said “I’ll get you 20 clients a month with this yelp budget.” I guess it’s like personal training though. I keep customers long term because I don’t lie to them upfront.

Anyways, the events I do cost $100 a piece. I usually wind up with 30+ leads and I have made some sales from them so I decided I’d rather do 5 events for $500 then run an ad campaign I have little control over. Adwords is much better and doesn’t have a contract.

Side Hustle 1

I got my info out tonight to two people looking for word press sites. This could be fun, as I’ve gotten better at building them and want more practice. One guys owns a gym I use and is a close friend. The other guy started a meal prep business. I may also try to close the deal and outsource the work.

Side Hustle 2 (The Big Picture)

I am looking for my big break. My fast lane business. Something that doesn’t make me a slave to the time clock.

What is great is that I created my time clock, but I am still on it.

I will not be going into many details because I do not want to speak before I have something created, but I have been looking into creating an SAAS based application for service businesses.

How’d did I arrive with the idea?

It solves problems I have all day. It solves several friends problems I’ve spoken to.

Where am I at?

I’ve already drafted out the scope of the project. I’ve had Skype calls with firms in India and Vietnam to develop a web based MVP.

I have the funds necessary to build it.

What’s holding me back?

A lot of competition with big names having 50K plus monthly paint subscribers.

Not having a clear enough vision on what will separate me from the competition. I do have ideas, but they seem so far away from being completed that I imagine I’ll have a very basic product compared to my competitors and it will take me a long time to build it out to where I want it to be especially if I keep bootstrapping.

Part of me says, pull the trigger and buy the MVP, the other part remembers not researching enough before launching my e commerce biz and completely failing.

Proceeding

I want to make a few spreadsheets. One based on the 1-3 out of 5 star reviews on capterra and list out customer complaints of current software.

As a subscriber to one that is costing me $100 a month…it’s crap, but owns the market space. It’s hard to use, has an ugly interface. Runs on .net code. They are great at marketing. Sales team is impeccable.

I want to study some feature lists on top ten reviews and really hone into what feature I want to make better than the rest as a unique selling point.

I’m also going to be making a bigger email list of the initial people I’d like to market to.

If I can’t answer some of these basic questions, I’ll be holding off on any dev until I can create something that can answer them —

What problem does it solve?
Is it a real problem?
How will it differ from competitor products?

etc, etc
 

AustinS28

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I haven’t updated this thread in a while and only want to do so when I hit milestones.

I’m also taking this in an entire new direction and thought of creating a new thread, but will hold off until I have my product developed.



For the last year and a half I have diligently made note of the issues I see everyday with myself, and my customers.

My first thought was to solve some of these problems with technology. Originally I had someone developing some basic tools for my business and later I purchased the tools from SAAS businesses offering them.

Well, I hated a lot of these tools. They were hard to navigate, didn’t offer everything I needed, required multiple pieces of software to achieve everything I wanted and cost a pretty penny.

For the past few months I went over basic ideas of what I wanted to create and solidified them. It’s changed a lot and will continue to change, that’s how these projects go.

About 6 weeks ago I began interviewing software development teams. I interviewed teams in India, teams in the US, one team in Eastern Europe. I found a developer here in NYC who is going to create the MVP for my project.

Milestone 1 — MVP in development.

Personal Goal

I turned 26 last month and have an overwhelming amount of pressure from myself to achieve the most my body can athletically.

I realize life is finite and youth and athleticism goes away far quicker than other things. I have been powerlifting for a decade now, but wanted to do something more fulfilling.

I joined a Crossfit box in NYC two weeks ago and plan on working my a$$ off until I am on the competition team and then take it from there. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t trying to make it to the game on ESPN in a few years.

On that note though baby steps, just like getting the MVP done, I want to make the competition team first, then do a local competition before I focus too much on the overall and not the steps in between to get there.

Next update will be when the MVP is developed and the initial testing/experimentation phase is launched.
 

AustinS28

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I quit!

Well not really....

I'm burnt out, I peaked in my current profession and it's not a true fastlane business. It can be, but the time and capital it would take to get there just isn't worth the reward. Right now, I'm capped out, overworked, a slave almost, but all of this has been from my doing.

Personal training will hopefully be a thing of the past in the next 18-24 months tops.

On the plus, I have met a great network of people that will hopefully be in my life for the decades to come whether I am working with them or not. I have learned sales, marketing, business managment, basic web design, customer service among many other things and I am proud to have not had a boss for over two years sustaining and growing my income in one of the most expensive cities in the world.

So what's next?

-
I am completing a piece of software that I truly beleive fixes so many problems personal trainers and gym goers have. It'd fix all of mine. Don't worry it's not a run of the mill fitness app.

- I am going to continue pursuing competative lifting and crossfit.

- I am taking coding courses. I've been learning Ruby on Rails and love it. It just clicks and fits me so well. I feel like my life has been leading me here with how I think and my business ideas etc. I plan on finishing these online courses. Look into getting some work developing as I work on my own hustles or pursue it even further if I don't have a full grasp yet by going to the Flat Iron school.

I long for the days where I can live a more balanced life between family/friend, my hobbies and work...As of now I feel like I am consumed by work...and it's hard...
 

AustinS28

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Todays accomplishments -

Business -

My developer deployed the firstround of code for my SAAS business on github and the dev enironment is setup on developers.google.com to look at the code in action before it's launched. Stoked! Still forsee 3-6 months before anything is live for public use.

Personal/Business -

Built a basic web application on ruby that looks up area codes. (Not a business I am pursuing, but a homework assignment as I learn to code). Coding is fun. Felt good.

Personal -

Spent a good portion of the day at the gym, did my normal squat/bench pressing..Hit the numbers I was shooting for. Worked on some handstand push-ups and did a crossfit workout.

Weekend is off to a good start.
 
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Chimp

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I'm actually working out this very moment lol. Gotta do something between sets. After reading what you've done and what you plan to do I'm genuinely excited for your*** success. Good luck man!

Edit: meant your success not ours xD
 
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AustinS28

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Since I talked about getting a desk last year. I finally completed the work station. Obviously this isn't going to make or break my business, but coding has been more comfortable.

usw8o.jpg
 

AustinS28

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Figured since my last post was 4 months ago I'd give an update because I've accomplished a few things. I wanted to keep posting to a minimum until action was took and a goal was hit.

Owning and operating a personal training business afforded me many opportunities - the biggest was the wonderful individuals I've had the privilege of training.

6 of my current customers work in tech. 2 write Java at hedge funds that do high frequency trading. Two work in startups, the other in security and the last is retired. I also train several clients who own businesses that use a lot of technology.

In September I picked up coding - teaching myself the Ruby language, becoming obsessed with algorithms - I've been currently studying Java. With the direction of my clients, the professional letters of recommendation and consideration for future employment I enrolled in a tuition free coding school that makes its money through recruiting fees and claims a 2% acceptance rate.

After two technical and one behavioral interview I'm happy to announce I made it through, accepted the offer and am excited to be entering a new chapter when class starts toward the end of the year. My eyes are set on some personal projects and entering into high frequency trading, but then again plans change and I'm just happy to be moving forward enjoying the ride.

So why abandon a growing business?

I learned so much in 2.5 years. I was completely self employed, learned business through running a business and built a large professional network of successful people.

However, the growth potential is not there. The hours are terrible. I'm bored, burnt out and know my mind is capable of creating things the world needs. I'm not doing that here. So instead of waiting too long, I'm jumping ship when the time was right (this year), taking a chance and getting into a field that only shows growth. Tech is a modern day gold rush that I'd like to be part of.

I realized I loved programming. The gym is my escape, my sanctuary and I want it just for that, no longer working there.

I get 4-6 hours of sleep on week nights, it's not healthy. I'm looking forward to a more structured day.

What's the plan?

Crush coding school, work in a hedge fund or similar for a few years. Finish building my SAAS business and eventually bootstrap my own start-up with the capital I'm making. Some may say this is not fast lane, but I do not see it that way. Code school and working for a place where I code is just a step in becoming a better programmer and learning the business while making a very nice salary.

Personal goals outside of this?

I hired a crossfit coach and will be competing in the open this year and my sites are set on making regionals in a two year time frame. I'm growing my social media presence with hopes of using it as a marketing outlet when my app drops.

Besides that I'm trying to do a better job living in the present, enjoying my friends and family and not being so uptight. I realize you can be laser focused on your goals and still have fun. I wasn't this year. January I broke up with a girlfriend of several years. I'd like to think we needed our time apart to find ourselves and grow individually, things that wouldn't have been as possible together. While I'll be off having my fun and not clinging onto the past, I do hope this time apart leads us back together. We've been long distance for a while. I'm in New York City, she is in LA. It'd be nice if/when one of us moves it reunites us at a better point.
 
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