I just got off a Zoom meeting with some trainers at a gym in upstate New York.
In case you don’t know, gyms in New York are not allowed to open yet. They have no idea when they might be able to open up.
Regardless of the conditions and circumstances, this gym continues to grow! They have online programs, which at this point is a no-brainer.
More impressive is that they are adding programs they never had before, and their members appreciate it.
As the commercials say, but wait, there’s more.
This gym is planning and preparing to add new programs that they have never offered before. Training the staff is a natural part of the progression.
The topic we talked about is how to develop trust in your members.
Just a few short months ago, our members needed to trust us to help them achieve their goals. The world has changed, and there are many more dynamics to the trust issue today.
The first and most obvious change is our members need to trust us to provide a safe and healthy environment. It’s a challenge we must recognize and deal with before anything else.
How do you establish that trust?
Without going into all the details of the training, the most important thing you can do to establish trust is to ask questions and listen carefully to the answer you get.
Then ask another related question. Your goal is to show how much you care by listening and engaging in conversation.
Keep in mind; this is not a one-and-done tactic. In this very uncertain world, we need to ask and listen, more than ever before.
Remember, people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
Your goal for this week is to ask everyone you meet how they are doing. The answers you get might surprise you. Demonstrating that you care by asking sincere questions builds trust.
