It’s 2014 — which means that 20 years ago we started ATLANTIC GYMNASTICS TRAINING CENTER in Portsmouth, NH. I’m always nostalgic on April 15 (Tax day here in the USA), thinking about how far we’ve come as company and how far I’ve come as an owner. On a day like today, I wish I could reach back into the past and talk to Tony Retrosi, 1994.
If I could talk to Tony 1994, here are eight things I would tell him:
1. Your team is everything: You won’t get very far with this gym without a fantastic group of people with you along the journey. Hire slowly, and fire fast. Pay close attention to what makes each person tick. Some of the people around you will become life-long friends. Cori has been with me since the day I opened. I need to remember to tell her how much I appreciate her.
2. It’s going to take longer than you think: Everything is going to take a lot longer, including developing the lesson plans, raising money, hiring a team and growing the business. Starting a gym isn’t a short-term affair. Be prepared for a very long ride.
3. Starting a gymnastics club can be full of heartache: The road you’re about to embark on will be a very tough journey, and you’re going to feel deep sadness and heartache along the way. You’ll be betrayed, tricked and ridiculed. But just know that around the bend is another day, and it does get better.
4. Don’t compare yourself to other gyms: Oh, this is so hard. But it’s critical to your sanity. You’re going to see other gymnastics clubs get more funding, have a bigger space, better equipment and other gym club owners start numerous gyms while you’re still working on this one. You’ll see club owners with more Twitter followers and gyms with more clients. Remember, you can only control your small sphere and you’ll drive yourself crazy trying to keep up with others. Figure out what is going to set you apart from the rest. Find your own identity. (CAUTION- Do not unnecessarily reinvent the wheel.)
5. Don’t worry about the competitions: You can spend lots of time worried about what your competition is doing, or you can focus on what you can control. Hire a great team, build a great product, and focus on revenue and costs of your own business. The competition will come and go, but you control your own destiny.
6. Raising money is very, very hard: It’s difficult to put into words just how hard it is to convince people to part with their money and invest it in your gym. Until you get the check in the bank, anything can happen. The key to success is presenting the company as an investment opportunity. Remember, people have lots of places they can invest their money. Find ways to get people truly excited to invest in your company.
7. Survive and advance: Like the NCAA basketball tournament (“March Madness”) it doesn’t matter how you win — just find a way to survive and advance. When you look back, the details will be fuzzy, but what you will always remember is that you found a way to survive. And that’s more than most entrepreneurs can say.
8. Form your own opinion: You’re going to be surrounded by lots of so-called experts along the way (ME INCLUDED!). Listen to what they have to say, but make sure you form your own opinion. It’s their 15 minutes of advice, but it’s your company. And you have to live with the decisions.
TONY SAYS: They say Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither are successful gymnastics clubs. In fact 99 percent of successful gyms grind it out every day and wake up many years later just hoping to have seen some success. Today, I’m going to pause for a moment to celebrate just how far we’ve come. What a ride it’s been!
