Gym Momentum

New Men’s Collegiate Program?

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I just received this from Byron Knox, the head Women’s coach at University of Bridgeport CT. Many of you know Byron from CATS Gymnastics and his work with Elite level gymnasts for many years.

Tony,
Please pass along to everyone in your local area:
We are on the verge of doing the un thinkable… Creating a men’s program here at the University of Bridgeport and possibly moving our fast growing women’s program to division 1! I need your attendance to demonstrate to my administration, that gymnastics in the north east is alive and growing.
Please come support this historic event April 13, 2012 in the Webster Bank Arena.
Thanks
Byron
NCAA Gymnastics has been through some tough times in recent years. On the women’s side and certainly the men’s side we have seen programs dropped at an astonishing rate since the 1980’s.
Recently Lindenwood University in St. Charles, MO added a women’s program becoming the first new program since Arkansas was added 10 years ago. The Lindenwood University gymnastics program will begin competition during the 2012-2013 school year as a non-divisional program vying for qualification to the USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships.
Can you imagine if U of Bridgeport was able to move up D1 and Added a Men’s Program!.
If you are in the Northeast April 13- Get to the University of Bridgeport

Are We Raising a Generation of Helpless Kids?

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Atlanta-based freelance writer Mickey Goodman focuses on social issues, lifestyles, design and travel. Her articles have appeared in Thomson-Reuters, People, Veranda, Southern Living and more. Mickey’s book, Nine Lives of a Marriage – A Curious Journey,”with Holocaust survivor Eva Friedlander, was published in August.

This is an excerpt from a great article I read this morning. Read the entire article HERE

Warning signs

When a college freshman received a C- on her first test, she literally had a meltdown in class. Sobbing, she texted her mother who called back, demanding to talk to the professor immediately (he, of course, declined). Another mother accompanied her child on a job interview, then wondered why he didn’t get the job.

Where did we go wrong?

• We’ve told our kids to dream big – and now any small act seems insignificant. In the great scheme of things, kids can’t instantly change the world. They have to take small, first steps – which seem like no progress at all to them. Nothing short of instant fame is good enough. “It’s time we tell them that doing great things starts with accomplishing small goals,” he says.

• We’ve told our kids that they are special – for no reason, even though they didn’t display excellent character or skill, and now they demand special treatment. The problem is that kids assumed they didn’t have to do anything special in order to be special.

• We gave our kids every comfort – and now they can’t delay gratification. And we heard the message loud and clear. We, too, pace in front of the microwave, become angry when things don’t go our way at work, rage at traffic. “Now it’s time to relay the importance of waiting for the things we want, deferring to the wishes of others and surrendering personal desires in the pursuit of something bigger than ‘me,'” Elmore says.

• We made our kid’s happiness a central goal – and now it’s difficult for them to generate happiness — the by-product of living a meaningful life. “It’s time we tell them that our goal is to enable them to discover their gifts, passions and purposes in life so they can help others. Happiness comes as a result.”

The uncomfortable solutions:

“We need to let our kids fail at 12 – which is far better than at 42,” he says. “We need to tell them the truth (with grace) that the notion of ‘you can do anything you want’ is not necessarily true.”

Kids need to align their dreams with their gifts. Every girl with a lovely voice won’t sing at the Met; every Little League baseball star won’t play for the major leagues.

• Allow them to get into trouble and accept the consequences. It’s okay to make a “C-.” Next time, they’ll try harder to make an “A”.

• Balance autonomy with responsibility. If your son borrows the car, he also has to re-fill the tank.

• Collaborate with the teacher, but don’t do the work for your child. If he fails a test, let him take the consequences.

“We need to become velvet bricks,” Elmore says, “soft on the outside and hard on the inside and allow children to fail while they are young in order to succeed when they are adults.”

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REVIVE YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION

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Many people woke up on January 1st and vowed to turn over a new leaf. You imagined a better you! You set goals and for a while it seemed to work. Then you got into the busiest part of your competition season and you slipped back into your old habits.

Now you ask you self- IS CHANGE REALLY POSSIBLE?

Society seems to conspire against us making any real change. Let’s face it, TOTAL FITNESS IN 5 MINUTES A DAY was a nation wide best seller. The coach in us knows that real change takes a lot of willpower. It doesn’t have to be that way. Willpower is not the brute strength to resist temptation, but “the ability to do what you really want to do when part of you really wants to do it,” says Kelly McGonigal, a health psychologist at Stanford University and the author of The Willpower Instinct. “It’s remembering what you really want, your bigger goals, in the face of your immediate desires.” And it’s a skill you can strengthen. Science may not yet have devised a surefire formula for keeping your resolution, but it has lately revealed some tips to help all of us make real and lasting change.

1. Accept that you are a busy and often stressed out person. This is the busiest part of your season!

According to McGonigal, people often fail to make change because they view their future selves with Herculean powers of self control. Don’t wait for the efficient person who resists all temptations to show up.” Take action now and understand that you are human. You will have some setbacks. Get over it and get going.

2. Pick your battles.

Like many people, I had a goal to loose some weight after the holidays. It certainly takes will power to eat right. Being at a competition where I have 7 back to back sessions over the weekend and I am staying at a hotel makes that difficult. So I just do the best I can and not stress over it. Studies also suggest that glucose in the bloodstream fuels willpower; when levels are low, it’s harder to stay the course. When you engage in acts of self control all day- it depletes your glucose levels. Prioritize and pick your battles.

3. Rethink your environment.

When your surroundings stay the same, so do your ingrained habits. Tweak your environment to help you make healthy choices. My mother was a smoker for years. When she finally decided to quit- the first thing she did was get rid of “her chair”. The place where she would sit and have her evening smoke. Just that small change of furniture made it easier for her.  What can you change in your environment to help you reach your goals? Are you the coach who on your way home from practice stops and gets a slice a pizza and a beer? Try driving a different route home.

4. Start Small

Many people are too ambitious in their goals. Instead of vowing to run a marathon in May. Start with a 10 minute daily walk. If you stick with that goal for a week, congratulate yourself and up the ante the following week.

5. Envision how you’ll achieve your goal.

We ask the athletes we work with everyday to visualize their corrections, their routines or vault. But visualization can also boost our odds of success. A 2011 study from McGill University on Montreal found that among people who set a goal of eating more fruit, those who pictures when, and where, and how they would buy, prepare and eat it consumed twice as much fruit as those who didn’t.  You also need to anticipate challenges- the plate of cookies one of your gymnasts brings you, the end of the day fatigue that makes you want to skip your own workout- and imagine how you’ll overcome them.

 

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Who Cares?

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Who cares?

Unless someone does, things start to fray around the edges. In your gym, IT HAS TO BE YOU!

Often it is the owner or gym manager who sets a standard of caring about the details. Even better is a culture where everyone cares, and where each person reinforces that horizontally throughout the team. Caring is everyone’s job.

You’ve probably been to the hotel that serves refrigerated tomatoes in January at their $20 breakfast, that doesn’t answer the phone when you call the front desk, that has a shower curtain that is falling off the rack and a slightly snarky concierge. This is in sharp relief to that hotel down the street, the one that costs just the same, but gets the details right.

It’s obviously not about access to capital (doing it right doesn’t cost more). It’s about caring enough to make an effort.

If we define good enough sufficiently low, we’ll probably meet our standards. Caring involves raising that bar to the point where the team has to stretch.

In your gym: The owner of the mediocre gym who’s reading this, the manager who just got forwarded this note- all have great excuses. Times are tough, equipment upkeep is expensive, nobody else cares-why should I, I am a college student and this is just a part time gig, the parents are jerks…who cares.

Caring, it turns out, is a competitive advantage, and one that takes effort, not money.

Like most things that are worth doing, it’s not easy at first and the one who cares isn’t going to get a standing ovation from those that are merely phoning it in. I think it’s this lack of early positive feedback that makes caring in service businesses so rare.

Which is precisely what makes it valuable.

Keep in mind what is important

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Tony, "Just what I needed"

Ivan "you need to keep in mind what is really important"

This is just a friendly reminder to all coaches out there that some of the most important things going on in your life have NOTHING to do with your gym or gymnastics. Last week I had a typical 80+ hour work week. Between Coaching, owning 2 gyms, writing and posting for Gym Momentum and getting things ready for my summer camp and the Gym Momentum Training Camp (more on that later) my brain was about to explode. I decided to take a 1/2 a day yesterday and go skiing with my good friend Ivan Ivanov. He too was feeling the stress of a busy competition schedule, gym ownership and his responsibilities to USAG with developmental camps. In what has become an annual event for us, we both escape from our gyms one morning and spend some time skiing.

The time out of the gym, out of the office and out on the slopes was just what was needed to refocus and refresh things. Every trip up on the chairlift was nearly as enjoyable as each run down the slopes. We shared business ideas, coaching ideas and drills, thoughts on philosophy and education and on raising children.

Please take the time to get away with friends and family, even for just a few hours. The 4 hours away is not going to have negative impact on your business or coaching and could really help.

Ivan, Mike, Chase, Tony. Gunstock mtn 2012

Cracking the mobile code

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Poorly placed or ineffective QR codes can lead you to consumer frustration. Here’s how to use them to enhance- NOT EMBARRASS- your gym.

I have a love/hate relationship with QR (quick response) codes. These boxy symbols which you see everywhere these days from business cards, ticket stubs and pizza boxes function like a bar code on steroids.  It allows people who have a QR code reader on their smart phone to visit websites, access discounts or otherwise engage with your brand. In your gym business it is another great way to interact with your current clients and your potential customers.

WHY I HATE THEM-

  • Sometimes they lead NOWHERE. A QR code on a pizza box brought me to their menu! I had already ordered and picked up the pizza. This was of no help! A QR code that brought me to a NON-mobile-friendly site.
  • NO INCENTIVE- I scanned a QR code and was brought to a site that wanted my Name, e-mail address so they could send me future specials. Right- I don’t get enough spam already. I am going to sign up for more. Plus- typing that info into my iPhone is a PAIN IN THE ASS.
  • BAD PLACEMENT- A QR code on a bottle of shampoo? Sorry- I don’t happen to have my phone with me in the shower. A QR code on a billboard along the highway? Isn’t driving and texting dangerous enough? Let me try to scan that code as I drive 65 mph through traffic.
  • TOO MUCH INFO- No one likes to wait. Don’t make me wait for a video to load onto my phone.

All these are really a shame because I really do love the potential.

WHY I LOVE THEM-

  • QR codes can bridge the online and offline worlds and enrich your efforts to generate leads.
  • They are FUN
  • They present an easy way to get information to potential customers
  • They are another way to interact with customers.

BUT- They only work IF you use them the right way.

FOCUS ON USER EXPERIENCE.

The mobile web is rapidly becoming a major conduit for relationships with customers. Take a look in your waiting room someday and look at how many parents have their smart phones out. Make sure your mobile efforts are purposeful and relevant in order to better attract new customers and service those you already have.

Practice the K.I.S.S. method. KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID. In a practical sense, BREVITY RULES- in terms of speedy load time on the QRs landing page.

KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

According to an article in Entrepreneur Magazine 14 MILLION U.S. customers (6.2% of the total mobile audience) scanned a QR code on their mobile device in JUNE of 2011. That may sound like a small portion but consider this, 40% of customers ages 25-34 have scanned a QR code. I don’t know about your gym- but that is the age group I am marketing to.

HAVE A POINT

As with any of your marketing efforts, be sure to have crystal clear objectives.

  • Is your goal to generate leads to your gym?
  • Are you just looking to grow your database of potential customers?
  • Are you looking at expanding 1 program in your gym (summer camp, pre-school)

GIVE THEM A REASON TO SCAN

Offer an incentive to scan and visit your site. We recently had an Ad for our summer programs in a magazine. Our QR code lead them to our summer page where they received $15 off if they signed up by March 1st.

If you were doing a direct mail piece, the QR code can lead them to access “the rest of the story”. Whatever you do, be sure to frame the offer contextually. Don’t just point to a website. Think of the QR code as being a step in the customers journey. Treat the code not as a passive entry but as a call to action.

It is clear that the mobile experience is going to change everything. It is estimated that by 2015, more people in the U.S. will access the web through mobile devices than through PCs.

What are you doing to take advantage of that MOMENTUM?

 

 

TEAM MIKEY’S WAY

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Contributor Eddie Umphrey sent me an e-mail last week bringing my attention to Ian Makowske, MIKEY’S WAY and TEAM MIKEY’S WAY. I immediately knew that I needed to get GYM MOMENTUM behind this. Keep the MOMENTUM going. Spread the word and get involved with MIKEY’S WAY.

 

Here is an excerpt from his e-mail

Tony,

I first met Ian several years ago when he came to the University of Michigan summer gymnastics camp.  He was interested in joining the team and attended the summer camp to get a closer look at the university.  Right off the bat, Ian stood out as one of the hardest workers in the camp, but what caught my attention most was his willingness to learn and how earnestly he sought to gain more knowledge.  He was very genuine in his training.  He told Michigan was at the top of his college list & there was no doubt in my mind that he would be a perfect fit at Michigan.  By time Ian had began his time as a Wolverine I had already graduated, but had the pleasure of frequently speaking to Ian and following his progress while on campus. Last year I received a Facebook group invite from Ian to raise awareness of Mikey’s Foundation.  It spread across Facebook quickly.  In October, 2011 Ian  created a way to raise even more support and funds for Mikey’s foundation while still training.  Thus, Team Mikey’s Way has now introduced Mikey’s incredible story to the gymnastics world. 

Eddie

Since then I have been in touch with Ian, discussing MIKEY’S WAY and finding ways for GYM MOMENTUM to help. Ian’s simple response sealed the deal.

Dear Tony,

My main goal in competing for Team Mikey’s Way is to spread Mikey’s story. Mikey was a great friend, an incredible person, and continues to be a huge inspiration in my life. He left an incredible legacy, tangibly in the Foundation that he created, but intangibly as well in the number of number of people he inspired and the optimism he spread. By telling Mikey’s story I hope to not increase the number of people who know about Mikey’s Way Foundation, but also to honor his memory.

By competing in a Team Mikey’s Way uniform, I hope to raise brand recognition on a national level for Mikey’s Way Foundation. By competing with the Mikey’s Way “MW” on my chest I hope to gain exposure at meets and increase media coverage, spread Mikey’s story, and make Mikey’s Way Foundation a nationally recognized organization. My goal is to raise $10,000 worth of donations by Olympic Trials. Currently I have raised about $2,000 since September. People’s support has been truly overwhelming! Half of every generous donation goes directly to Mikey’s Way Foundation as they continue to provide pediatric cancer patients with electronics to help them cope with the stress, fear and boredom of treatments. The other half goes towards Team Mikey’s Way, uniforms, travel and training expenses for me. Ultimately, the coverage and exposure gained by traveling and competing in Team Mikey’s Way apparel will result in greater recognition for the Foundation and will aid pediatric cancer patients as well.

 So far this season I have already competed for TEAM MIKEY’S WAY  at the Windy City Invitational and the West Point Open. I travel to Vegas tomorrow and compete in the Winter Cup Challenge, and I am looking into the HGC meet at the beginning of March. From there, I will compete at Qualifier, and hopefully US Championships. Should my Irish citizenship go through, I hope to get several international assignments, possibly Northern European Championships.

I cannot tell you how much I appreciate you helping me get the word out. I don’t think people realize how much their support means. Whether it is cheering for me at a competition, wearing Mikey’s Way Blue, or even just sending in a dollar. Everything helps.

Ian

Here is a Video Eddie put together to tell MIKEY’S story and Ian’s quest. Keep the MOMENTUM going. Share it with everyone.

Find out about MIKEY’s WAY on NBC News

Sadly, Michael lost his battle with cancer in October of 2008. He is deeply missed and always loved. His vision for Mikey’s Way continues, and his legacy has only just begun.

ALWAYS BE UPLIFTING. Please share this with Everyone you know. Support Team Mikey’s Way: SUPPORT

How Do You Know You Are Doing A Good Job?

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How Do You Know You Are Doing A Good Job?

For gym owners or managers sometimes it is very difficult to tell if you are doing a good job.

Your employees may be afraid to give you constructive criticism but they are happy to talk about you when you are not around! IF you are lucky you will have one person who is NOT afraid to tell you the truth when you mess something up.

Is there anyone around to let you know when you have done a good job? All too often the answer is, “NO”.

Compliments feel shallow, forced or insincere.

Remember- Actions speak louder than words! In the gym we are more than a paycheck to most (hopefully all) of our employees.

You know you are doing a good job when:

  • Coaches/ teachers volunteer to sub for a class.
  • Coaches/ teachers do things to make your job easier
  • Coaches/ teachers willingly do MORE than what is required of them.
  • Coaches/ teachers are PROUD to be associated with you. They want to introduce you to their friends and family
  • Coaches/ teachers play a joke on you.

You can not look for these things to happen every day, although that would be nice. If ANY of these things happens every once and a while, you are probably doing OK.

If NONE of these things happen, EVER– You probably have some work to do.

PRAISE THOSE AROUND YOU.

Here’s what the psychologists think about praise: “Positive reinforcement works better than punishment.”
Here’s what the management experts think: “Employee recognition leads to profit.”
Here’s what the neurologists think: “Dopamine, which is released in the brain any time we hear something we like, is a powerful chemical.”
How important is praise in the workplace or in the gym? A 2010 study published in Harvard Business Review found that at Best Buy, a 0.1 % increase in employee engagement drove $100,000 in operating income to the bottom line of EACH store per year.
In your gym- employee engagement involves a lot of things.
  • – Personal fulfillment
  • – Career advancement
  • – Maybe even Free Coffee
Chester Elton, co-author of  The Carrot Principle, found that the single most important factor was SIMPLE RECOGNITION.
Praise involves very little effort and produces a lot in return. It is a no-brainer IN and OUT of the gym.
Try the PSED principle.
Praise
Someone
Every
Day
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On Sportsmanship for Gymnasts, Coaches and Parents

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SPORTSMANSHIP
On the long drive home after a very successful weekend at an Invitational my coaches and I had an opportunity to reflect on the behavior of some coaches, parents and gymnasts. We were in agreement that sportsmanship is really something NOT addressed enough in our sport. It came down to that there are some coach/club owners who allow such behavior out of parents from their gym that it becomes an embarrassment to the sport itself. Many of these same coaches are so focused on the score that they do not see an exemplary performance. These coaches are often the “Bad Winners”.

To get good at winning, you have to get good at losing.

The bottom line is that you or your team is NOT going to win every competition you go to. All winning streaks come to an end. When I first started coaching, my goal was to have each gymnast, and therefore, each team competitive at each level. I knew we weren’t going to have a lot of 1st place team trophies but we were going to have a good product on the floor. As my team grew and my coaching staff improved we started winning more, but my goal was the same. To be competitive. I made sure that every gymnast, coach and parent knew this.

To the Gymnasts: If you have a good meet and someone has a better meet, congratulate them. Appreciate their hard work and determination. It is OK to want to beat the competition, but beat them on their BEST day. If you have a bad meet (and you will), get over it, get back to the gym and get to work. I have seen so many gymnasts not be able to recover from a bad event or a bad meet. Move on. Read my post on Failure, A Prerequisite for Success.

To the Coaches: Practice the 6 P’s. Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. If you plan and Prepare your gymnasts in practice then your job in the meet should be easier. You can not control the competition and you can not control the score. If you go to a meet and get your butt kicked, congratulate that team. As difficult as it is, try to catch some great performances from other teams.

To the Parents: Keep in mind, you never know whose parents or grandparents you may be sitting next to. Say NOTHING negative. Appreciate a good routine regardless of what color leotard that child has on. During awards, clap for every place whether 1st place or 101st place. In the team competition, be respectful. Cheer for every place. If your team wins- Be happy but try not to be over the top with your cheering.

The following is a letter I sent out to parents from my gym following the last competition.

Parents,

There is no way I can possibly tell you how proud we are of your children. Not just for their performance in the meet but for their composure, and sportsmanship they displayed. In every meet, someone is going to have a good meet and others are going to struggle. Athletes at both ends of the spectrum handled their individual situations with poise and dignity. They cheered for their team mates, they cheered for other competitors. During awards they were respectful of the competition, they were showed real class. This is one thing as coaches we expect of your children at competitions and we are so happy that they acted accordingly.

At FAR TOO MANY competitions, we have seen and heard groups of parents that cheered and acted like they were at a football game. It is always awkward when a team of parents is cheering for “their team” to the point of being obnoxious. I am so happy that this has NEVER been a parent from Atlantic. We really dominated this competition at every level  and age group. During the competition I heard many of you applaud for a good performance regardless of what color leotard that gymnast had on. During awards I heard you cheer for every place from top to bottom.

As I left the meet and went over to thank the Meet Director, John, and his brother Gene (the guy giving out awards) they congratulated Atlantic as a team for having a good weekend and then commented on what a classy group of parents we had. We shared a few stories of parents from other gyms who are not as gracious guests and really are an embarrassment to the sport as a whole.

For being such great parents and teaching your kids such great values I THANK YOU. I AM PROUD.

Tony

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