What if you could transform your body or your business in 90 days?
No, I’m not about to pitch you the newest fitness-business hybrid version of P90X…
But I do want to share an experience and some thoughts with you.
At the time of writing this article, I’m just getting to the end of an elite body transformation program. My wife, Sangeeta, and I signed up to work with this highly recommended body transformation coach.
I’ve been speaking to a few friends about the program. While some of them cheered us on, some gaped at me: ‘You’re spending HOW MUCH on this program?’
I will admit, it’s not a budget-friendly program. We’re paying a *not-ignorable* sum of money for a three-month program – three workouts a week and a nutrition plan.
Many of the people I’ve spoken to voice that it felt like an irrational amount to pay for something I could very likely achieve with a cheaper coach, or even on my own if I put my mind to it.
But here’s the thing: I didn’t want to dabble or mess around. I wanted to set myself up for a solid shot at transformation.
Here are my three big reasons for signing up for this ‘expensive’ program:
- Time to Success – Could I achieve the fat-cutting, muscle-building results myself or with a personal trainer at the gym? Probably.
Will it take me longer to do my research, figure out my meal plan, my meal times, my workout plan, and all the other details that go into a program like this? Absolutely.
I could perhaps achieve the same results, with a little trial-and-error, in say six or nine months. With this program, I’ve got a 90-day guarantee with someone who knows exactly what they’re doing. The odds make it worth the premium fee point to me.
- Probability of Success – If you’ve been on any kind of diet or exercise plan before, you know that results are never guaranteed. Fitness regimes are highly personalized – what works for me might not work for you, and vice versa.
Working with an expert greatly increases the probability of getting the results that we want to see. The right coach (and plan) ensure adherence.
Just this morning, I hit near-failure on a barbell bench press. Had I been working out alone, I’d probably have dropped the weights and moved on to something else. The body transformation coach, however, pushed me to finish the set. He’s extremely methodical about our workout sessions – exercises, load, reps. He’s also closely monitoring the load strain on my body due to my regular three or four runs a week and planning the workout pre and post-run based on fatigue and other factors.
As a result, my workouts have gotten significantly more efficient and effective.
- Specialization – One more reason we signed up for this particular program with this particular coach was that he specialized in clients like us.
His area of specialization is body transformation for busy people in their 40s. Being so focused on the concept of the right-fit client myself, I get the value of working with someone who serves a niche to achieve a specific result.
This coach knows the typical lifestyle, physiological, mental, and other hurdles that a client like me might face on this journey. He’s mastered serving people like me. By virtue, Sangeeta and I have access to all the right support and resources to make this program a success for us.
Once again, a much higher chance that we’ll see results than working with someone who casts a wide net, has a more general approach and has at best dabbled in transformation programs for clients in their 40s.
These three reasons are specific to my body transformation coaching experience, but they go way beyond.
These are my reasons for always signing up with the best-suited service providers I can find, even if they come at a premium.
I’m curious (so leave me a comment) – What are the factors you consider when you’re picking a service provider?
Transforming Your Business
Here’s something that’s been playing on my mind as I’m making all the many changes this fitness program demands: If 90 days of changing your food and lifestyle habits can transform your body, can 90 days of shifting your business habits transform your business?
Our coach has provided us with an ‘Allowed Foods’ list. We’re not allowed to consume one ANYTHING that is not from food on that list. So my morning and afternoon chai was a no-go. I used to do two small cups of desi chai or tea, with milk and a cube of sugar each, twice a day. That afternoon chai was always accompanied by biscuits (Ritz crackers, anyone?) or a jam sandwich (yes I know) to dunk in the chai.
Over the 90-day program eliminating that habit cuts 180 cubes of sugar and a large amount of dairy from my diet, a large amount of biscuits and white-bread-jam-sandwiches.
That small, wasteful 10-minute habit had such a huge cumulative impact on my calorie intake.
Now let’s apply that idea to time management and productivity. Were there little wasteful pockets of time in my day that I could potentially eliminate?
With social media and other such easy distractions, it’s safe to say that all of us likely experience these pockets of wasteful activity. What would your business look like if you reclaimed that time?
If, for instance, you reclaimed 10 minutes of mindless Instagram browsing a day – what would you do with an extra 50 minutes a week? You could hit a yoga class. Or start writing a weekly blog. Or perhaps add an extra sales call to your calendar. And we all know it isn’t just 10 minutes a day.
Whatever it is that you choose to do with that time, do you believe that one small shift might hold the power to transform your business in the long run?
As James Clear puts it in his book, Atomic Habits: “Success is a product of daily habits, not once-in-a-lifetime transformations.”
