Expand Your Circle: How to Learn From Other Entrepreneurs

Gym owner greeting others - expand your circle

By Brian Strump, Certified Two-Brain Fitness Business Mentor

“We are the average of the five people we spend the most time with,” Jim Rohn said.

However, in the business world, it’s important to venture out of your specific niche in order to get the best view through different lenses. 

Gym owners always ask other gym owners about their businesses. Accountants talk with other accountants at continuing-education courses about their businesses. The mechanic talks cars and business with mechanic friends. 

The opinions of others in our field can be valuable. But the opinions are also commonly myopic. 


What Can You Learn From Others?


As business owners, we should be engaged in a constant search for feedback and growth. And we should constantly search for ways to improve operations, profitability and our clients’ experiences. 

It would be foolish to think that we cannot learn from business owners outside the fitness field. 

I see this play out often in social media. A gym owner poses a question to a group of gym owners. We don’t notice our own blind spots in response to the question.

Yet, if you posed that same question to a group of business owners in a different field, it’s likely you’d get multiple helpful answers you might never have considered. You’re just too close to your business to consider alternatives. 

One of the most impactful books I’ve read is “The Power of Moments” by Chip and Dan Heath. It includes a number of stories about how different businesses created an unmatched client experience. Not one story was from a gym owner, yet I was able to take those lessons and improve the experience of our clients. 

We can learn a lot from those who are different from us. 

Books are great, but I’d recommend finding a group of local business owners or entrepreneurs to discuss how you can help each owner’s business move forward.  

Sometimes getting a different perspective is just what you need to improve your business.

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One more thing!

Did you know gym owners can earn $100,000 a year with no more than 150 clients? We wrote a guide showing you exactly how.