Fit For Life: Driven – or - Content?

Sunday, February 12, 2017

Matt Espeut, GoLocalWorcester Health +Lifestyle Contributor

When I was thirty I was content being a personal trainer and renting space from a big box gym. I was making over $1000 a week, owned a nice Harley Davidson motorcycle, had a new leased vehicle and just bought a small house. I was able to take naps and go mountain biking in the afternoons, and take vacations when I wanted to. This was during the late nineties, the economy was thriving, all my friends were making money, things were good and I was, as I said, content.

Last weekend I attended a conference and one of my FBBC colleagues was there. He is 30 years old and his name is also Matt. He gave a presentation about opening your business with hundreds of paying clients BEFORE you open your doors. This kid owns 4 locations, is about to open #5 and has his sights on opening many more. His numbers are staggering, and he is still just getting started. This kid is DRIVEN!

I am writing this while on the plane home and reflecting back on the weekend and what I learned. I am comparing myself to him when I was thirty because after analyzing the difference in our benchmarks at this age, I came to the conclusion that the differences between us are vision and drive. Not ability or work ethic.

Don't get me wrong, I am not discouraged, and I have no regrets about how I lived my life during that time, and like I said earlier, things were good and I was happy. I am just trying to make a point that we all have choices in life, and we have the ability to succeed at anything we put our minds to, and are willing to work for. I was content back in 1998 but I still strived to increase my income and wanted to retire at an early age, so I started investing in real estate. After making a few great deals I was on my way. The market was at an all-time high, and everything I touched, I made money with. I was driven to stock pile money, so I kept investing in bigger and bigger deals.

Fast forward to 2007 after the collapse in the economy and real estate market. I was stuck holding a few properties I couldn't sell, and all my profits were locked up in these investments. I was looking at a ton of debt and the possibility of going bankrupt. I didn't have a backup plan, so I went into survival mode. I was far from content, and my drive was gone. I was just struggling to survive by doing small construction jobs, and training a few people to just pay the bills. This was a tough time. I was turning 40 and wasn't where I wanted to be. Not a good time for me, but I got through it and knew I needed to bounce back.

In March of 2014, I found Fit Body Boot Camp when I went to a business summit. I wasn't really looking to open a gym, I just went out to California to get the latest tips, trends, and ideas, so I could come home and market myself better. But that conference ignited my drive again. I knew right from the first day that this was a great opportunity to bring something new to the east coast. It was a unique business plan to spread my knowledge and passion for fitness to many more people, with an opportunity to make a great living doing so. I was all in, so I signed a letter of interest and opened my doors in September of 2014.

I keep going back to “Cali” to meet with other owners, and absorb their energy and drive to succeed. Many of them are very successful and have several locations. Not all are at the level of this Matt’s character with 5 locations, but many are not willing to work the hours, or take the risks he does either. Myself included. Maybe if I found FBBC when I was thirty and had the opportunity, abundance mindset, drive, and vision that it takes, I would be looking to open multiple locations, and be willing to work all hours of the night, but I decided that at 48 years old, that's not my vision and drive anymore. I looked into a second location, then with some direction from the top dog, I decided to change my focus. I decided I'm content with one location but extra driven to make it as successful as possible.

Today I am still driven to succeed. Failure has never been an option to me, and I am willing to outwork anyone to reach the success that I envision for myself. I am still not content, and have the drive to do more. My buddy Matt has a huge vision, and I am 100% confident that with his drive, knowledge, and work ethic he will reach his destination. I, however, have my sights set a little differently. Although I feel I have the ability, I have a different drive.

Everyone's definition of success is different, as I wrote in last week’s article, but in order to reach it you need to define where you want to be. Last weekend helped me clarify my purpose, vision, and direction of my drive. It's not to open more locations, but to maximize the one I have and to make it the best it could be. Yes, I am still driven to achieve monetary success, but I also want balance and freedom in my life. I am not there yet, but my drive now is to create contentment in my life again, and try to avoid chaos.

To sum it up people, the world is yours. You have the ability to achieve whatever goal you put your mind to and are willing to work for. The level of your success whether it be your health and fitness or business success, will be determined by the level of your drive and how content you are. If you are not content, then do something about it. Complaining and being negative won't work. You need to establish a vision, and have the drive to execute. Without both, you will not succeed. If you are content and happy, then you have achieved your goal, and the drive to succeed further changes. Enjoy what you have accomplished and reap the benefits of all your hard work and drive to contentment and freedom. You are a success !

Matt Espeut, GoLocal's Health & Lifestyle Contributor has been a personal trainer and health & fitnesss consultant for over 25 years. He is the owner of Fitness Profiles, a one on one, and small group personal training company, as well as Providence Fit Body Boot Camp, located at 1284 North Main St., on the Providence/Pawtucket line. You can reach Matt at (401) 453-3200; on Facebook at "Matt Espeut", and on Twitter at @MattEspeut. "We’re all in this life together – let’s make it a healthy one!

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