Going With Your Gut: How I Built My Business By Listening to My Intuition

While I am the Founder of multiple international businesses, most might say that getting here was just hard work.

But I know it was more than that. It was the result of something far more primal – I just listened to my gut.

While renowned experts ceaselessly warned that my idea would take a nosedive instantly, my gut told me that people were ready for it.

And that was a gym without treadmills.

Untrodden Paths Led to Victory

Gym-goers deserve true results that drive transformation. Why else would they join a gym? It’s an inner desire to transform themselves into something they’d rather be that brings them through your doors.

After putting myself in the customer’s shoes, it was just a matter of asking what I’d rather get: a fully decked-out gym with all the best equipment that I didn’t know how to use, or a trainer who understood what I really needed to achieve the health I want.

Given the fitness landscape at that time, even I knew it was a risky move. But I believed it’d be worth it. If I feared risks and failure, I wouldn’t be half the person I am today.

I walked unconventional paths at every operational stage despite all the naysayers.

Product

The first stage was planning my product.

I already knew I didn’t want a conventional gym. What was the value that my product would offer to people?

Functional training.

I left no room for cookie-cutter regimes. If you joined MultiFit, you’d get a plan based on YOUR fitness needs. Whether you want to bulk up, trim down, or just regain mobility – I ensured we’d be able to help.

Personnel

Concepts alone aren’t enough – I’d need personnel who could get with my plan.

The most experienced trainers that joined just couldn’t fathom the product concept and refused to try.

So I did what any entrepreneur would: innovate.

I sought talent from outside the industry.

My team consisted of people driven not by decades of experience, but pure passion for fitness. They wanted to give members great experiences and results.

Naturally, forming this powerhouse team brought my ideas to life and marked the beginning of a business that would take off like a rocket, fueled by innovation and drive.

Community

With product and staff ready to go, our next step was to build a community.

I firmly believe that employees are part of your community, and it’s integral to make sure they feel safe and supported by the business so that they can support you in turn.

Not only did we create engagement plans for our clients, but we also made sure our employees knew they were appreciated and could try ideas without fearing consequences if they failed.

Once things fell into place, MultiFit blossomed into a smashing success thanks to the efforts of all the employees and members who cared about what we created. It was more than a fitness studio; it was a community where everyone could belong.

Expansion

Because MultiFit had become the go-to choice for so many people, many members offered to become brand ambassadors so the business could expand.

I still remember the story of our first franchise centre. A client who would travel long distances to reach the gym suggested opening a new studio nearer to his part of town.

Soon, many more community members followed suit.

Even though MultiFit took 17 months to reach 1000 members, by month 50 it had expanded to 37 centres with 100,000 members.

Takeaway

My lesson?

In entrepreneurship, the answers don’t always lie in spreadsheets or market trends. Sometimes, it’s the whisper of your gut. The unshakable feeling that your idea matters could lead you to revolution.

If you’ve got ideas that can disrupt trends, letting them remain ideas would be a huge mistake.

After all, even electricity was feared before it was celebrated, and every lightbulb was just a flicker of intuition against the dark.