Gym Smart VS Corporate Smart

Running a successful business isn’t complicated. In fact, it’s pretty simple. I’d argue that assuming you have the solution to a problem (e.g. helping people lose weight and feel better about themselves), if you do the following for long enough you’ll end up in a pretty good spot.

Sales and Marketing – Getting your message in front of enough of your people, having conversations, and ultimately showing them that you can help them.
Customer Service – This is what you do and usually the strongest area for people going into business.
Finance – Oftentimes this is the most neglected part of running a business. Owners who neglect this will pay a price.

For today's post, I’ll talk about 2 of them.

I’m reading a book right now with a few friends that has been recommended by so many people I had to check it out. It’s called Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara and it’s about, well, unreasonable hospitality. Guidara is known for taking a struggling two-star brasserie called Eleven Madison Park and turning it into the #1 restaurant in the world. He argues that the success and good life we’re looking for lies in the simple idea of improving the lives of those around us (e.g. customers, team members, etc.).

I expected to read about novel ways to surprise and delight people. There is plenty of that, but what I was surprised to find (in a good way) is how much attention is given to the financial side.

We have this idea that if we could just produce a great widget and/or be great at servicing people, we’ll be able to ride off into the sunset. Guidara wouldn’t disagree more. In fact, check out what he says on page 36, referring to the abysmal success rate of restaurants. By the way, I’d argue that this applies to any business, certainly fitness:

“But whatever terrifying statistics you’ve heard about how many restaurants fail in the first year has a lot more to do with the people who open restaurants without understanding the business part of business.”

He goes on to share a concept he learned from his father called Restaurant Smart VS Corporate Smart. In fact, he attributes his phenomenal success to this principle. On one hand, you have owners who are Restaurant Smart. Those are the ones who are good with people. They understand what it means to put people first. They don’t have excessive red tape sucking the life out of their people. On the other end, you have people who are Corporate Smart. They are excellent at things like systems, understanding financial statements, strategic decisions, etc.

At one point a couple of years ago I had to take a hard look at my numbers and acknowledge that we were flat. It wasn’t easy but we used it as an opportunity to try new things and over time we saw some improvement. 

If you want to succeed, you need to have both of these dialed in. One won’t fix the other.

Almost no gym owners give their financials the attention they deserve. If they did, they would see a dramatic edge. When I started paying closer attention to my financials, everything changed. I went from struggling to make ends meet to having the clarity and confidence to make better business decisions. For instance, I started tracking my cash flow weekly, and the results were eye-opening. I quickly realized areas where I could cut unnecessary costs and found opportunities to invest in growth. Within just a few months, I saw a noticeable improvement in my bottom line, and my stress levels dropped dramatically. The shift wasn’t just financial—it was personal. My life improved because I finally took control of something that had been a major source of anxiety.

To put it simply, the key to a successful business isn’t just in mastering one of these areas—it’s about mastering them all. If you focus solely on getting people in the door without understanding your numbers, or neglect the customer service experience because you're obsessed with your bottom line, you're missing a huge part of the equation.

Success isn’t about being the best at just one thing. It’s about finding a balance between people, process, and profit. Whether you're running a gym, a restaurant, or any service-based business, the same principles apply. Take the time to nurture both the Restaurant Smart and Corporate Smart aspects of your business, and you'll not only improve your financial health but also build a sustainable and thriving business that truly serves its purpose.

So, what's one small change you can make today to start balancing both sides of your business? How about simply tracking cash flow weekly? Start with the numbers, add in the people, and watch how the pieces fall into place.

*If you’re ready to get your business and finances working even better for you, book a quick call with me here and let’s see how we can help!!

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