Is There an Escape Hatch in Exculpatory Clauses?

Nov 6, 2008 9:32 AM, By Rob Bovarnick

Virtually every health club agreement contains language limiting the labiality of the club in case a member or visitor is injured...

Is There an Escape Hatch in Exculpatory Clauses?

Nov 6, 2008 9:32 AM, By Rob Bovarnick

Virtually every health club agreement contains language limiting the labiality of the club in case a member or visitor is injured...

Please Don’t Go: Seven Tips for Retaining Employees and Heightening Workplace

Oct 9, 2008 10:36 AM

With today’s fluctuating labor pool, you may be forced to compete not only for customers but also for employees....

The Health Club Master Success Formula

Aug 27, 2008 11:35 AM, By Pat Rigsby

Understanding something called the Health Club Master Success Formula is critical to building your club...

LEAPing in the Right Way

Aug 4, 2008 1:37 PM, Daniel Carlin Frey

In our everyday operations, we will always come across members who are not entirely happy with our business. For some of these people, this is the chance they will take to explain their feelings about how we are operating as managers and owners—good or bad...

Seven Ways to Keep Your Staff Members Motivated

Jul 8, 2008 3:00 PM, By Jim Thomas

While working with health club clients who are struggling and attempting to turn around their existing situation, one of the common things I see are managers and owners who mistakenly think that money or the job itself is the primary motivator for their staff...

Budgetzilla: Eight Tips for Defeating the Planning Monster

Jun 4, 2008 4:28 PM

Plans should precede budgets. Too often management teams create budgets as if financial improvements will happen by magic and without specific plans, and then they wonder why they can’t make their numbers...

From Royalty to the End of the Road: How to Get the Most From Your Staff

Apr 7, 2008 3:27 PM, By Leslie Nolen

Results matter. But how employees get results—their personality and behavior—matters more. ...

How to Implement a Progressive Discipline System

Mar 5, 2008 12:19 PM, By Daniel Frey

In the business world today, it is important for an owner or manager to protect his or her interests. ...

10 Ways to Better Communicate with Medical Professionals

Feb 7, 2008 2:49 PM, By Jasmine Jafferali

Misunderstandings and communication problems remain one of the most common problems in the professional environment. Communication is essential for effective functioning in every part of an organization, whether it is one-on-one, in a group setting or through e-mail. ...

Fourteen Powerful Ways to Be a Fitness Rainmaker

Jan 8, 2008 1:26 PM, By Paul Kuck

A rainmaker is someone who has the intellectual and social clout to bring in huge revenues for a company. Specifically, he or she is a professional who consistently does two things well...

Total Member Satisfaction: The Key To Health Club Profits

Dec 5, 2007 11:49 AM, By Patrick Rigsby

When I first became involved in the fitness industry, member satisfaction seemed to be an afterthought. At the time, health clubs’ focus was primarily on new member sales. However, in today’s highly competitive health club market, member satisfaction represents perhaps the most powerful survival strategy....

A Five-Point Tune-up for Your Health Club Web Site

Nov 7, 2007 2:43 PM, By Leslie Nolen

Many health clubs create a Web site because everyone else is doing it. However, this isn’t the best reason to start one....

The 5–7–9 of Hiring, Staffing and Retaining Quality Staff Members

Oct 5, 2007 5:15 PM, By Daniel Carlin Frey

Daniel Carlin Frey started his career in the restaurant industry but later moved to the fitness industry after helping his trainer build his business....

Why Should You Make the Effort to Provide Training for Your Staff?

Sep 5, 2007 2:34 PM, By Jim Thomas

Jim Thomas is the founder and president of Fitness Management USA Inc., a management consulting and turnaround firm specializing in the fitness and health club industry....

Our Salvation: The Fitness Professional of the Future

Jul 10, 2007 9:32 AM, By Bob Esquerre

No matter how we run our club businesses, the “M” word drives our successes and/or our failures: membership recruitment, membership retention and membership referrals....

Promote Your Personal Trainers as Experts: The Quick and Easy Way to Write and Promote Fitness Articles

Jun 5, 2007 3:33 PM

Personal trainers are often viewed as more of an afterthought than fitness experts. If they were so terribly important, why are members given free sessions with them? People automatically assume that if their time is given away so readily it must not be very valuable....

Does Your Management Style Inspire Others in Your Health Club?

May 8, 2007 4:51 PM, By Jim Thomas

In working with many different types of clubs across the country, I’ve seen varying styles of how to inspire others in your health club. Some are very demanding, while others ignore everyone and hope things will improve...

Just Blog It

Apr 9, 2007 10:54 AM

There are currently more than 71 million blogs with 175,000 new ones launched every day. Sure, the vast majority of these will never have more than a handful of readers, but, done right, a blog can be a crucial element in your marketing mix...

How to Win the Nutrition Game

Mar 7, 2007 10:57 AM

March is National Nutrition Month. To remain cutting edge and competitive in today’s market, you must do something to separate your business from the competition, and celebrating National Nutrition Month is one way to do that—as long as you do so properly....

15 Tips for Developing a Fire-Safety Plan for a Fitness Center

Jan 25, 2007 11:30 AM, By Karen Raisch-Siegel, MS

Imagine it is 6 p.m. on a Monday night, and your facility is packed with members. All of a sudden, the fire alarm goes off. Would you be able to safely evacuate your members and employees? ...