Last night I attended my first football match at Westpac stadium. I’ve been to many around the world, but never here. It was a great evening, topped off in the dying seconds by the Phoenix snatching victory from the jaws of a draw. A great result!

What made it a really great evening out was the company I was with. A fellow gym owner invited me out for the game, and it was his company that really made the evening buzz. We had some laughs, a few whinges (we are both poms!) and plenty of stuff in between. We shared memories unrelated to our friendship because they deepen our relationship. Trusting another with your cherished memories is a great way to cement a friendship.

You see, as organisms relationships are what we thrive on. We form them regularly, and with almost any kind of entity.

Be it interpersonal, like a friend, partner or spouse, or even a pet.

Be it inanimate, like your phone, car or barbell.

We can even form relationships with characters in a book, tv show or film.

Whilst many of you reading this, like myself, will be more than comfortable spending time alone, we almost always thrive when we’re in the company of those nearest and dearest.

Many of those reading this who are existing clients, will have heard the phrase “intimate, not transactional” in your conversations with us as a business. You can get a transactional relationship almost anywhere. At the dairy, the service station, or at the gym, where the guy behind the counter, busy cruising the gram, grunts as you swipe your card in, and replicates this as you leave.

This is all well and good, but those relationships very rarely last, and your loyalty to that business changes as quickly as the price of their bread or petrol does.

Then there are the intimate relationships we form. With our spouse, family and close friends, maybe our Doctor or other trusted professional relationships.

This is where we thrive.

We don’t have a sea of people following a choreographed routine as our mainstay product, so we don’t apply this to the relationships we build. We work, firstly, on a one to one basis. We sit potential new clients down for a chat, about You, Your goals and fears, Your hopes and wants. We prescribe a structured approach, starting with Your most important needs. This might be Nutrition, Mobility or Confidence based.

It will always start with one on one coaching, either via a personal CrossFit class or with an individually designed personal training session. This is how we build your trust in us. We don’t sell you on cheap memberships and long term contracts, we coach you with expertise and care, often we’re rebuilding your faith in the fitness industry.

Trust is a crucial part of this equation.

Those of you who’ve been within 20kms of the gym will know I have a German Shepherd, named Zeus, and he has the habit of being a little exuberant at times. There’s a reason for this. Zeus is a rehome and has some anxiety issues that we work on together.

When I got Zeus, it was easy for me to accept him, as I wanted to help him relax, and develop into a confident dog. For Zeus, it was much more difficult. He had to learn to trust me, to realise consistency and patience were going to be his, as well as my, most effective tools in his development.

I’ve had Zeus for nearly three years now, and it’s still a work in progress. We’ve made huge leaps in his development, but there is always more to be done.

You, as an existing client, or you as a potential new client, are no different.

We accept you immediately, as we’re focused on the Help First model, but for you, it’s harder.

You may have been burned by false promises and had unrealistic expectations hoisted on your by well-meaning, but inexperienced fitness instructors. You may have been sold the dream by a nutrition program, promising lifelong weight loss, as long as you’re starving yourself or buying their meal replacement products.

These experiences take time to recover from, and intimate relationships are the most effective way to do so.

Believe me, I know. Next time you’re in Alicetown, stop by and ask Zeus!