I was speaking to a well-respected executive from the franchise industry today. I really enjoyed our call, and I thought I would share some of the conversation with you - it really shows the process of buying a franchise from the other side of things…..

In business, you can either let or make things happen. Successful people make things happen, and are confident in the decisions and choices that they make (both in business and in life). This conversation became especially relevant because, as the end of the year approaches, many aspiring entrepreneurs will be following their dream of owning a businesses a reality this year. And other will not… they will blame the economy, the holidays, their jobs, family, or a whole host of other factors which will cause them to procrastinate their decision making until next month.

Why is January a better month to make a decision than December? What will change between now and then? If an entrepreneur is at the point where they have collected all the information, it is very unlikely that anything will materially change within the next months. In fact, going through the notes and checklists they have developed along the process should confirm they have all the information you need to make a sound decision.

In business, it is important to identify what it is that holds you back. If it is the fear of the unknown - recognize that this is entirely normal, as with any big decision. There will always be reasons not to buy, not to invest, or not to grow, but if you are serious and have a passion for businesses, it is important to look for reasons to buy as well.

From our seat, many prospective franchisees do not realize that delaying their decision without good reasons sending the wrong message to the franchisors, who are evaluating you as a potential Developer. Franchisors (your partners) are looking for passion for the model and business savvy which includes decisiveness.

As an entrepreneur, you want to be in the position of having options. In other words, you want to be awarded the franchise and have the option of saying No. Delaying in decisions often removes that option for the candidate. As December approaches, elements will be announcing several great new club locations, and new Regional Developers - we are proud that our new partners understand that success comes from within, and possess the drive and determination that come hand-in-hand with success.

The development of a truly great brand requires you to get feedback from your consumers and partners. This is something that we at elements for women do frequently, from our prospects, from our members, from our franchise partners, stockholders, and team members.

One good example of this is our philosophy on creative materials. In our effort to prevent internal brand and design documents from getting into the wrong hands, we had taken a high degree of precaution and security measures. Documents were distributed directly from our central offices to each club, and recorded. We have been receiving feedback that this process is cumbersome, and has resulted in fewer branded items being used at some locations. More concerning, was that staff members at locations were not aware of any of the resources, graphics, or tools available to them

As a solution to improve performance, tt was decided in our most recent brand roundtable to place all of these items, 12 Gigabytes in all, onto a central web server with open access for all franchise partners. Although we will still be able to monitor who is using what piece, partners and team members will have full visual access to the depth of materials available to them, and more importantly instant access (depending on their access level).

The result was an immediate increase in staff involvement, and in some locations an immediate increase in branded products and designs. I think this change will most greatly benefit new elements for women clubs (there are over 50 locations announced), as their designers, contractors, and team will be able to quickly survey and access a wide variety of graphical resources to build, market, and sell.

It was excited to see myself and read about elements for women in Investors Business Daily today! I was flying back to Miami from a visit to Detroit, and picked up a copy in the new (and very beautiful) airport. The article was about following your dreams, and the inevitable happiness that results from such. Randy Pausch, a well known professor at Carnegie Mellon University (my alma mater), and the author of “The Last Lecture.”   Pausch recently died of cancer at a very young age, but prior to his death began a national lecture series to share his belief that pursuing your dreams helps build a fulfilling life.

Click here to read the article.

It is exciting to see the continual interest from the press into our fitness programs, including Woman’s World Magazine. We are gathering large numbers of testimonials from elements members, video testimonials from BalanceD diet users, inquiries from press and media, as well as frequent features on blogs and online media.

elements is designed to become the leading fitness and lifestyle brand for women… we do this by focusing our energy to build the very best consumer experiences…. this is the foundation which causes the brand to grow rapidly.  New elements club openings in Chicago, Atlanta, and Colombus Ohio this month were met with buzz from the communities, members, and even online bloggers… even a new partnership locally with Whole Foods Market.  elements is fast becoming a community which will grow itself - this will be one of the runaway secrets to this brand’s success in the lifestyle and fitness sectors.

As seen in Woman’s World Magazine

One of the things I find most surprising about my job, is how frequently we are conducting video or photo shoots. Elements is truly positioned as a leader in the fitness franchise space, and it is very important to have unique content: videos, photos, workouts, stories… you name it.

It seems as if every shoot is an adventure – we have had some great locales, and being based in South Beach gives us a richness of locations beyond imagination. Today’s adventure took us to Miami Beach Golf Club where we were shooting a sequence for a feature story in the prestigious CBI (Club Business International) magazine. Elements is frequently written about in the magazine, which is the top industry publication for the fitness and leisure industry, but it is very special to receive a full feature such as this. Our art director chose a great photographer and a great location for this visual… however no one took into account the humidity (and mosquitoes) after a typical Miami summer shower. My instructions “look happy, look up, look over here, higher, no lower, no your hand…” and the team began to get weary very quickly, as we all were melting in the July Miami heat. Adding some complication, it seems as if a particular group of well-known celebrities did not see the “hole closed” sign and played through our shoot! I was keeping my eye out for a small white ball… and of course getting yelled at the entire time by the photographer - I couldn’t wait to get back to to real work!

For business opportunities, please click here

Im not sure why I was so surprised to see the cover of Time magazine… I mean, we all know that obesity is one of the top killers of Americans… we know that each generation is producing heavier and heavier children. Still, you must admit, there is something very in-your-face about the cover of Time magazine.

The article (and countless studies) went on to detail the various factors to blame… increased portion sizes, trans-fats, and parents failing to teach proper eating and healthy lifestyle tips to their children.

It doesn’t take a scientist to recognize that there is a dangerous trend at work. I believe that most parents with overweight children are aware of the dangers, but are lacking easy solution on how to adapt a change. Let’s face it, parenting is tough work, having to gingely coach a child into exercising and eating right, on top of the other 1,000 challenges just makes an already challenging job that much tougher.

One proven solution is to be a positive role model. Many published studies show that overweight parents are more than 100% more likely to have overweight children than their fit-an-trim counterparts. Again, this really makes sense- a child grows up seeing the importance of exercise, watching their mom and dad make time for the gym, selecting healthier options. Exercise can (and should be) a family acitivity. Healthy cooking can be a part of an everyday lifestyle. At elements and BalanceD, few of our clients initially realize that hiring a personal trainer or a diet coach can also be a true benefit to their families, they generally will begin coaching or a weight loss program for a personal solution. While this is great, it is a true bonus in my opinion when that knowledge is shared to create a healthy lifestyle for the family. Our lifestyle coaches make shopping lists, suggest recipes, and can even adapt your family’s favorites into a lighter version. Parents making better food and cooking choices makes for a healthier (and slimmer) family. What more compelling reason could their be to begin a wellness program today?