Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Darell Dansby. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Darell thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?
The year was 2017, I was working at a local gym. I was a trainer there and things were going well, but I knew I wanted to have my own place, my rules, my standards and work for myself. It got to the point where I got tired of bending over backwards to benefit their facility and I wasn’t seeing the same benefit. It came to the point where the owner and I didn’t see the same vision, so we parted ways. After that I knew I still wanted to train and teach people how to properly workout, so I started a fitness boot camp in the Leander parks, and I named it Strength From Within! I started with a few people but knew I would also have to work a fulltime job until I got big enough to replace the full-time job. So, I was working during the day and training people in the evening. I prepared people for obstacle course races and competed alongside them as well. The biggest challenge here was we were always training outside in the elements. I would get off at my daytime job and then run home get cleaned up and then load the equipment up needed for that evening and drive another 20 minutes to the park to train. As many people the fitness industry is an up and down industry, but I kept plugging along. the same small group of clients stuck with me for years. Because I was working a full-time job, it was very hard to market and scale the business up. I knew something had to change. I was spending too much time traveling, loading equipment. Then I turned my home garage into a fully committed training facility. Little by little I added new equipment and now have a fully functioning garage gym set up. We have everything you need, rower, air assault bike, full set of dumbbells, belt squat, power rack, over 1000 pounds of free weights, I started training people here and I love it. I continued to grow and get more people mainly by word of mouth and In January of 2022 I started operating full time, it has been a long road and taken me some time, but I had a vision of creating my own place for people to find their Strength from Within!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m an Army veteran that served 8 years as a tank mechanic, while I was in the Army, I wrestled for the post team and later on competed in powerlifting for the Army. I have always been into fitness, and I found out at an early age that I love to teach so it made sense to get my personal trainer certification so I could do just that. Strength From Within offers getting people stronger no matter where their current fitness level is at. This includes general fitness, powerlifting, obstacle course preparation and wrestling. A lot of Strength From Within’s focus is on mobility, Let’s face it, if you can’t move well, you won’t perform well at all. I help people move better, have better posture and become stronger in any position they are put into. The thing that sets Strength From Within apart from other facilities is that we take the time for you to understand what and why we are doing a certain exercise.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
One major lesson I had to unlearn was how to stop saying yes to everything. Growing up I was taught to work hard and always be a can-do person so anytime someone needed something you would say yes. I had to unlearn this word especially after I got out of the Army. It took me years to figure this out, I was always helping everyone else get ahead at my cost. Don’t get me wrong it is a good thing to help people, but you can’t help someone if you aren’t helping yourself. I still help people and volunteer in my community, but I have learned a true balance and it’s ok if you can’t get to everything.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
I am always striving to learn more for training people and as well as the business side of things. One of my main resources for training and business philosophy is listening to Zach Even-Esh’s podcast and reading his newsletters. This guy is a wealth of knowledge and his no fads, gimmicks approach is one I really admire. I have been to his strength coach certifications as well as his business seminar and earned so much through them that I still apply to my business on an everyday basis. Some of the other resources that have impacted me is Elliott Hulse videos, Gary Vaynerchuck’s book, Dave Ramsey’s approach to money and business.
Contact Info:
- Website: strengthfw.com
- Instagram: coach_darell
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/strengthfw