We were lucky to catch up with Jared Evans recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jared, appreciate you joining us today. Looking back, what’s an important lesson you learned at a prior job.

There are certain times in our life that are the most difficult, but the most valuable.

I was in the Air Force for 4 years. It was really the hardest 4 years of my life. For many people it wouldn’t have been, it wasn’t the work, but my mindset about it. I was a bit younger, and less wise (that’s putting it nicely) but that’s no excuse. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do after college, and my dad convinced me going into the military would be a good choice. Not having the courage to chase my dream of running a martial arts school, I reluctantly agreed to sign up with Uncle Sam.

I didn’t get the job I really wanted (working on the fighter jets), and they sent me far from home, to Idaho, “where the heck is Idaho?” I thought. A tough start for a young man of 21 who had never left his small town in upstate New York. But the fun didn’t stop there. Deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan were also on the menu, as well as working for some pretty poor leadership. All my griping aside, these were 4 of the most valuable years I have lived because I learned many important lessons, one of which I want to share with you today. To have courage to chase your dreams.

Back then I didn’t have much life experience, and I wasn’t sure if I knew what I really wanted to do. Or more honestly, I did know but didn’t think I could make it happen. I was a martial arts fanatic back in those days, and had made it my number one priority from the time I was 15 up until I joined the Air Force. I not only loved to learn, but also to teach. I wanted to take over my instructor’s school and run it as my own, under his guidance. He wanted that too. But I was afraid. Afraid I didn’t know enough, that I was too young, that I wouldn’t be able to make a living, that people would think I was a joke, and on and on the fears and excuses went. So I choose the “safe bet”.

So I knew pretty quickly I wasn’t going to make a career out of the military, and I often thought about what I would do after. I kept training in martial arts, and I also was getting more into fitness at this time and even became a certified Physical Training Leader (PTL) so I could train my fellow Airmen and lead fitness training. This is actually when I started doing personal training on the side. I knew when I got out I could keep doing what the Air Force trained me to do, be a radar technician, and make good money. But I hated it. It was just a job, my passion wasn’t in it. I don’t think everyone has to have a job they love, as long as they have something they are passionate about. But for me, I wanted my career to be my purpose.

When I got out I tried running my instructor’s karate school, and it was good for a while. For about a year and a half I grew the classes, learned how to do advertising, do sales, bookkeeping and manage a small business. But ultimately a disagreement between my former instructor and I ended that relationship, and I turned the school back over to him. But it taught me something else. Martial arts was amazing for me, but what I was really passionate about was movement, learning and growing through physical challenges. And that can be achieved through many different paths, not just karate. And so I set off on a new journey, to become a full time fitness professional.

Again I was scared, but I knew this is what I wanted to do. I was about 26 at this point, I was a bit smarter and tougher. I went to Ithaca College to gain knowledge about the body and get my bachelors in Exercise Science. I took internships, met other coaches, and immersed myself in my studies. Since then I have been on a path of learning and working in this field and I really can’t see myself ever changing. There have been many hard times, struggles and insecurities about income, security and reputation, but I pushed through these difficulties and feelings and kept going, and it made me stronger. I no longer have the constant sinking feeling that I am wasting my time, that I should be doing something else.

If you are passionate about something and keep working on it, I believe you will certainly be successful. Whatever you are driven to do if you are holding back from it, if it is eating away at you, I think you owe it to yourself to chase that dream while you can. One of the worst things in the world is regret from not trying, from not doing something that you really wanted to do. I encourage you, to not just be careless in your pursuit, but to make a plan to follow your dream and not give up. Be bold, be yourself, and do your best.

Jared, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I train people both in person, virtually, (via Zoom and other video chatting Apps) and online. Online training is where I design workouts and nutrition plans for clients, but they do the workouts on their own. I am there to update their program and guide them so there is no guess work, but this is for those who need less hands on guidance and are more autonomous.

By training online, you can workout when you want, and where you want. You don’t have to synchronize your schedule with your trainer, and you don’t even have to train in a gym if you don’t want to (we have equipment free/minimal equipment options).

With online training, what you are getting is a personalized, effective workout program for your goals. You also get help with your nutrition, tools for tracking and forming new healthy habits, and perhaps most importantly, accountability.

We can even check and coach your exercise form through video if need be, so there is almost nothing we can’t do with online training, except give you a hug. Scratch that, we can give virtual hugs.

Have you ever had to pivot?

The pandemic really changed the face of personal training, at least for a while. When things first got shut down and everyone was so scared, no one was training in person for months. And even when things opened back up, a lot of people didn’t want to come back due to fear they would get sick. This is when I really dialed up the amount of video and online coaching I did to serve those people. Eventually some of them came back to in person but some preferred to work through technology. It was more affordable and convenient and they felt safer. Some of my clients travel a lot and seeing someone in person just doesn’t make sense. But having these other options keeps them on track with their goals and program. I feel like this was a win win, for my business to be more diverse and also help new people that I couldn’t reach before.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

The best source of new clients for me has been referrals and word of mouth. There are a lot of scammers out there, and people are more jaded now than ever to this kind of thing. But people trust people they know. So if you do a good job for a client, they are happy to tell others about you. And their friends who know and trust them, are willing to listen and try out a trainer they recommend.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://everythingbutthegym.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everythingbutthegym/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EBTGym/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs5lVXFWPMEwc8kqiOhAnEw