Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Amanda Street. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Amanda , thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about your team building process? How did you recruit and train your team and knowing what you know now would you have done anything differently?

I began my career as a strength and conditioning coach working mostly at the collegiate level. I always knew that I wanted to open my own gym one day but felt that I needed to gain as much experience as I could before making that scary leap of faith.

In order to make my vision a reality, I felt that I would need a team of very special people. As a rugby player, I learned early that what you can do alone is great but what you can do as a team is limitless. It would be egotistic of me to think I can reach that level without a team so I set out to find coaches that display the intangible traits you just cannot teach. True compassion and drive to help others.

Before you look for these talented people, you have to define for yourself what are my values and what is my mission. Once you know solidly what you want to achieve, you start searching for those talented team members.

It takes time to find those people. They do not just magically appear. You have to give people the opportunity to show you who they really are.

My goal has always been to create a space and community that is truly all about good vibes, giving people a welcoming and safe place to train their bodies and mind, while positively contributing to the world around us. For my team of coaches, I want them to feel empowered to make a difference in someones life. Not just punch in and punch out on a time clock. For that one hour they are opening themselves up to the athletes in front of them. They are creating an experience that will hopefully be the best hour of someone else’s day.

You can train someone for basic job tasks and you will always be educating your staff, but what you often cannot teach is true compassion and the love for serving others. When you combine that mentality with work ethic it creates what I call a true “Coach”.

Our coaching staff is big family. It is a really special group of people and one that I care for deeply. Taking that into consideration makes the hiring process a really long process. Even someone who has the most education and experience starts out just taking classes and getting to know the athletes and fellow coaches. This is a period where that new coach can explore whether or not this will be a good fit for them and we can figure out if they are a good fit for us. After working out with us they then began shadowing classes with another coach, This is their opportunity for them to see the one hour experience as a fan. They can pick up on athlete/coach interactions and learn how to manage a group in a fun and safe way. Eventually they graduate to assistant coach, where they become more involved with teaching but still have the direction of a head coach. Lastly, they are released to coach solo and put their own product out there for our community. Everyone progresses at different speeds but the intended outcome is a confident, prepared, and compassionate leader that members and athletes can trust with their health goals.

The hiring process has evolved over the years but the one constant has been the high expectations and standards set for our team of coaches. My energy will continue to be poured into my coaches. The community we have at CrossFit Shoofly is like no other, and I believe in this community because the backbone of it is this incredible coaching staff.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I have always been interested in helping others but I’ve had a passion for creating spaces where people can grow, learn, and have fun. Taking something like fitness and nutrition and making it fun and achievable is where most people find success. CrossFit Shoofly has been that space for many people over the past 7 years. Each person has their own set of challenges and goals. Regardless, we want to be a part of that person’s journey. We believe in the people inside our gym. We want to create a space where someone can build confidence in themselves, find a network of people that become an army of support for them, and have a really good time becoming fit an active.

We offer coach led classes, small group training, personal training, nutrition coaching, youth programs, speciality classes, and open gym access. We are open 7 days a week and welcome all abilities to join.

One of the things I most proud of is the many stories we hear from people who have said Shoofly has saved their life. We have had people on the verge of suicide who found a new joy for life through the community we have. We have so many stories of people who no longer need medication, who have improved the quality of their life, who have added years onto their life. This is what I am most proud of, this is what gives me the drive to do this for as long as possible.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

There are thousands of CrossFit Gyms but the really great thing is not one gym is like the other. Instead of a franchise, a CrossFit gym is an affiliate. We use the CrossFit methodology but how we run our business is completely up to us, This is the biggest reason I tell people to try multiple CrossFit gyms because one may be a perfect fit for you while another may not be,

Our reputation has been built on years of working with our community and building relationships through acts of service. We hold numerous charity events throughout the year and try to connect with many organizations that share our same mission.

When you walk into our gym, it’s like walking into an episode of Cheers…. everyone knows your name. Everyone genuinely cares about you.

Do you have multiple revenue streams – if so, can you talk to us about those streams and how your developed them?

We love to create our own apparel. We design and screen print all of our clothing that is sold at the gym. After doing this for a few years we started getting inquiries to create apparel for other local businesses. This has become a great side passion for us and we enjoy helping other small businesses in the area create apparel that defines them.

Shoofly Printing and Vinyl was created 6 years ago and since then we have printed thousands of shirts that our proudly worn nationwide. It is really awesome to see our brand all around town and throughout other states.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.crossfitshoofly.com
• Instagram: crossfit_shoofly
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CrossFitShooFly
• Youtube: @crossfitshoofly8048

Image Credits
Blackjack Images Liz Carlson Photography Lindsay Williams Photography