Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Damian Young. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Damian, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Getting that first client is always an exciting milestone. Can you talk to us about how you got your first customer who wasn’t a friend, family, or acquaintance?
I started Dayo Fit as a 1-on-1 Personal Training service. I didn’t have access to a gym or equipment of my own, so I would train people under the radar at their gyms or a park. I think I had less than 30 local followers and 100 total followers on The Gram, so I know I needed someone with more reach. I got my first client by taking on my co-worker who had 10K+ followers on Instagram (FREE MARKETING HACK) and trained her for free, as long as she posted and tagged Dayo Fit on her social media after every training session. This allowed me to get 2 more clients in a week, just by seeing us post about our sessions. The 2 clients I got I charged $300/month for two 1-hour sessions per week. So within the first month we were off to $600/month in revenue and no overhead.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers?
My personal fitness journey began when I went to the doctor for a bad stomach issue I was having. We sat down and did some tests. After a few weeks, they found out I was forming stomach ulcers and my esophagus sphincter had been eroded from eating too much acidic foods. We prayed about it and she gave me a prescription. I don’t like taking meds, so on my way out the office, I asked her if there was anything else I could do that’s not a bandaid and would actually fix or even reverse my issues. She gave me a cleaner eating protocol and all my symptoms subsided in 2 weeks. I knew then the healthcare system was failing people and not telling them the truth, it takes a little sacrifice and major changes in daily habits to reverse most chronic illnesses. A pill only fixes the symptoms, not the cause. I made it a personal obligation to learn as much about nutrition as I could from then on. Fast forward a few months and I wanted to quit smoking cigarettes, so I started running 5k’s. After 4 months, BOOM! Another bad habit gone (well mostly). Fast forward 2 years and at this point I had quit smoking, dropped 30 lbs and was running very long distance (30+ mile races). I began to accrue a lot of nagging injuries. I wanted t learn how to fix them, so I went and got my Personal Trainer Certificate from the National Academy of Sports Medicine. Two days later I flew to India to start my Certified Yoga Teacher training, as Yoga really helped me through my injuries too. After 5 weeks I was back in America and ready to start Dayo Fit. I’ve accrued a few more certifications and gotten into Martial Arts since then. Dayo Fit now offers 1-on-1 PT, Small Group PT, Nutrition Coaching and Martial Arts training for the whole family. I’m most proud of being the “Go-To” martial arts and strength gym in the West Valley and watching all the people we get to see hit some amazing goals! I couldn’t ask for a better career.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
In the last year we had 6 friends/family members and my mother passed away. We migrated to Phoenix from Oklahoma three years ago and my wife is from California, so it was hard on the psyche and the body from all the traveling to and from Oklahoma and California for all the funerals. The business side began to be more than I could handle at the time, so we hired a mentor to help us out on some of the processes. They helped me hire the right people and free up some time for me to process my feelings, life and goals again. I recommend all entrepreneurs hire a mentor at some point. It really helped us get back focus and clarity on what mattered.
Have you ever had to pivot?
Pivoting from the garage business to a brick & Mortar back in May of 2021 was fun and exciting, but pivoting from strictly Strength & Conditioning training to adding in the Martial Arts aspect now has been really fun! We really have some great coaches that have been in the game a combined 40+ years and have helped our members find a new love they never knew they had. We’re seeing significant strength gains in members by just adding 2 Martial Arts classes per week, believe it or not!!!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dayofit.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dayofit/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DayoFit
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYUH88Tvg9vDC5YMU6sIBUA