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

Markese, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you tell us about an important lesson you learned while working at a prior job?

After many years of working for the railroad I was looking for a serious change in my work environment, Back in 2019 I had the opportunity to become a Fitness Director at a Senior Community Center in Baltimore. If you know anything about working with older adults that you have to really be adaptable to all situations. Everything on the surface seems completely different from their lives and my life yet we both had one common connection. We both valued and craved for personal relationships. Working with older adults really has taught be the ability to have compassion and love for those who are different from you. Despite our age differences we had the ability to connect and relate to each other in more ways than we could imagine. The ability to relate and converse with individuals that on the surface have nothing in common with you has made me a better person overall. People appreciate individuals that are trustworthy and at times can be vulnerable with them because we all at times need people in our lives that have genuine interest in your well being. My time as the Fitness Director really helped me grow as an individual, which in return has taken my business to another level.

Markese, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My story and my business fundamentally is based on the commandment from Jesus to love your neighbor as yourself. My job as fitness coach to older adults has given me the opportunity to work with individuals that often get neglected by our society. My job has given me the ability to understand that my mission is more than just getting older adults in better shape. My job is to improve the overall well-being of my clients as a whole. Every single day I have the opportunity to change the lives of all of my clients. I am blessed to have them learn from my fitness coaching, but more importantly we both have the opportunity to help each other grow as individuals. My goal is to break the stigma that older adults can’t do much and you have to treat them as fragile individuals. My clients that I coach live vibrant and fulfilling lives into their 8th and 9th decades in life. My goal is for my clients to have the ability to maintain their independence and feel confident that they have the ability to accomplish anything that their hearts desire, I have grown to appreciate that I prefer to work with older adults in my business. I believe that as a society we can learn more as people if we connect with individuals that are older than us. There is a lot of wisdom and compassion that can be taught with working with older adults. Honestly my clients have become my family and I genuinely love all of my clients. My success as a fitness coach is a direct representative of their lives improving. My clients feel that value in what I can provide for them so naturally tell others which has led to success as a fitness coach for older adults. My advice for anyone in the coaching field is to step out and work with older adults. The growth you can experience as coach will pay huge dividends for your career. I encourage all older adults to take control of your health and be proactive by engaging in a strength training routine. The benefits of strength training can improve your quality of life tremendously.

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

I believed what helped me build my reputation is my ability to relate to my coaching clients. Everyone that I work with I have a genuine interest in their health. I want to improve their mental, physical, emotional, and social health of all of my clients. My clients know that my intentions are pure and more importantly I deliver results which is the key to a successful business. My clients know that I love them and always have their best interest in heart. My clients believe that and when someone has belief in you they can’t help to share that with others. Your reputation is the key to growth in business because when people have a great experience they will tell everyone and if people have a bad experience they will tell double the amount of people. I’m glad my clients instantly think of me when they see someone that could benefit from my services. We have built a strong business together that will continue to improve the lives of many older adults.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele is word of mouth. My clients have experience success with me so they love telling their friends about their experience working with me. This is by far the reason why my coaching business is successful as it is. My success is directly correlated to the success of my clients. Their improvements help me to improve my business.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: instagram.com/markesefitness
• Facebook: facebook.com/markesefitness
• Email: [email protected]

Image Credits
Faith Dean, 92 years old Warren Hobbs Group Exercise Class