We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sheldon Sonnenberg. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sheldon below.
Sheldon, appreciate you joining us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.
In 2021 when I moved to Dallas, TX. I didn’t have a job or opportunity lined up but I understood the power of networking and relationships. My goal was to connect with other business owners and influencers in the community that could help expose opportunities in the area that would fit the criteria I was looking for since I was new to the area and wanted to get a faster start. After being here for 2 weeks and going to various local events I met a guy who had a connection within my field whom he thought I should meet. Upon meeting with the guy he referred I was given the chance to take over his business in which he was going to let fold in 2 weeks if no one else took over it. This business was a cash pay physical therapy practice that had existing clients and also operated within the realm I was looking for.
I had a picture in my mind of what I was looking for before I moved here. I didn’t have the connections but upon arriving and through a few introductions I was able to connect the vision with the opportunity. It has also led to many other ventures in which have changed the course of where I’m headed next which would not have happened if I didn’t take the risk of moving here and also accepting to acquire the existing business.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
As a kid growing up in west Texas I found myself playing sports which led to many injuries from overtraining and not understanding the recovery process of the body. At the same time I liked being around positive, motivated people who were driven. This led to my pursuit of physical therapy and athletic training school with a purpose to work with NCAA, NFL, and Professional Soccer.
On the flip side I’ve always been very entrepreneurial minded having started side businesses as a young teenager and was able to make a connection of what professional athletes in sports and professionals in business went through on a daily basis.
I wanted to provide a platform that would connect what I learned working with professional athletes to those in business so that they could operate and execute at their highest level each day. My baseline platform is called UNLOCKED Move that helped business professionals understand their body better in order to address the common issues they suffer from such as low energy, joint pain, and anything health related they feel like is slowing them down each day.
DISCOVER is the 1st pillar as a starting point to understanding the power of movement and how it relates to daily living. This helped clients understand their body better and ways to simplify self care that lead to common injuries and pain. To scale, the 2nd pillar, IGNITE, is used for health and nutrition related topics. Once someone understands how to use their body most effectively they can also create the right environment internally to address common symptoms such as low energy, poor sleep, or any health related issues so they wouldn’t have to rely on medications. The 3rd pillar is ENDURE. This is to understand the recovery process and maintenance people need to factor in to assist with anti-aging and to avoid the pitfalls many experience along their journey.
Each area is imperative to understanding how to unlock their day and optimize their performance since their business is a direct reflection of how they feel and function. When you move better you feel better, when you feel better you live better. So based off each pillar I am able to help breakdown the areas of focus depending on the result one is looking for since the body is very complex and there are many places to start but most people enter at the wrong phase.
Since implementing this program I have added additional products that help with the scaling process of one’s health through either companies I have partnered with or affiliate programs that I feel are the best for the results they provide in the least amount of time since this is the main objective everyone experiences to getting where they need to be.
I have since combined UNLOCKED Move with my physical therapy practice Human Function and Performance as well as other programs I’m involved in since the principles and strategies are the solid framework that can be used anywhere.
Additionally I am a speaker, a healthcare consultant, and I invest in businesses that have a positive impact to my mission. I feel like everyone has the ability to live a healthy lifestyle that facilitates their experiences in work, travel, and day to day ventures. Some people just aren’t sure where to start since the body is complex and just need a simple approach to make the most impact in their life!
Let’s move on to buying businesses – can you talk to us about your experience with business acquisitions?
Yes, I acquired the physical therapy practice I have now. Being new to the area it was a faster way to get started and networked in. It was a motivated seller since he was moving on to another industry so the acquisition process was quite simple. At the time it was mainly used for physical therapy so the transition was smooth with the main piece getting to know the existing clients so they’d stay on or carry over. I had other plans I saw that could spin off this opportunity that made the deal more attractive on my end.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
When I acquired this business I had negotiated a better deal since it was a motivated seller but still wanted to purchase it no money out of pocket. At the time I had money tied up in other projects so just to get creative I pulled a note on my car as collateral and offset costs with existing clients and packages already bought since I knew I could pay it off in a short period of time. My goal was not to be put in a situation that would be stressful, rather would have cash-flow from day one to offset any expenditures coming up and use the business to payoff the expenses in a short period of time.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.humanfunctionandperformance.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sheldon.sonnenberg
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SheldonUNLOCKED
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheldonsonnenberg
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZv2qSviT5ys908qkIK1nxQ
- Other: Facebook Page HFAP https://www.facebook.com/HFAPDallas Instagram Human Function and Performance https://www.instagram.com/thegym_docs Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/sheldonsonnenberg