We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sydney Francis a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sydney, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.
It was during covid that my business ownership career was truly born. Up until then I was operating out of my apartment complex gymnasium. But when covid happened they of closed the gym which caused me to lose 90% of my clients. At that moment I decided I will no longer allow someone else to control whether my business keeps going or not. I needed to control my own destiny. So, I started searching for locations to open up my own Private facility. It was risky at the time because of all the uncertainty of Covid but in my mind it was riskier to stay still and not do anything to keep my business alive. In moments like that I believe the choices you make can’t be out of fear. Fear is something that shows of which direction to go. If you’re afraid it means your comfort zone is being challenged and everything you want, and desire is on the other side of fear and out of your comfort zone. So, I took the risk, and it paid off. Been in business now four years and counting. If I gave in to my fears who knows where I would be now.
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?
My name is Sydney Francis I was born and raised in Camden New Jersey. I am the youngest of six children. Raised in a single parent household by my beautiful and loving mother Melodye Hope Francis. I attended Rutgers University where I received my bachelor’s degree in Sociology. I later attended Wilmington University to earn a master’s degree in administration in Human Service. I am in certified Psychiatric Rehabilitation, Personal Training, Nutrition, Transformation Specialist, and Level 2 Boxing, I worked in the Mental Health Field for over ten years doing group and individual therapy.
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I currently own a Private Fitness and Mental Facility named Focused Ambition Training. Our primary focus here is to help leaders fortify their minds and bodies so they can continue to serve their communities at a high level. We have a holistic approach here. We not only offer fitness training, but we also offer mental health coaching, nutrition, and life coaching. We also do Functional Movement Systems. (FMS).
What sets us apart from other Fitness Facilites is our focus on creating an environment that fosters growth, community, and family. We keep our community very small. Our focus is not on quantity but quality. We do this because we want to make sure we give every member all the attention they need to be successful. So, we are very particular about the type of individuals we work with. We do not accept walk ins; each person has to be interviewed to make sure they are a good fit for our community.
What we are most proud of here is the growth of our members outside of the Facility. Because of the personal relationships and family environment here we attend weddings, graduations, and other celebratory events that our members may have. WE created a space where people feel safe, and they know their investment into their health and wellness brought about massive improvements not only in the gym but in Life.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Two years ago, my best friend of over twenty years had a massive stroke that left him paralyzed and unable to communicate. Imagine having a friend that you talked to every day for twenty years straight and now that communication is forever silenced just like that. For two years I would go visit him in the hospital and talk to him hoping one day he might just be able to respond and recover. The mental and emotional toll that had on me and his family was immense. But going through that time I was able to change my mindset. My friend was fighting for his life, so I decided to fight even harder for mine. To change and create something that would affect as many people as possible in a positive way. Using my pain a fuel I went to work on my personal development to equip myself to be a better leader, coach, father, and friend. My business was just a beneficiary of working every day to just get 1 percent better. And using my friend as an example of strength, determination, and resilience. He fought for two long years before he finally left this realm. But I truly believe he stayed here to allow his loved one’s time to process the new reality of him not being here. Even in your weakest moments resilience is there to help you find balance and strength to keep moving forward.
Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?
Understanding that you do not have to follow the crowd. You can create your own lane and market. When I first started out I was trying to meet the standards and prices of the market around me, to make sure I could compete. But once I realized there’s no competition when you decide to be yourself. Thats the difference. There will never be another Sydney Francis. I am the only one who can be me. So, embrace that you are different. Thats how you win and stand out from the crowd. You will attract more people being yourself than pretending to be someone else. The people who are really looking for you will find you easier once you stop pretending to be someone else. We all have a different fingerprint for a reason. You find true success when you understand the only competition is You vs You.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thefatcenter.square.site/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/focusedambitiontraining?igsh=MWF4dWZmcGhhYXRoNw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/buckets26
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@focusedambitiontrainingfit4282
- Other: https://fatwellnessshop.myshopify.com/
Image Credits
Push Boy Media