 Yeah, so I started coaching. It's been a little over a decade now in 2011. I played a few years of college soccer at the university level. And then once I stopped that, immediately got into coaching, started with the U11 boys team. And then from there, I've been with a few different clubs done a little bit of high school coaching too. And then while I've been doing that, you know, was also working with some other companies doing some private training and things like that as well before I started on my own. Cool. So what made you start your own thing then? What was the motivation behind it? I think it kind of got to the point where, you know, I've had seven, eight years coaching experience. I've been doing a few years with some of these other companies doing the private training, the small groups and stuff. And I liked that. Of course, it's great to have a team and have that big term project. But I like working in smaller groups and doing more specifically skill, skill, technical skill-based training. So I kind of got to the point where I was taking more responsibility, kind of getting more ideas for the business I was working for. And with various things happened, I kind of just decided to go out on my own. I was like, if I'm doing most of this anyway, if I'm communicating, finding new business, things like that, I might as well, you know, take the jump myself. So I eventually did informally kind of the beginning of 2020. And of course, the pandemic kind of coincided. So, you know, we tried to move through that. And then summer 2020 really hit the ground running. That's awesome. So tell us a bit about Transform Soccer then. What does your company specialize in? Yeah. So we do soccer skills training. We work mostly with kids aged from like eight to 16 roughly. And we do a lot of technical skills. So within the soccer space, a lot of dribbling, passing, receiving, shooting work, basically trying to be offering supplemental programs for kids who are already, you know, on teams and things. We work with everything from, you know, brand new players at a rack or intramural level, up to players who are, you know, more, more experienced and have been travel at higher levels too. And kind of all with the goal of being able to instill a passion for the game. I think that's critical. If you want to have results with players, they've got to love it and enjoy it. And then trying to create really courageous, technically gifted, creative players too. So, you know, that's the goal with all the programs that we run. That's awesome. So what do you have a particular age group that you like to work with? I'd say probably best suited with that like nine to 12 range, for whatever reason, the majority of the teams I've coached in the past have been in that range, have done some high school, you know, teenagers and things. But I do like that group. I think it's, for a lot of them, you're working with pretty foundational skills. So you can see a big growth and a big jump in a short period of time. And also with those players in kind of the eight, nine, 10 range, that the imagination, the creativity really comes out a lot. So you introduce one thing and they just run with it. And so it's really rewarding to see that. And just like kind of the energy and the silliness and things with those ages, you know, tends to work with my personality too. So that's the foundation of players we work with, but really open to, you know, a wide range. That's awesome. So you are a current client of our program. How has your business changed since you became part of the program? Big time for sure. Much more organized, although it's still a long way to go and the organization side and something Ben is always hammering on because it really is the foundation of your success of how organized you are and just being productive on a daily basis. So definitely more organized. I think I also think more long term as I have been a part of the group over the past like year and a half or so, definitely develop a bigger vision for myself and what the company can do as well. So that's been great just being in that environment. I think feeling supported like when I first started, I didn't really have a business background. I didn't, you know, I've been with some other companies, but some things they did work and I adapted that some things didn't. So I was kind of, I felt very lost a lot at the beginning of my business. So just being able to come into the group, see other coaches succeed, get that, you know, personalized feedback from Ben on a weekly basis, either in the group calls or just being able to write my questions in the forums and things like that was really helpful. And it helped me get to a stage where I have much better boundaries with my clients. I have more committed clients. I really love working with the players and families, you know, who come to us at transform. And a lot of that has been through creating these processes and also standards and expectations that has come from being a part of the group. So it's been a huge influence and helped me to be accountable as well, you know, to follow through if I'm talking about something, then to follow through with it as well. That's fantastic. So tell us a bit about, because you mentioned committed clients, right? And that's something a lot of coaches so how important is having committed clients in your program? Yeah, I think, I think it's key for a couple of reasons. I think just starting like what is the core of any private training business? It's got to be certainly that relationship, that trust, that mentorship between the player and the coach kind of starts there. After that, you've got to be getting results, right? So if players are getting better, you know, that's the key. And in order to do that, they've got to be bought in, the parents have to be bought in, you know, to see that long-term growth and commitment. So certainly, you know, if you're getting people who just want to try it out for a day, or I used to be able to offer, you know, these like 10 session packages, right? Which I thought was great. Well, for some people, 10 sessions takes two months. For some people, it takes 10 months. And so if I'm working with a kid every six weeks or twice one week and then don't see him for three months, we're not going to see growth there. It's not going to be consistent. And at the end of the day, that reflects poorly on me for a couple of reasons. One, the parents are like, we just paid all this money for a private trainer and little Johnny hasn't gotten better. So you haven't had that consistency and commitment. They're not as likely to share, you know, as we'll talk about it and things like huge part of this business is referrals as people telling teammates, friends, neighbors, you know, about your business. So that's huge just to get your results. And then, of course, after that, we talk about the financial side, sleep much better, you know, much more security in the fact that I know I've got someone that's locked in for two months or three months and I can plan ahead right now. I'm in a position where, you know, some of my groups are already like filled up through December through March. And so I kind of have that security and people are locked in. So the commitment is huge. Like I said, both for getting the results, but also for you personally as a business owner, you know, have people who are committed and you attract generally better people that way to who really want to be with you long term and see it as a long term process. So can't really underestimate the commitment part. That's awesome. So tell us one obstacle you were facing before joining our program. What was the biggest challenges you had? I think a big obstacle, and it still is to an extent, time is a big one. So I have a day job. So I've been running transform soccer in the evenings, you know, I'm fortunate I work remotely. So as soon as I get out, I just log out of work. I'm in the car right away, right? Or and on the way to sessions, I'm on a sales call or I'm talking to a parent. And then weekends, I've got games, you know, in addition to what I do with Transform, I coach a team. So we've got games on Sundays, you know, 25 weeks out of the year. So time has been an obstacle. So certainly being part of the group, you know, talking to Ben and taking those courses, seeing organization is so important as well, how to be, you know, really methodical with the day to day, but also different promotions and programs that I'm running. That's really been key. And then the fact too, that I didn't really have the background to know what decisions to make. I didn't have that business background really. So those feelings of being lost or, you know, when you get in that space and you're lost, you either make stupid decisions or in my case, you don't make any decisions. And you kind of just get stuck and you're just kind of floating. So that's something that fortunately has gotten better. And we'll see about the timepiece going forward. But that's always been a challenge. But in a way, it's an opportunity because I have to focus on things that are, A, I really enjoy doing, players I really enjoy working with, and then things that are going to be, you know, at the end of the day, most profitable as well, to keep moving forward, to make sure that all the sacrifice I'm given with my time and efforts, you know, are being rewarded. So that's definitely been in an obstacle for sure. So you've been part of the program for a while now. So since you've joined, what's been your best month so far? Now, you don't have to tell us financially, in terms of adding clients, what's been your best month? Honestly, I think this month, like September 2022 has got to be up there. You know, previously it was kind of around March, I think it was March 2020. That was because of a couple private clients, one or two team training clients. And like I ran a clinic at the time, was my biggest clinic. I had like 28 kids, right? This month in September, not only do I have, now we're not only myself, but a couple other coaches, we're offering this type of skills training for two local clubs. So we're working with upwards of 30 teams a week. You know, we're seeing 250, 300 kids throughout the course of the fall. So there's that. But also we just ran a clinic last week, 61 kids, it's the most we've had in a clinic so far. And that's been while I've pretty much scaled all of my private one-on-one training back. I have one private training client. So between that and I ran a promotion for our small group, we run two small groups for an hour each every Friday throughout the year. I did a promotion for that kind of like beginning of September and was able to sell 10 spots in that. And just from those efforts in that momentum added like three more packages to that too. So it's good timing that I'm talking to you today because it's this month that we're wrapping up. I would say it's been the biggest so far after a quiet summer really. So it's been pretty exciting to see when you get organized, certainly within this business and probably sport by sport, it can vary. You do have some seasonal adjustments. So September, big time that gains start and things like that, at least in the US in the fall. So a lot of people are looking for that training, sockers on their minds. But I think all those things come together with like the organization and kind of that forward planning that I had, you know, seeing the results of fortunately. Now you mentioned that you're doing some working clubs. Is that under your own brand? So yes and no. So I've got one team that I'm like the coach of. I run the sessions and I run games. That's with a separate club and I'm with them like 10 months through the year separately. There's some other clubs in the area. They're volunteer run. They have a lot of parent coaches who either don't have the time to plan a lot of sessions or maybe they do and they don't have a ton of background in playing the game, but you know they want to give their time. They want to be involved in their child's life and support and stuff. So we're able to come into these clubs and say, hey, we've got not only myself, but a few other coaches who have played the game and can teach those key technical skills. We provide in most cases like small groups. So we'll take a few players at a time from the session so that we're not totally interrupting the coaches regular session. We're not, you know, kind of pushing them to the side, but we just want to support and supplement. So we've been doing that. This is the second season now that we've we've been doing that with this particular club. And then there's another club that's more on a team by team basis, you know, some of them look for outside trainers. So we're able to provide that. And I think, you know, to anyone out there watching this, like if you can get in those type of situations, that was really how I got started to an extent. When you're in front of 15, 20, 30 people, you know, that's what you want. You want to have contact with a lot of people. So it's a good place to start for sure. And a nice way to be involved in kind of a community level two and not just, you know, in your own little, you know, sometimes with the 101s and privates, it can feel like you're in this kind of secluded little world of training, but we're able to get out there and see all different ranges of players and different families and stuff. So, you know, it's hectic out there on the fields and you've got a couple of hundred kids at a time. But, you know, it's fun and it keeps you, you know, your finger on the pulse of your local community. That's awesome. So, a lot of coaches ask us, how do I get involved in a local club? Now, what's the one piece of advice you would give? What's the first step to building a relationship with a club? Yeah, I think trying to make initial in-person meets. I'm fortunate, like some of these relationships have been a few years in the making with, you know, for example, people who have worked with the private or the small group settings and now they're said, hey, come to my kid's team or this and that. I think if you don't have necessarily those relationships, if you're going in with no real network, one thing to offer certainly is free clinics. So, you can go to a club, you know, in the soccer world, I'll always do these shooting clinics. I'm sure for different sports, you can find that key skill or something that you're good at and is valuable. You would offer that and it doesn't need to be a huge commitment on your side. Maybe an hour and a half or an hour clinic once or twice a year, as long as you can have people sign up through your own registration process so that you're able to gain people's contact. You know, if I'm doing that, it's something that came, you know, directly from then is you get these signups, try to get on a five-minute phone call with parents to say hello, tell them a little bit about what you do just to make that connection. People really appreciate that. And then when you do get into the, you know, the top funnel type of things with, you know, bigger teams and clubs, then the more committed, the more interested kids and families, they're going to find their ways into your other groups and things. So, I think offering things for free, like offering that value for free is one of the first things I learned and able to do that. And if you do a good job of that, then you won't have to offer yourself for free too much longer. So, I think, you know, without any connections, that's part of it. And then, yeah, I guess just trying if you can even just get in with one team and maybe it's not a clinic, but like a free session or something like that or reach out to some of those coaches. In a lot of these cases, if a coach is coaching a team, they probably have their child on the team and they would love for, you know, to join maybe one of your clinics and camps so you could always, you know, invite and give them a special offer or something like that to get them involved and just start to get the ball rolling with that. So, it can definitely be, you know, a great way to supplement the business. At the same time, I would offer a warning to coaches like what I have learned myself, you've got to have your terms and conditions and your standards because and you've got to try to try to have everything like written down and certainly noted down because the thing with dealing with volunteers, they're given their time, but they have jobs, they have families, all these things. So, your business and what you're doing is probably the 10th thing on their list and they're most people not super planned out in advance. In a lot of cases, some clubs we work with, you know, they rent fields on a seasonal basis. So, sometimes they lose their field because La Crosse needs it for this season or whatever it is and they can't plan long term. So, I think it's a great part of your business, but just kind of be cautious about putting too much if you're at a more mature stage because it can just be, you know, difficult and trickier compared to a one-on-one client where you've got a family who's really bought in and it's like, hey, we're going to make this three-six-month commitment and we can make it every, you know, and it's one person you're talking to, but certainly, you know, so just keep that in mind as a warning. Things like rainouts and how you're going to figure out makeup sessions and things like that. How are you going to make up a session if, you know, right now we're dealing on the east coast of the US, like we're getting less daylight, so are we shifting times? Are we cutting it down? So, just try to think of some potential challenges and pitfalls and get ahead of them and talk openly and honestly with those coaches, but if you do that, you know, it's really awesome and rewarding way to, you know, connect with a lot of people to build your other programs too. That's great piece of advice there. So, where do you see the private training industry going in the next two to five years? I think it's a great question. I would say, you know, I'm banking on it going well. I'm banking on it growing, so that's certainly what we hope and probably most people out there, you know, watching would think the same thing. I think at least in the soccer realm, you're dealing with a couple of things. One, we've got the World Cup this year, on the men's side at least. In the US, we're fortunate the women's team is always hugely successful, so we have such a strong women's game in the US, but on the men's side, it's continuing to grow, and I think especially in a few years, 2026, the US is going to be one of the host countries, so that's a great opportunity. We're going to see so many more kids playing soccer, so on the soccer side, that's great and exciting, and I think too, more people are, you know, we're kind of in a culture of one personalization, customization, you know, for a lot of people, they're going to want that specific one-on-one training for their child. That coach, like mentorship type of relationship is so valuable. You know, I see it myself, like I mentioned, I coach a team, right? So I've got 11, 12 kids at a session, and at a game, I can only spread my attention and my individual feedback to so many kids, and there's different goals within a team session. I'm worried about set pieces, and I'm worried about formation, and teaching, you know, this big picture stuff, but all of those kids need the one-on-one attention, right, for individual skills, for anything they're struggling with, so I think it's just something that's going to become more and more common, and more kind of commonplace, but at the same time, and this is something that Ben has certainly talked about and put out content about as, you know, it's becoming more competitive. In my area, Philadelphia area, we have a lot of, you know, really big mega clubs, right, and they can just decide, oh, we're going to run a small group program or a skills program, and they do a lot of them run them on a Friday or something like that, and or local, you know, we've got the union here. They run amazing youth grassroots programs. It's tough to deal with that when they can, you know, they, you can't beat that brand, right, and I'm sure a lot of people around the U.S. or different areas, you know, you're in London, right, how are you going to compete with like the Arsenal soccer schools or Chelsea or whatever it is, right, and that brand, but at the same time, I think if you are organized, if you're, you know, planning in advance, if you offer quality, if you're getting results, if you're really building relationships with players, you know, the companies like us and, you know, the private trainers on a more individual level, or maybe you've got a core of two to three coaches, I think they'll be fine. I think, you know, there's going to be tougher, it might be tougher to find some opportunities on a big scale. Like I mentioned, even the team training, I see that adjusting in my area, but there's going to be opportunities for you if you, you know, can connect with players, if they have a good time, if they're getting results, because you can, you can offer to the point of the customization, the personalization, like that relationship is something that, you know, sure they might see the Philadelphia Union logo and they go watch them on the weekends and maybe there are some opportunities to interact, but at the end of the day, like how much attention and personalized feedback and things like that can be offered. So I think there's definitely going to be opportunity opportunities for, you know, companies and private trainers, just through the relationships and then, you know, the quality of programs you can build, you can get much more niche and really in depth with things beyond what some of the bigger names can offer. So definitely some threats, but absolutely opportunities, especially on the soccer side of things as I see it. Completely agree. So talk to us a bit about how, how are you currently where they're coming from? So most of us are coming through, for the most part, through referrals and other people, you know, who have worked with me in the past. I have a referral program for my small group. So if someone refers a friend, they get a bonus or they get a credit towards a program, same thing with all the private clients. And, you know, and parents notice when it's something I didn't really realize at first, but, you know, like you're working with a player who, if you start month one, they can barely kick a ball and then month three, their scoring goals are at least like showing just like the confidence can switch so quickly in a kid when they get more of that, that personalized type of feedback. And other people see that, like other parents will see it and they'll ask and they'll talk to the parents of players you're training. So word of mouth, I think, especially in an industry where you're working with children, like parents have to trust you, right? Parents have to trust you, mentoring and like teaching their child. So there's no better way, even if you have like the nicest social media, which absolutely has its place, you know, at the end of the day, it's like, oh, if your teammate or your best friend has worked with the coach, you're going to trust them, right? And you're going to know from their, from their feedback firsthand. So that's a big part of it. So I think trying to incentivize, and this is something, again, I learned 100% from Ben and these calls in the group is trying to incentivize people to spread the word, which they will generally do anyway. But just to keep it top of mind is huge, you know, for our clinics, I think a huge reason that we just had this, you know, record setting clinic a month ago, or a week ago rather was because there's a buddy rate. So if you sign up with a friend, you're getting a discount, right? So automatically, people are going to tell friends about that because why not? So that's definitely huge. And that's where a lot of clients come from. And then after that, I would say as far as like the social media goes, probably Instagram has been most successful for me personally. One thing I did, and this I definitely recommend to newer coaches, go to all your local clubs, local teams, high schools, whatever it is, and just start following parents. And Ben makes this great point all the time. It's not necessarily as important to be putting out like flashy contact for the players. That's the tricky part with this industry is you're training the child, but you ultimately have to to convince and and and and sell to the parent, right? So like that's that's always the tricky balancing act. But what I did is just start following people, maybe 10% of them will follow me back. And then so as I post videos of some of my sessions and people get a sense of how I run things, my approach, just kind of a little bit of a personality I'm able to give, you know, and then even even just DMing. So part of my promotion and part of some of these pushes is, you know, people if I'm been following parents and seeing, you know, they're they do have soccer players or they're at local clubs or they're commenting on the local clubs posts and things like that. Just a quick message, say hello, you know, and and I've had some success from there too. So definitely something that, you know, to keep in perspective, it can be a good option. But but nothing's going to replace the, you know, the word of mouth and referrals. And I've been fortunate that that's really, you know, kicking in at this time, not only with parents, but coaches too. So I'm fortunate there are a few other coaches in the area who, you know, I've known in the past who trust me, who know that I'll get results with their players. So if a parent comes to them and asks, you know, do you know anybody for private training, they're happy to refer them to me. So so that's been great. You know, and it's really helped to to grow my business over time and currently, you know, seeing the rewards of that. So what's the minimum commitment that you look for when new clients join your program? So I've got for the private one on one training, it's minimum three months. And there's kind of a, you know, it's kind of locked in, like we're going to start week one, we're done week 12. And within that, you know, we're going to try to make up as we can, but we try to get as consistent of a schedule as possible, which, you know, everybody's in a different scenario. So it can be a challenge or maybe it's easier for you to do that. But that's the minimum. It's the three months on that side for the private training. I used to sell like six packages or like eight packages or something. And as I mentioned, you get all different ranges of commitment. So definitely recommend the timepiece to make sure again, those committed clients, something that at first can seem absurd to think that someone would commit to that. Or for me, I've had a few six months clients still not quite to the 12 month threshold yet. But I mean, people in the group, they do that. And they've got those 12 months clients. So for the group program, our small group, that's a minimum eight week commitment. So a lot of people do start with eight weeks, and then they'll extend after that. Cool. And you're seeing the clients every week, right? That's right. Yep. So it's weekly, like our small group, it's very predictable. It's every Friday at the same time, either six or 7pm, you know, at the same location. And then, yeah, with the private training, we try to schedule that. I try to get out at least a month in advance, get everything scheduled. And yeah, we're training every week with those programs. Good, good. So Andrew, where do you see your business in the next five to 10 years from now? So eventually, like I mentioned, like currently still, it's something that I'm doing in evenings and weekends. So eventually having it, you know, go all in and trying to get to the point, you know, where I'm comfortable with that. Certainly want to continue, like right now, I'm in the process of adding a few coaches to help me, because we're at the stage where, you know, it's more opportunities that I can really take on and keep myself healthy and motivated. Because, you know, for some of you out there, if you are experiencing that burnout, I've been there, you know, it's not right to yourself. It's not right to the players when you're getting burned out. So you can't really give the best that you've got. So definitely working on finding a few really good partners in this area, in the Philadelphia area to continue growing with. And then longer term, I'm trying to do more live virtual training. This is something that started during the pandemic lockdowns, you know, right when I was starting the business, I was supposed to be working with a team for like 12 weeks in person, we couldn't do that. So we pivoted, we use Zoom, and it works so well. And I've done anything from teams to like private one-on-one training, kids get better, kids improve, parents don't have to drive anywhere, you don't have to drive anywhere, you don't have to pay for space. No such thing as a rain out, right? So if our groups get canceled because of weather, well, we're going to pivot to virtual, that's built into our terms and conditions. I'm not extending another week, we're not taking time out of the calendar here. So we're getting it done. So it's been something that's been really effective. And I'd love to be able to grow it to a point where we've got a global community of players giving access to more players. It's also coaches from around the world too, I think there's just so much potential in that and being able to make an impact and really build a community. So trying to do both and hopefully five to ten years, it'll be a space where right now you don't really see much, but it might be a little more practical and seem realistic hopefully from some of the more pioneers of it. So yeah, that's kind of the goal. Longer term, definitely nothing will replace that in-person type of relationship of being able to really show and connect with a player in the same place, but we have the technology and tools to still do a pretty great job of it and to be effective. So that's kind of the longer term vision that I've got, but got to stabilize all the in-person and make sure that's really quality first. So that's the goal. Awesome. So when I ask you the final question, this is a two-part one. I always like to interview with these questions. First one is what does failure mean to you? And the second one is how important is taking risks? Okay, awesome. Great question. It's interesting that you're turning that on me because it's something I talk about all the time with my players, right? And I'm sure a lot of coaches out there, you know, I say a lot, you got to have the courage to take risks and to make mistakes. It's the only way we learn. So I think for me, the only thing I qualify as failure, I kind of mentioned a little bit earlier is like the inaction, the decision to do nothing. You got to at least try something. And I think also for me, if I know some days where I'm just like not doing the basics of not being organized, not having my schedule planned out in advance, you know, those little things, that's when I feel that it doesn't necessarily have to do with my performance like of like, I don't see it, I used to, but I've kind of come to a stage now like, if I get on a call with a parent and I feel like, you know, we have a good conversation, I share my philosophy, you know, the options we have, and they talk and it seems like a good fit and they ultimately decide not to go for it. I used to take that very personally. Over time, through a lot of repetition, I don't really see that as a failure. I just see it as all right, that just not the right fit, at least right now or, you know, maybe in the future. So failure, I think is more the inaction piece. And as far as taking risks, like I think you never really know until you try. I know it's a, you know, the old adage, but you've got to be unwilling to try things and in some cases, you know, just kind of plan as best as you can certainly and try to do all the things you can that are within your control. But at the end of the day, you know, there's a lot outside of it too. So you've got to take the risk, you've got to learn my answer two years ago, five years ago would be much different and get caught a lot in that overthinking and stuff, but you just got to try it and, you know, just kind of see what works and that's kind of the fun part. When you look back over time, it doesn't always feel so in the moment, but certainly, you know, when you can reflect and see like that's, you know, how it came to be. So definitely take those risks. And I think within the risk, you got to have like a growing vision for yourself, you know, so and have some goals that you can look towards and always try to keep that vision of what you can do and offer to the players in your area and how you can work with players. Keep it growing, but to your point, you're not going to get there if you stay within that comfort zone and things like that. So definitely great, great question Leo. Perfect. All right, Andrew, well, fantastic. Thank you for jumping on here, sharing your story. For sure. I'd love to in 12 months time, have you back on, see where you are in 12 months time. Yeah, that'd be awesome. I follow you because you're part of the program. So I know that you're working hard and your program's growing. So keep it up. Thanks again. Thanks again for jumping on. Absolutely. And I enjoyed it, appreciate it. And yeah, we'll see you in one of the calls sooner or later. Take care, Andrew. Cool. All right, see you.