Ian King

To be a student – or not  

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A physical preparation coach enrolled in a financial education course with my company. Initially his quiz responses were typical – acknowledging that he was in a financial position that he was not happy with and felt a strong need to change. But within a unit or two his responses began changing, showing more agitation and anger. After Unit 4 he quit, and demanded a refund.

Here is an exchange with lessons for all.

Subject: Course Refund

Hello, I purchased your course on “money”. I’d like a refund of that purchase. I do not think you should be giving any financial advice based on the content that I’ve just seen. This is just the start of my issues with this so-called course. Any means at your disposal to issue a refund is highly appreciated. If you have any questions please call me. Thanks you,
–xxxx

Now I didn’t really need this email – after reading the course quiz submissions, the refund was inevitable!

Xxxx – Ian King here. I just called as you asked but only got your voice mail After my team shared your quiz responses including

* this course fucking sucks dude you are a fraud
* This is terrible – maybe you should sell your services to wall st mr king
* The world’s best economists can’t predict with relative accuracy as to what may happen in the future so how can you

I would have refunded your money irrespective of your request below, for many reasons. We have strong desire to help anyone, such as yourself who is less than excited about doing business with us, move on to service providers more suited to their needs.

We were excited to give you your money back, so you should see that refund come through. I trust you find service providers more suited to your needs to achieve your financial goals, or any other aspect of your professional development. Thanks.
–Ian King

Now you would expect a subsequent response, but you never know, and you never know what shape it will take, and here it is:

Hi Mr. King, I just finished playing basketball, so I missed your call.

Firstly, I’d like to apologize for the vulgar feedback. As a coach in this industry I appreciate and respect your longevity and wisdom as it pertains to physical preparation. So with all due respect, I regret and I apologize for my reaction.

That said, I do stand by my assessment of the course. Here is my attempt at constructive feedback.

• The delivery of the course is laborious – I believe it’s a 6 step process to read your pdf and take unit test. Way too many steps. Also, some of the links don’t work.
• The content, well, is haphazardly pieced together and the message is one of gloom and scare, and just not very good. In a course like this I think it better to discuss the following strategies: Elements of a Business Plan. How to raise money and the elements of equity and valuation (selling a business, multiplier and ebita. Taxation strategies. I can go on…. I thought I was going to get this from the course or at least a little more insight from this angle given your industry success.
• I also believe mindset is highly individual phenomenon. I think it’s dangerous to talk about this unless you know an individual on a personal level. Remember, we are all snowflakes…generalizations just don’t work. Thank you for your professional response to my very unprofessional reaction. Best,
–xxxxx

This showed enough humility to warrant reaching out and teaching I shared the following:

xxxx – thanks for your email. I have been around long enough to know that everyone deserves a chance to be emotional in their response in the heat of things, then typically calm down afterwards. Been toe to toe with some of the biggest egos in the sporting world so seen it all, so I understand where you were coming from and you have shown a lot more positive character traits in your subsequent email than your initial responses! That didn’t do you any favors but you are big enough to realize that in hindsight so good on you.

I’m also used to pushing peoples buttons in the industry. As a leader in training concepts, I almost always get abused when I released my ’new’ theories. (not new for me because I put things through a 10 year minimum testing period before I put publish them). What I have learnt from watching reactions is those that kid and thrash the most are those who are not doing what my ’new’ training method suggests, and to save face in front of their peers and clients they typically make the most vicious attacks. Then are those who take it one step further and start teaching my methods as if they originally innovated them, hoping no-one hears about their unprofessional initial responses.

So this is the price I know I pay as a person whose life works has changed the way the world trains, even though many in the world don’t know the origins due to the phenomena described above. So I have had a lot of practice being the target of vindictiveness!

One lesson I learnt from one of my may influences was a lesson from one of the worlds best platform speakers from the end of the 20th Century and a man whose cassette (yes, cassette) sales still hold the world record – Mr Denis Waitley. Denis transitioned from being a warrior (fighter jet pilot) to being a teacher of personal development, and he says “Anger is threatened values’. From this clarity I understand that when someone’s values are threatened they get angry.

When I taught that functional strength is more appropriately developed through a sequence of bodyweight unilateral to loaded bilateral movements, I felt the anger of those who were not doing this, and whose value set were the most threatened. When I taught that speed of movement in strength training can be measured, communicated using a digit timing system, and varied, I felt the anger of those who were not doing this, and whose value set were most threatened. When I taught that static stretching should precede lifting, and that control drills should precede lifting and that abdominal exercises should be done by most people most of the time as the first exercise, I felt the anger of those who were not doing this, and whose value set were the most threatened. When I taught that balance is needed in strength training and one could use my Lines of Movement concept (horizontal push and pull, hip and quad dominant), I felt the anger of those who were not doing this, and whose value set were the most threatened.

To be clear, I teach holistically and have done from the early days (that alone will be a trend in itself one day in this industry!) and therefore I also teach on the subjects of personal development, business development, financial development and spiritual development, in addition to sets and reps.

Now there are two things that could cause an industry professional to push back on me as you did. Firstly, the heresy of daring to teach ‘outside my little box’. I get the same from sports coaches when I teach technical and tactical development – I feel the anger of the coaches who were not doing the strategies I taught, and whose value set were the most threatened. Secondly the fact that I raise points that are downright confronting to individuals and the stark reality causes a defensive reaction.

I will never forget this happening in a seminar in Boston in the late 1990s. There was one particular strength coach who started out calmly in the audience, but as I unrolled my ’new’ training concepts to the audience, the steam rose in his head! I knew he was not doing any of the things I taught, and his protégés and all whom he had positioned to see him as the local ‘guru’ were in the room. It was not going to end well! He couldn’t wait to the of the day to change his ways so he did what most do when fear creates the desire to attack. He gathered his followers at the mid-morning break, convinced them the content was terrible, the delivery was terrible, and the only possible salvation was for them all to leave right then and there. They did, but to this day I am sure he knows that the only salvation was of his ego. I could have overlooked this act, as I did with yours, but his subsequent act of creating a publishing and seminar stream based on the very work he walked out on, without a single measure of the source, placed him as a lessor man than you.

You see you ‘fessed up and apologized. He just kept acting without integrity. Now where is the lesson in this? I share this with you for a number of reasons, including with the intent to help you understand that the most successfully self-promoted gurus in this industry are not the role models that I would endorse, yet they succeed in way-laying well meaning industry professionals looking for direction. As a result too many in this industry are never empowered to fulfill their own potential.

I genuinely feel for the majority misguided individual in this industry, whose role models leave them with an impossible to resolve scarcity mentality affecting all aspects of the live and family. Money is one example of this. The ego, as a colleague of mine by the name of Michael Callejas likes to say (see, it’s not difficult to give credit!) – is not your amigo!

Before I do allow me to comment on your statement:

That said, I do stand by my assessment of the course.

You have found rational reasons to support an emotional decision. That’s okay, but you don’t have to. You can let go of being right and move forward. I don’t mind too much about right and wrong. There’s a great saying – you can be right or rich. So you won’t see too much (hopefully none!) dogma in the following because I happy for anyone to be right, because my focus is elsewhere!

Now if you are still reading, I will also take time to respond to your effort of providing feedback.

1. The delivery of the course is laborious. Yes, that is right. And for the most part, that is my intention. You, had you read deeper into the course, would have learnt about my concerns about the information collecting nature of this industry. When I first released the Level 1 KSI Course as it now is, I was shattered that my life work was for the most part going to form a badge of honor – on the library shelf! I could see that most were just printing off the units and not bothering to read it. I made a decision that even if it costs me money – and it does, because as you have done, the current crop of industry professional want to be wowed with bullshit, and given a whole heap of ‘information’. I refuse to be part of that, to endorse this.

So I make you work for it. If you are not committed enough to take a few steps, you don’t deserve to get the next unit. This provides a pre-qualification filter to sort out who deserves my information, who will use it in the manner intended I.e. Apply it in a practical real world sense, where the real learning is taking place; and who is going to treat it as if most sellers do – whose primary intent is to wow you will flashy made up shit and make it as easy as possible for you to be motivated to give them your money.

So the laborious part is not going to change, although we are always looking at ways of smoothing the action steps, so this will get better with time.

Now another reason I don’t like to just ‘give’ the information but rather pre-qualify the user, is to weed out those who have the post 2000 value promoted by a certain little group who self-servingly promote its okay to lie, cheat and steal – who have no hesitation in changing the copyright symbol to their own and change the front cover! Now of course I would never be so gross as to use those words, but you get the message!

2. The links don’t work: Now let’s talk about the links not working. They actually work – they just don’t work on all computers all the time. Clearing the cache helps, but I take responsibility for this as much as I can, and we are looking to refine this over time.

3. The content, well, is haphazardly pieced together: Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. But I can’t say yet whether the sequence or content will change – I would rather allow time in the hands of the readers who complete the course to help guide this.

I’ve only been a student of this subject with intensity for about 25 years so I am a bit green, and I will get better. I published my first book on financial education in 1999, but that might have been haphazard in your eyes also, and again I would say – maybe it is and maybe it isn’t.

4. The message is one of gloom and scare: I appreciate this concern and from memory I not only apologized for this perception but stressed that (you might have quit the course before you got to this) that it’s bad news for those who refuse to change, take action; and good news for those that are willing to face up to it, learn new habits of the mind and habits of the body. The money is not leaving the market – its just changing hands.

But yes, I can see why the majority would think what I focused on was doom and gloom. I maintain that what I have done is my best to forewarn and prepare my industry colleagues for a changing world, irrespective of whether we experience a major economic downturn during 2016 or 2017.

Perhaps you and I do not share the same views on the world – I see a world where there are too many people living one economic mishap away from economic ruin. I see a world where to many have no assets, no savings and no hope of supporting themselves in retirement. I see a world where too many children’s parents compromise on the health and time spend with them due to their economic circumstances. I think that gloomy. What I seek to do is to give people education as a lifeline to get out of these circumstances. Of course not everyone wants it. Some find id offensive, or not good enough in delivery, or haphazard or any other reason to stop the train of possible change and stay where they are.

5. You have better ideas on appropriate content: I read what you said were better ideas and content. Now let me do this as gently and as humbly as I can ‘Dude (now I don’t normally talk like that but I am using your words!) – are you the teacher or the student?!’

One of the greatest challenges in learning is being willing to empty your cup, be the student, put on the white belt.

“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.”
—Stephen Hawking

Let’s be really brutally honest and with no disrespect, but calling a spade a spade because life’s really do depend on this – are you really in a position, based on your financial position, to be the teacher? Now I don’t make that decision. You do. It would appear you have already done so, as you fired me as your teacher.

In summary to this point, and with as much care and respect as I can muster, I am going to pass on your pointers on content. There’s a bigger lesson for you in this, but lessons are taken by students, not determined by teachers.

5. What you thought you were going to get from this course: I get this. From my double major in sociology I understand that the conditions for a revolt are set when the expectations and reality don’t meet. Having said that let me get out of theory mode and into real world talk. I don’t give you want you want, I give you what you need. If you knew, really knew what you needed, you would not be where you are today. So get over this discrepancy between what you expected and what I gave you, or stay where you are.

In the early 1990s I was just like you in this regard. I sat in a multiple thousand-dollar seminar (not a $47 one like you spat the dummy about) and expected to get days of sales and marketing. So when it was obvious that I wasn’t going to get that, rather days of personal development, I had to make a decision. Spit the dummy, demand a refund, and go home bitching and whining about the rip-off fraud that guy was. Or to say to myself – okay Ian, you tried it your way and it didn’t work. So maybe you will be better off shutting up, emptying your cup and being a student. And that, ‘dude’, was one of the great turning points in my life. So I know where you are coming from. I just can’t be on your cheer squad.

6. It’s dangerous to talk about mindset in general terms as its dangerous: Now xxxx, I think you may be scraping the barrel now but I’ll honor it as I have done the above.

Firstly, is it better to individual rather than to provide group training? Of course it is. But no-one does it. We are in an industry where more people sell group training than individualized programs!

Now on the subject of individualization. Its strange getting a lecture on this because I have been one of the strongest advocates on this subject over the last few decades. In fact one of my greatest criticisms of the industry is that the competence to individualize training is so low, it would barely move the arrow on a meter!

I’ve written often about how much angst I experience providing a generic program for what was called T-mag back in 1999. Anyone who was around then would recall the ‘Limping Program’ you know, the one where I recommended unique bodyweight exercises be integrated into conventional strength programs, and everyone thought I was a lunatic – until it became apparently popular and let to many books on the subject written by the leader of the Boston seminar walkout.

Now I went through the same pain writing programs for my four book sequel Get Buffed! As well as the Book of Muscle. Now in hindsight, did I do the wrong thing? Did I ‘damage’ anyone? Or did I help more people than hinder by this act of generalization?

xxxx you know the answer. And you probably know you are using the time-tested technique of false fear attached to an at may stop people doing stuff….Like when I was a kid and they said if you go swimming you will get a cramp and drown…but I didn’t…and then when I was a teenager they said if you do ’that’ you will go blind….and I still can see….and then in the 1990s they said if you massage someone without having a certain costly certification you will damage peoples nerves…but I didn’t….and then post 2000 the world was told that if they statically stretched they would injure and when that scare mongering wore out it was switched to ‘if you static stretch’ you will go weak…

I guess you can see what I really think about your last point!

Now for a belated conclusion. As a student, I have learnt I can shoot the messenger, or I can study the message. The more you do of one, the less you do of the other.

Yes, I responded with more than you expected, but I confess is as much for anyone who will read this as it is for you, and I don’t determine who becomes the student. I can give student tips, like leave your ego at the door, put on white belt, empty your cup, don’t preach to the teacher until you have solid evidence that you can do better….and so on. But I don’t determine who starts the journey of the student, nor do I pick who stays the path and who quits. You know what I am saying first hand!

Ian King Want to do this course? http://bit.ly/moneyandtheppcoach-prequalify

Ian King

You don’t want to be the best you can be  

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You want to be just like everyone else

I am sure if a survey was taken of physical preparation coaches the majority would say there goal was to be the best they can be. From my perspective, I suggest that is not the dominant focus. I suggest that the desire to be like everyone else is far greater than the desire to be the best one can be. And I suggest that the price paid for this default is lost opportunities for both the professional and the client.

During the 1970s very few people participated in the exercise know as the squat, or double knee bend. The belief was squats were bad for your knees. Did the majority come to that conclusion based on their personal experiences, or did they simply accept the dominant beliefs and habits?

During the 1980s the majority of mixed energy sports athletes participated in a higher volume aerobic training block in their General Preparatory Phase. The belief was that it was neither safe or optimal to expose the athlete to other training modalities without first gaining a level of aerobic fitness. Did the majority come to that conclusion based on their personal experiences, or did they simply accept the dominant beliefs and habits?

During the 1990s the majority of physical preparation coaches included Swiss ball exercise in their program design. The belief was that performing an exercise, any – actually vertically all – exercises. This was based on the dogma that the additional balance challenges produced a superior training effect, and that this was definitely going to transfer to all sport and life activities. Did the majority come to that conclusion based on their personal experiences, or did they simply accept the dominant beliefs and habits?

During the 2000s the majority of physical preparation coaches selected almost exclusively from the so-called ‘functional exercises’ (although I am not really sure what that is) in their program design. To do any exercise sitting on a bench or lying down was heretical. This was based on the belief that standing and multi-planar movements were superior in their training effect for all people at all times, and would definitely provide a superior transfer to sport and life. Did the majority come to that conclusion based on their personal experiences, or did they simply accept the dominant beliefs and habits?

During the 2010s the majority of sports coaches and physical preparation coaches refuse to use static stretching, replacing what little stretching time is dedicated to stretching with ‘dynamic’ stretches. This is based on the belief that static stretching makes you weak and leads to injury and dynamic stretching is safer, more functional and effective. Did the majority come to that conclusion based on their personal experiences, or did they simply accept the dominant beliefs and habits?

The one question I asked throughout the above is – Did the majority come to that conclusion based on their personal experiences, or did they simply accept the dominant beliefs and habits? I suggest they did not come to these conclusions based on any form of personal experience. I also suggest that they didn’t even think. They just accepted and did.

So what would I need to see to believe that a physical preparation coach was making an attempt to be the best they can be? The most important criteria I am looking for is evidence of thinking. That the key questions have been asked, including but not limited to;

• What is the best way to train?
• What can I do to fulfill my potential as a coach?
• What can I do to fulfill the potential of my client/athlete?

Now call me simplistic, but I am skeptical as to whether the majority has applied this approach. Here are a few considerations.

Let’s take squats for examples. Prior to about 1990, when a slew of ‘research’ was published extolling the benefits of stretching, did the did the majority of physical preparation coaches have collective personal experiences that squatting was bad and then collectively and coincidentally post 1990 have personal experiences to the contrary?

Let’s take the Swiss ball for example. Prior to about 1990 few knew the word Swiss ball and exercises upon it. Up until this time did the  majority of physical preparation coaches have collective personal experiences that Swiss balls and exercises on Swiss balls were useless and then collectively and coincidentally post 1990 have personal experiences to the contrary?

Let’s take stretching for example. Prior to about 1995 it was okay to statically stretch, and it was commonly done. Post 1995 it wasn’t. Now did the majority of physical preparation coaches have collective experiences prior to 1995 that static stretching was the most effective way to stretch, and then post 1995 all reach personal conclusions to the contrary. I suggest not. Now I respect that for many of you my proposition is flawed as I place a premium on thinking, at a time in the world and in our industry where the dominant belief that what you think is irrelevant – just read the research and see if ‘research supports it’. This is essentially not only the antithesis of thinking, I also suggest that this don’t think just believe in the research mentality is actually contrary to the intent of the origin of science.

For me objectivity is the key.

Scientific objectivity is a characteristic of scientific claims, methods and results. It expresses the idea that the claims, methods and results of science are not, or should not be influenced by particular perspectives, value commitments, community bias or personal interests, to name a few relevant factors.

And even though science claims this I don’t believe it is always the case.

Science in theory is intended to provide objective analysis. I believe this way has been lost in many cases, where the research conclusions are influenced by the researcher, who in turn may be influenced by the provider of the funding.

For all the lip service we pay to science, everyone knows that it is commerce that runs the show. As the Spanish proverb goes, ‘He who gives the bread lays down the law’. Science today typically serves the large corporate interests that fund it. In a world conceived by the financial and corporate leadership who effectively rule it, the purpose of the human being is to contribute to the economy as an increasingly efficient unit of production and as an increasingly efficient unit of consumption. The financial and corporate elite establish effective social policy, and commercially funded science gives them the technological wherewithal to execute it. –Laurence G. Boldt, 1999

I believe you can be more objective than certain modern ‘scientific’ conclusions:

Now I admit it’s not easy being an objective thinker. Throughout history thinkers have been subject to a variety of suppressions and restrictions by authorities.

Take Roger Bacon (c. 1219/20 – c. 1292) for example, the 13th Century English philosopher. He is sometimes credited (mainly since the 19th century) as one of the earliest European advocates of the modern scientific method inspired by Aristotle

• After 1260, Bacon’s activities were restricted by a statute prohibiting the friars of his order from publishing books or pamphlets without prior approval. • The Condemnations of 1277 banned the teaching of certain philosophical doctrines, including deterministic astrology. Some time within the next two years, Bacon was apparently imprisoned or placed under house arrest. –https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Bacon

Here are some of the thinking that Bacon and others were ‘not allowed to engage in’ at various times in the 13th Century:

The banned propositions included:

• “That there is numerically one and the same intellect for all humans”.
• “That the soul separated [from the body] by death cannot suffer from bodily fire”.
• “That God cannot grant immortality and incorruption to a mortal and corruptible thing”.
• “That God does not know singulars” (i.e., individual objects or creatures).
• “That God does not know things other than Himself”.
• “That human acts are not ruled by the providence of God”.
• “That the world is eternal”.
• “That there was never a first human”.
–https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condemnations_of_1210–1277

History is littered with examples of suppression of freedom of thinking. Now if you are still reading this article, and if you resonate with the belief that you should reach your own, objective conclusions, then here is one phenomenal role model to guide and inspire you. Buckminster-Fuller, considered one of the greatest thinkers of the 20th Century, wrote:

I jettisoned all I had ever been taught to believe and proceeded thereafter to reason and act only on the basis of direct personal experience … Exploring, experiencing, feeling, and – to the best of my ability – acting strictly and only on my individual intuition, I became impelled to write this book… –Buckminster-Fuller, referring to his book ‘Critical Path’, 1981.

I am not alone in my encouragement to you to temper your compliance with the dominant ‘scientific’ theories:

I think that in modern Western society, there seems to be a powerful cultural conditioning that is based on science. But in some instances, the basic premises and parameters set up by Western science can limit your ability to deal with certain realities. For instance, you have the constraints of the idea that everything can be explained within the framework of a single lifetime, and you combine this with the notion that everything can and must be explained and accounted for. But when you encounter phenomena that you cannot account for, then there’s kind of a tension created; it’s almost a feeling of agony. –Howard C. Culter and the Dalai Lama, 1998

Again, I share I am not seeking to be disrespectful of science as it currently is.

Research is nice and I’m definitely not critical at all of the contribution of academics. But my decision to train a certain way is not based on the latest research. It’s based on the conclusions I’ve reached on cause and effect relationships in the real world. People can become too infatuated with the concept of science.

For me, success in sport is about winning. Athletes aren’t going to get offended if I don’t comply with the latest research. They just want to win. So, the research is nice, but it’s always going to be limited. We’re not dealing with a college age volunteer in a six week program; we’re dealing with a human being that’s been working for fifteen to twenty years to take his body beyond where it’s gone before. –Shugart, C., 2000, Meet the press: Coach of Coaches – An interview with Ian King, t-mag.com 29 Friday 2000

I also acknowledge that the easiest thing to do is to conform. However I encourage you to reflect on this perspective on conformity:

The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice, it is conformity. –Rollo May

I have been encouraging you to resist the pressures of conformity for:

Resist the temptation in program design to conform to mainstream paradigms simply for the sake of conforming, no matter how dogmatically they are presented, or how much you may be ridiculed or ostracized for trusting your intuition over conformity. Make our own minds up based on a combination of respect for your intuition, the athlete/client’s intuition, the results, and in respect of the body of knowledge available. –King, I.., 2005, The way of the physical preparation coach (book), p. 17

It is rewarding to see individuals chose to be objective, to trial training methods and reach their own conclusions, even if they are contrary to the dominant beliefs:

“…from young, I was led to believe that an individual’s level of flexibility is determined by genetics. As I grew older I got stiffer and when I started my formal education, I was educated that flexibility is not a vital determining factor in sports and that dynamic stretches were more than sufficient to both warm-up the joint and muscles, as well as to improve flexibility.

To be honest, with all the research papers and articles being put through my mind at that time, it did seem logical for a naive mind that was easily convinced. However, I am glad that I was shown the art of stretching…I have never experienced such levels of flexibilities in my life and I’m thankful that I chose to open my mind to a concept that was challenged by the origins of my knowledge in this field. I spend close to half or on some days, more than half of my time stretching my frontal muscle groups & performing tension releasing work with my ‘poor man’s masseur’ as it has significantly improved my overall health. Stretching will also and always be a main training tool/stapler in the programs that I design, due to it’s massive benefits that I have attained and am still experiencing.” -Tze, KSI L1 Student Coach

In essence I am suggesting that if you do what everyone else is doing, you are not only failing to fulfill your potential, you are failing to fulfill the potential of your client:

Look at it this way. If you do it the way everyone else is doing it – all things being equal, how are you going to be better than everyone else? Realistically changes do occur (albeit slowly) in sport training – because someone dared to do it differently. These people gain the advantage, are at the cutting edge. The sheep follow. Which do you want to be? –King, I., 1997, Winning and Losing, p. 30

Give you a hint – if what I teach is what the majority do, I would be very concerned. I want to do what few do, to get a competitive advantage. –King, I., 2003, Ask the Master, (book) p. 32

Conclusion

I am going to be straight – if you find yourself doing what the majority are doing, and your goal is to be the best you can be – you should be very concerned. I see this as evidence that you are not thinking for yourself, rather that you are conforming.

Now this is not bad or good from one perspective – even Master Sifu in the movie Kung Fu Panda will tell you there is not such thing as good or bad! If you have no desire to fulfill your potential, if your personality is such that you would prefer to conform, then keep going. The world needs all kinds, and the statistical reality has a pattern of talking about the 90-95% that just want to be average, the same as everyone else.

But if you are seeking to be the best you can be, to give you clients the best opportunity to be the best they can be – to be in the 5 to 10% of high achievers – then you need to stop seeking to be like everyone else and think for yourself!

 

© 2016 Ian King & King Sports International. All rights reserved.

Ian King

Can you give it to me for a discounted price?

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Can I have a discount? Vs. I wish to pay full price

I received a request recently from a customer – ‘Can I have a discount?’ Why? ‘Because I’m really short of cash this month.’

I’ve dealt with this more than a few times however on this occasion I wanted to share the lesson with more than just the asker.

There was a time when I would have say ‘Sure’ as I felt for the story of challenge combined with want, now.

Or perhaps influenced by the fear of a loss of a sale.

However over the last few decades I have been exposed to a number of mentors who have taught me that I actually do not serve the person by giving them the impression that to have more they don’t need to change.

Here’s one of those influences, Jim Rohn:

“I wish to pay full price for every value…For what it will make of me….If I wish to have more, I must become more….Don’t wish it was easier, wish you were better.”–Jim Rohn

Another reason Jim taught was the value in paying fair price or earning something rather than being gifted something:

“The major value in life is not what you get. The major value in life is what you become. That is why I wish to pay fair price for every value. If I have to pay for it or earn it, that makes something of me. If I get it for free, that makes nothing of me.“–Jim Rohn

So now I say, as much as it hurts me on earlier values, I am not serving you by giving you a discount for no other reason than you asked for one based on how tough life is for you financially.

I know many teachers who share this value, based first on what they do, and secondly then what they teach. In fact I heard one just a few days ago say the same thing, and another person influenced by Jim Rohn amongst others.

bit.ly/Iwishtopayfullprice

Perhaps the lesson will be received. Perhaps not. And in case you were interested, the full price of the item was 44 dollars….We collectively expended more time in writing emails than the value of any discount could have been…

When I hear something ask for a reduced price simply because they perceive something to be out of their reach, I conclude they have not been exposed to these lessons, so I choose to pass on the wisdom of Jim Rohn and others.

In conclusion, another Jim Rohn wisdom:

“I used to say, “Things cost too much.” Then my teacher straightened me out on that by saying, “The problem isn’t that things cost too much. The problem is that you can’t afford it.” That’s when I finally understood that the problem wasn’t “it” – the problem was “me.”— Jim Rohn

Ian King

I’ve learnt a few keys to failure!

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One of the benefits of talking to people about taking action and potentially experiencing change in life is that you get to learn about how the average person thinks.

Napoleon Hill wrote a famous book called ‘Think and Grow Rich – The Keys to Success’ on the basis of his chats with highly successful people. I believe my chats are leading me to form the content for a manuscript of a similar kind – just the opposite ‘The Keys to Failing!’

So in the lead up to Season 3 of the KSI Leveraged Challenge I have been doing my best to give away $1,000, free training, mentoring with myself – in a program that can and has changed peoples lives.

At the same time every week this year I watch a certain man’s business outperform and out earn mine – despite him passing away over a decade ago. And his wife and children are the beneficiaries of this. Now we will catch up and exceed his business success, and whilst I do feel a bit embarrassed that at least 2 of my former colleagues have passed and still out-perform me from the grave, here I am talking to people who may never take the action to have this potential reward! I can assure you they will not be generating income for their family post their working life, or post their life. They are committed to failing.

I heard a phenomenal quote recently as I studied some seminar footage, where the speakers minimum requirement was they had to be 7 figure income earners per year. Not turnover, personal income. That’s right, a million or more per year or you can’t speak. And yes, it was not a physical preparation seminar….

And one of the speakers said words to the effect:

The average person…

….works out how (or if they think) they can do it..
….says yes…
…and then tells people.

The above-average person….

…says yes…
….tells the world…
…and then works out how to do it.

And the challenge with that is the ordinary person doesn’t know how to solve their challenges, other than using the solutions that got them to their current challenges. So they don’t know how to do it and will never figure it out because the answers only come after you start! So they are right – they can’t take action or change!

So if you are looking for reasons not to take action and not to change, and are committed to being as you are and hoping things don’t change around you too much, you can use this!

So, in case this turns into a series, here’s one of the ‘Keys to Failure’! Say:

‘I can’t do it until I have worked out how to do it!’

Ian King

KSI L1 Graduate Coach Interview – Tui Katene

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Firstly, congratulations on completing the KSI U Level 1 course! And thanks in advance for taking the time to share your experiences with the reader. To get started, I’d like to ask:

1. How long have you been in the industry and what is your current role?

I’ve worked in the industry for over 20 years and held pretty much every position, gym floor worker, Fitness Instructor, Personal Trainer and Manager. Now I own my own gym and service my local community. When I’m not training, I get a few quality personal training sessions in with some of my members.

2. How did you first get involved in the industry?

The gym thing has always been a major part of my life, I started working out in the gym when I was 15, I had just made the New Zealand Touch Football Team and when I wasn’t playing or running around with my ball, I would be in the gym. I’d hang out there for hours, watching, learning and listening, then I was offered a part time job as a student and, that was it…Hooked!

3. What do you see as the ideal position to be in and why?

My ideal position would be to be coaching high performance athletes. As a four times international athlete myself giving back to the industry that helped build my sporting career would be the ultimate.

4. What type of clients do you deal with and is there anything you are planning to change with regard to your client base?

I work with clients of all shapes and sizes, makes and models, from the everyday person wanting to get fit and healthy to elite athletes representing New Zealand. In the near future I’d like to work predominantly with elite athletes and focus more on high performance sports conditioning.

5. What led you to start the KSI Coach program?

I attended a powerlifting 3 lift course in August this year run by Cathy Millen. Cathy talked about KSI Coach Program and her own experiences in working with Ian King. Something resonated with me about the information Cathy delivered and I decided the best way to learn more was to commit some of my time to starting the KSI Level 1 Course.

6. How was the experience of doing the KSI Coach program?

Wow best decision ever! There were so many light bulb moments, from Milo the Greek wrestler in 6th Century BC to legend Charlie Francis. The KSI Coach program just made so much sense. What have been the biggest lessons you have taken from the KSI Coach program? The biggest lessons have been so many, and I find myself going back and revisiting my notes on a daily basis. If I were to name a few of those key lessons they would be:

• It’s ok to follow your intuition
• It’s ok to trust your instincts and resist the temptation to conform.

Ian King you are a Legacy!

7. In your opinion and experience what makes the KSI unique?

There is nothing like KSI, you will not find the history behind the concepts anywhere else. No one else will be able to give you the detailed facts “no holds barred” like Ian. Ian says it how it is, and makes sense of it. Ian talks from experience, he talks with honesty and integrity. In my book nothing beats that.

8. What are some of the frustrations you have faced in your work and what are some of these that you have found a solution for?

The biggest frustration I’ve had over the years is clients who think they know what’s best for them because they read something on google. They get caught up in wanting to do whatever the latest trend is. I guess I look at the trend now and google and talk a lot more about where these trends or programs have come from. I talk a lot more about the history of where these ideas come from, and the type of people who are writing or developing these trends, commercialism, marketing, to name a few.

9. What are your plans for the future?

Initial plans are heading to Canada in November for the Commonwealth Powerlifting Champs then back into KSI Level 2 for a starter in 2016. I’d really like to increase my athlete client base for 2016 so that’s on the cards.

10. What do you like to do in your spare time?

Hang out with my cats, Rocky and See-me, for relaxing, Surfing for fun and a diving for seafood (kaimoana) for dinner.

11. What do you belief are the greatest challenges facing our industry and or someone in this industry?

People and PTs being influenced by what they see on the internet and following exercise trends. It’s crazy. I see new PTs coming in giving ad hoc advice about trends and making up their own version without knowing the correct technique. It’s scary, creates bad habits, which in turn creates injury. A problem I believe the industry will suffer from in the near future.

12. What advice do you have for anyone considering starting the KSI Coach program? Just do it! Nothing comes close.

Again, thanks for taking the time to share your experiences. Every time anyone completes a task they set out to do they stand out, as not everyone does this. So well done, you deserve a big pat on the back!

Ian King

KSI L1 Graduate Coach Interview Sebastien Buttigieg  

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Firstly, congratulations on completing the KSI U Level 1 course! And thanks in advance for taking the time to share your experiences with the reader.

To get started, I’d like to ask:

1. How long have you been in the industry and what is your current role?

I have been working in the industry for almost 7 years now. I began by completing my Cert III in Fitness to become a gym instructor and work in a gym, which I did for a couple of years. I followed that up by completing my Cert IV in Fitness and becoming a Personal Trainer, which I also did for a period of time. I then decided to go back to study and complete my Bachelors Degree in Exercise and Sport Science, which I completed earlier this year.

2. How did you first get involved in the industry?

I had been weight training for a year or so when I decided to do my Cert III in fitness as a way to develop my own knowledge of training and the processes of the human body. After completing it, I found that I had really enjoyed learning everything and that the fitness industry was something I was quite passionate about. I managed to fall into my first gym job, when a friend of mine was leaving the gym that he worked at for another job. I spoke with the manager who I knew quite well by this stage and said that I had completed my qualifications and that I was looking to get some work in a gym. Things just went from there.

3. What do you see as the ideal position to be in and why?

Ideally I would one day like to be working alongside elite athletes in a strength and conditioning setting within a sporting team such as an AFL club, EPL soccer team or even NBA or NFL team. I love working with regular people that are looking to get into better shape, however, having grown up within such a big sporting family, I would love to be able to get involved at the highest level to help these athletes prepare and achieve as much success as possible.

4. What type of clients do you deal with and is there anything you are planning to change with regard to your client base?

Currently I work with a range of clients from older women looking to improve their lives, lose a little bit of weight and get in better shape, to helping out with teaching/running strength and conditioning sessions for teenage athletes. I have also recently started working at a new studio, which deals more with a fitter clientele and those looking to transform their physiques. In the New Year I am aiming to get my foot in the door at an AFL club and start developing experience working alongside elite athletes.

5. What led you to start the KSI Coach program?

I attended a lecture by Ian earlier in the year, after being recommended to go by my mother and fellow USANA colleagues. I found the talk to be extremely informative and it gave me the hunger to learn more about what Ian has done and how I can get to where he has gotten to within the industry. I did some research in the days following and spoke with Ian on the internet and he told me about the KSI Coach program. I looked into it and it immediately appealed to me, so I signed up.

6. How was the experience of doing the KSI Coach program?

At the time of beginning the program it was a bit hard to keep up with regularly doing things, as I was in the final 6 months of my uni degree at the time and was being bombarded with assignments left right and center. However, once my degree was finished it was much easier to sit down and really absorb as much as possible from the program. Everything was easy to follow and the information presented gave me the thirst to attain even more knowledge about the KSI way.

7. What have been the biggest lessons you have taken from the KSI Coach program?

The main lessons that I have taken away from the program are to not just take someone’s word and believe that it is the be all and end all of it. I found it extremely enlightening that so-called “experts” that I had received information from over the years, had in fact been ripping off information that was developed by Ian in the first place. I have also started adopting some of the strategies that Ian has developed with regards to exercise prescription, techniques and programming protocols within my own training and that of my own clients (obviously being mindful to not claim them as my own ideas).

8. What are some of the frustrations you have faced in your work and what are some of these that you have found a solution for?

The most frustrating thing that I have found is dealing with clients that do not have a strong work ethic and seem to only be training to tell their friends that they are going to the gym. The large majority of the time the clients that I have dealt with have been amazing, they have gotten the results that they want, by putting in the hard work that it takes to achieve those results. It is clients like that, who make it a joy to do what I do. It is frustrating when a client comes along and as soon as the going gets a little challenging they make up a myriad of excuses as to why they cannot do something. I have found that over the years, with more experience and more knowledge, I have been able to gradually change these characteristics in certain clients and help them to develop a better attitude towards their training. I have still not mastered the ability to motivate 100% of the clients that I deal with and to get them to do the hard things outside of the gym (i.e. changing their diet habits, stretching, recovering), but I feel as though I am getting much better at this.

9. What are your plans for the future?

Within the next few months I aim to get a position working within the strength and conditioning department of an AFL team, even if it is only a voluntary part-time position. I also want to complete the KSI Level 2 program and be eligible to participate in Levels 3 and 4 of the program next year. I want to attain my ASCA Strength and Conditioning accreditation as well. Most importantly I want to learn more and more in order to become the best coach that I can possibly be.

10. What do you like to do in your spare time?

When I am not working or training myself I like to spend my spare time with my lovely partner, (as it is hard to spend quality time during the week with the hours we both keep). Playing with my two dogs and I am also a musician and play a variety of instruments along with singing. After a long hard day I do enjoy sitting down on the couch to watch a good TV Show (get into Modern Family if you haven’t already!) and playing a computer game or two with my little cousin.

11. What do you believe are the greatest challenges facing our industry and or someone in this industry?

Working solely as a personal trainer is hard, as you only get paid for the time that you are physically training with someone. Week to week that time can vary quite a lot, as it is highly dependant upon the client, how they are feeling day to day, how busy they are at work, how much money they have, whether they are going away on holidays etc. Whenever people are strapped for cash it is things like personal training that get dropped first as it is not a priority for most people, which is totally understandable. It is not a consistent form of income and at certain times of the year it can be quite difficult, especially during Christmas where their money is going elsewhere or they are going away on holiday. Also through the middle of winter, a large majority of the people I come across lack the motivation to train.

12. What advice do you have for anyone considering starting the KSI Coach program?

The best advice I could give is to simply do it! You won’t regret it.

Again, thanks for taking the time to share your experiences. Every time anyone completes a task they set out to do they stand out, as not everyone does this. So well done, you deserve a big pat on the back!

Ian King

KSI Coach Education Program Learn original material based on real coaching – the best way to become the best you can be!Learn more: http://bit.ly/KSICoachingProgram

Ian King

We don’t care, just leave us alone to talk about sets and reps  

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I’ve really gone out on a limb in the last 6 months to warn as many who will listen and give them a chance to prepare, to take new directions in life. I’ve taken a real risk because I’ve seen how many people opt out when I dare to write about money. It would be a lot easier to write about popular shallow things, such as how to buff your biceps in 3 days using an little know secret that you can only learn by signing up for my next course…or something as benign and deceitful as that which is typical of what’s offered in our typical industry marketing.

It’s amazing how so many in physical preparations shut down, opt out, walk away. They don’t want to talk about anything than sets and reps. It will be interesting how that plays out in their ‘golden years’.

How that will support them when they are grey hairs….how that will put their kids through education…fund their medical costs…support their parents as well as their kids….put food on the table….

I guess they want things to stay the same, keep getting the average PT income of 20–40k/year….and that was before the potential downturn…and that income will look like a fortune compared to the income they will receive in the later decades of their life.

However things are not going to stay the same, and I believe you have two choices in change. You can choose change and it hurts. Or you can have change forced on you and that will hurts a lot more. And I believe that type of pain is on the horizon for many. Well actually, the majority – based on what I see of so many turning their back on this information, concluding that they don’t need it.

I’ve been studying specifically the risks of 2016 for the last decade and a half, and few were talking about it back then. Now it’s become a mainstream discussion with

When a Harvard professor is writing for the Washington Post singing from the same song sheet as those who have been calling the risks of 2016 for over a decade, you know the evidence is mounting. The author is Lawrence Summers is a professor at and past president of Harvard University. He was treasury secretary from 1999 to 2001 and an economic adviser to President Obama from 2009 through 2010.

There were a few paragraphs that really stood out to me. Firstly the way so many in physical preparation appear to be putting their head in their sand. They are low incomes now, with little upside even in a ‘normal’ economy. In a downturn they will be screwed. But they want to keep doing what they are doing.

As always when things go badly, there is a great debate between those who believe in staying the course and those who urge a serious correction. I am convinced of the urgent need for substantial changes in the world’s economic strategy.

I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised, as the role model of success appears at least the fitness industry to be more about the perception of greatness defined by likes and friends, and very little about competence or quality of life.

I’ve been studying the impending financial period and solutions for it for a long time now. And when I see what I see regarding people not wanting to do things differently, not willing to learn new values and skills, I really relate to this statement by the authors:

As always when things go badly, there is a great debate between those who believe in staying the course and those who urge a serious correction. I am convinced of the urgent need for substantial changes in the world’s economic strategy.

So what does this mean to the physical preparation coach? Insert the words ‘;hsyical preparation coach’ for ‘world’s policymakers’ in the below statement, as you truly are your own policy maker:

What does all this mean for the world’s policymakers gathering in Lima? This is no time for complacency. The idea that slow growth is only a temporary consequence of the 2008 financial crisis is absurd. The latest data suggest growth is slowing in the United States, and it is already slow in Europe and Japan. A global economy near stall speed is one where the primary danger is recession.

I will repeat – this is no time for complacency. Reminds me a lot of the stories from the Titanic – when people suggested it was time to leave, most might have thought ‘It can’t be, this ship can’t sink!’. I suggest that is exactly what we are seeing now….

Who are you going to be? The ones in the water drowning or the ones in the life boats?

Read the full article at http://bit.ly/Theglobaleconomyisinseriousdanger

Ian King

What’s all this economy stuff got to do with me as a physical preparation coach?  

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This is a question that many will be asking. At least those who have not already opted out because their minds apparently can only accommodate things about how to get ripped or similar…

Let me explain why I believe this economy stuff is relevant to you. In years to come you can look back with the strength of hindsight and judge how relevant this is…

Here’s a brief economic lesson to give you an insight into why many believe challenges in the US economy will affect the world economy, and how they might affect your economy.

The US is the greatest consumer country in the world; some suggest accounting for around 50% of the world’s consumption. When the US contracts, demands for goods drop. Most goods are now produced in China and other parts of Asia. So whilst the Asians economies are stronger than the Europe and Americas, they stand to contract on reduced demand for goods.

The countries that make their money be exporting raw minerals to the production countries will have less demand for their resources, and in turn they will contract. Australia is a great example of this, where Australia’s economy is closely tied to the demand from China for its resources.

So the challenges faced by the US, with its 17 trillion dollar (and that’s just the Govt debt – some suggest the combined real debt is in excess of 40 trillion) debt and growing – are a potential trigger for serious economic downturns in all countries.

Now what’ that got to do with you as a physical preparation coach you ask?

If you have clients, and their incomes are threatened, you will suffer a reduction in demand for your services. Your income stands to drop. The only buffer will be having really, really wealthy clients, and even during the 2006-2010 period, many learnt that your high net worth clients weren’t so financially stable as you thought.

If you have a lease on a facility, and your suffer reduced income, you are going to face an additional challenge in being able to pay the lease payments owned on your facility.

If you are relying on your assets to secure your loans, and your assets take a serious tumble in value, you will be under scrutiny from your lenders.

That’s what I think it has to do with you as a physical preparation coach!

If that concerns you, and if you have not already done so, click here to learn more: http://bit.ly/gettingreadyfor2016

We can all look back in the years to come and ask – was I on track? Did i do enough?

Ian King

PS. We’ve had an offer on the table for nearly 3 wks now where we have offered to rebate 10% of start up costs for new business in a particular offer. Offer ends 11 Sep 2015…

Ian King

I spoke to xxxx (professional) and they said it can’t be so….  

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There is a phenomenon in sport, and perhaps life, where decisions are made about potential, possibilities and peoples lives from a remote, authoritarian and dogmatic perspective.

But who does it serve? Surely it wouldn’t be that humbling to take a less all-knowing approach?

In the 1980s a young national league Australian Rules player suffered what we now call chronic fatigue. The coach told him “I talked to the trainer and there is nothing wrong with you. You just aren’t fit enough.” So they send him off on a special training camp where he paddled in the ocean for hours, ran along beaches for hours, swam in open seas for hours.

Who does it serve? The coach’s and trainers need to be able to diagnose all conditions, the ego of the trainer about more of their services being needed…but what about the athlete? Would it be so demeaning to seek independent unbiased professional advice? To say “I don’t really know why you are complaining about being tired, but lets explore your situation and find out more to help you get over the condition.”

In the 1990s in the lead up to a World Cup, a head national coach put his team through a grueling training session, applying the dominant trend of the time, which essentially ended the team’s hope of winning (and that’s the opinion of some of the athletes involved in retrospect). Faced with a very tired and sore group of athletes, the head coach told the team: “I have spoken with the support staff and they have all told me you can’t be tired, so you are not tired!”

Who does it serve? The coach’s need to be right, the ego of the professional o feeling good about being remotely all knowing…but what about the athlete? Or the team? Would it be so terrible to say “I don’t really know why you are complaining about being tired, but lets explore your situation and find out more to help us win?”

In the 2000s a provincial level rugby playing hurt his shoulder. The coach, supported by the medical staff, decided he was okay, and sent him back on. He damaged his shoulder so extensively later in that game it shortened his career and affected his quality of life forever.

Who does it serve? It helped the team win that game. It confirmed the coach had full control over medical interpretations….but what about the athlete? Would it have been so scary for the team to lose that player for the rest of the game to prevent future surgery? To have said “I don’t like the thought of losing you in this tight game but based on your concerns lets check out your injury and not take risks with you.”

In the post 2010 decade I was working with a young UK soccer player who was recovering unsuccessfully from surgery. He had entered into an agreement to play for a US college on scholarship, but was in no condition to do so. The head college told him “The physical therapist tells me there is no reason why you cannot play and train so I expect you to turn up on Monday and participate fully.” And that was before the physical therapist had even laid hands on the athlete…

Who does it serve? The interests of the college, the ego of the professional…but what about the athlete? Would it be so dangerous to say “I don’t really know why you are reporting pain or concern, but lets explore your situation and find out more?”

Post 2010 I raised a point of concern with a sports coordinator of a high school about injury risks in a training session. The response included “I have spoken to our strength and condition coach and he tells me that the volume of training the athletes are doing does not represent a risk.”

Who does it serve? The interests of the school, the ego of the professional to be right, to be all knowing…,but what about the athlete? Would it be so bad to say “I don’t really know why you concerned about pain, but lets explore your situation and find out more?”

I don’t know what training is going to do. I have a theory or hypothesis and I take it carefully in case I am off-track. If it turns out I missed the target, then I seek to amend the situation, and learn from it. It’s not that hard if you can put aside the need to be all knowing or be right. I even tell the athlete in advance – I don’t know for sure but this is where I am thinking of going, is that okay, and let’s learn from this. Together. It’s not that difficult.

Who does it serve? The athlete.

Ian King

This is not a dress rehearsal  

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…(and it’s definitely not ‘scare tactics’)

Someone suggested in a response to a recent FB page that I was engaging in ‘scare tactics’. That post was not about scare tactics. I have no reason to use ‘tactics’. I am simply reaching out and giving you an opportunity to manage life moving forwards in a period that you may not be ready for, with strategies that I have been developing for the last fifteen years.

Let me explain

Growing up in a household where the dominant economic belief was that ‘the sky was falling’, that the stock market would crash at any movement. As I learnt more about history I understood why. My grandfather was a young father with little children when the 1930s Great Depression hit. That would have left scars.

But only scars for one generation or an 80-year cycle. In the same way as a Great World War – it’s when those who remember them pass, and those who do not remember them shape up for another one, that history repeats itself And I suggest history – the 1930s – is about to repeat itself.

I spend most of my life going contrary to the negative outlook on the economy of my upbringing. And this bullish approach served me well, giving a degree of financial success.

However later in life I began to wonder what it took to indicate a Depression, because I had been very aggressive in my investing, and I realized that if I took this highly leveraged approach into a major downturn or Depression I would be smashed. And after spending my early years listening to stories about economic depressions, I had no excuse for totally ignoring the lessons of my upbringing.

I had become a student of money and business in the early 1990s when I had the hard realization that I had nothing to show for my financial position other than the warm feeling of being successful and highly paid in my profession.

However in the early 2000s, in particular post the September 11 2001 Twin Towers events, I asked different questions – what would it take to create a financial depression and what were the signs?

From the research into the subject of economic depressions, in 2003 I began teaching my inner circle about the 2007/2008 dates for a economic downturn. This information saved me financially, and also served my coaches. My colleagues and acquaintances who didn’t want to heed my advice paid the price during what was called the ‘Global Financial Crisis’ (GFC).

My study in the early 2000s let me to the belief that a larger economic shock was going to hit the world in about 2016.

And that’s were we are today. On the brink of 2016. With the definite signs of a meltdown showing, we may be months, and if not just years away, from experiencing massive financial changes in our lives, in our cultures, and in a way that could significantly affect our daily life.

I don’t need to be right, but if I am on track, and you ignored this heads up because you thought it was ‘scare tactics’, I look forward to swapping notes in about 5 years time. Maybe some of you do need to be scared now!

I have been reaching out more this year to those outside my inner circle. Has it been effective? Not really, most think I am crazy. That’s okay. In retrospect they can review their initial conclusions, and I will look back as say I did what I could to give a warning.

Even those who have shown interest in this more recent reaching out have shown inadequate responses and actions. All I can say is – this is not a dress rehearsal. This is the real deal. It may just be the warm up, but this is the real deal, it is going to happen. How serious it will be, we don’ t know. How much it will affect you we don’t know. But what we do know is that I have reached out, and the ‘ball is in your court’.