As the third month of the gym's existence came to an end, I was proudly putting up a sign that showed all clients' total weight loss which equaled 447 pounds. Lori, for example, went from her 5'5", 164 pounds and 36-32-41 to 135 pounds, 33-28-36 which was by far the best result out of everyone. She worked her ass off for it and I asked her to write a testimonial. I wanted people to (1) know what was possible and (2) that it isn't easy.
One of the male clients actually lost 41 pounds in 10 weeks. There were a few that didn't bother being measured or weighted and a few others just maintained their weights but I was more than proud of what we accomplished collectively.
By month four, the income stream was insane. The food sales alone brought in an average of $800 per day and with about 60 yoga clients per day, we brought in an extra $900 per day on that end. My private lessons were adding another $600 and through the membership fees, another $150 were accounted for.
All of the sudden, a $1,000,000 first year goal didn't seem unrealistic. I didn't know how much to pay myself and just let the money accumulate in the business bank account. I was living off of my online business and the $180,000 I got at the beginning so when the gym's account balance hit $150,000, I asked to sit down with Don and Teresa. They transferred exactly 25% to their LLC and had their accountant go through all of the numbers to make sure we were in line with our taxes and book-keeping.
I didn't really ask if the $112,000 were mine to keep since that seemed to be the obvious conclusion I paid myself $100,000 and left the rest in place. With over $200,000 in my bank account, I made my way to the dealership on Sunday and not liking the hassle of negotiating with car salesmen, I was happy to buy a brand new Tesla at their set price. It was the first time I bought a new car in four years and as soon as I drove off I wondered if everything had become way too good way too fast. I was burned out and knew that if I kept going at the same pace, my bank account would keep expanding but my body would fail me at some point.
I was working seven days a week and since the money for private sessions was so attractive, I put in another 10 hours on Saturday and Sunday compared to the beginning. I kept good track of my time spent on work and the tipping point came when I realized I just worked 400 hours in the last 31 days. During that same time, I remember fucking Heather twice and I didn't remember if Jessica came upstairs once or twice. Needless to say, I needed a break.
With no steady relationship in place, Heather was the one who offered to go on vacation with me and was even willing to pay for everything since she just closed on a $1,000,000 home. As great as the thought of an all-paid-for vacation was, I couldn't imagine being gone for more than a day. Even Jessica and Teresa put in a ton of hours and none of us were dispensable. I knew I had to hire some people fast and since Teresa mentioned that she would go on another vacation soon, I knew I had to find someone that could cover the health bar. I was just about to place an ad on Craigslist when a better idea came to mind.
I went to the nearby Starbucks and the friendliest and prettiest barista Meghan was working. Meghan and I have exchanged a few flirts the past few years and even though she had graduated from the university last summer, she was still working at Starbucks. She looked as delicious as the mochas that she made me and there was never a time she didn't smile and offer the best possible service to customers.
"The regular?" the brunette beauty asked for a sincere smile?
"Yep," I said shyly at first and paid with my phone. "I have a proposal for you," I said after building up the courage.
"Uhm. I'm not sure what you mean," she said confused.
"When is your shift over? I'd like to run something by you," I said trying to sound as passive as possible. I was really afraid by her response but as soon as I finished my question, she lid up even more and simply said: "In twenty minutes."
I decided to wait and simply observe her while reading some articles on my phone. Each chance she had, she glanced over at me and smiled. When she finally clocked out, she disappeared in the back and I could tell that she reapplied some makeup and fixed her hair when she returned. Without the apron, her amazing petite body was more exposed. Her tight black pants drew a lot of my attention towards her bottom half before she sat down and then I just had the pleasure to gaze at her eyes closer than ever before.
"So what's your proposal? If you want to take me for a drive in your Tesla, I am game," she joked.
"That can be arranged. In all seriousness, do you know what I do for a living?" I started the conversation.
"You are a personal trainer, right?" she asked.
"Well, kind of. I own the gym that is three buildings down."
"That's great. So what's the proposal?"
"I stop by twice a day here to get the much needed caffeine and to be blessed by your great customer service," I said.
She blushed a little.
"You know that you are beautiful but I want you to know that you are by far the friendliest barista I have ever run into."
"Well, thanks," she said.
"I don't know how much you get paid here but I am hiring at my gym and really need someone like you to help us run it."
"I don't know what to say. Is it like full-time?"
"Yes, it would be."
"I really like it here and the benefits are great and I love the people I work with," she resisted.
"I'll be honest. I didn't think about hiring you until this morning so my presentation sucks, I know. But whatever you get paid here, I will pay you 50% more and the benefits we will get taken care of as well. I really believe you are a great fit and the fact that you have been at this job for so long tells me that you will be loyal to us as well."
"It sounds really flattering and I trust you but this is a little weird. I thought you were going to invite me to a drink or something," she said almost disappointed. "Even if you paid me $20 an hour, I would feel bad for leaving this place."
"Ok, first off, let me take you out to dinner tonight please. My last appointment is done at 8 so if you don't mind, we could grab a late bite to eat. Second, what if we make it an even $30 per hour to start?"
I definitely caught her off guard a little.
"Let's start with the dinner tonight and you can tell me more then. I really need to think about it, please don't ask anyone else yet, ok?"
"Ok. Would you like me to pick you up? Where would you like to go?" I asked.
"You pick the place. Just tell me if I need to dress up," she responded.
"Would you rather be casual or more formal?" I asked wanting to make it as comfortable for her as possible.
"It looks like you can afford a nice night out so let's make it a formal affair," she responded with confidence.
I ended up giving her a big hug before we broke off and wasn't sure if I was more excited for the date or the possibility to hire her.
Eight o'clock couldn't come soon enough. My last appointment was with an obnoxious and lazy tech guy who felt it was more important to brag about him getting laid after clubbing last night than focus on the workout. Since I charged 25% extra for weekend sessions, I was willing to put up with it.
To save each minute, I brought my change of clothes to the gym and got ready within a few minutes. Meghan lived only blocks away and she was already waiting outside when I drove up to the apartment building.
She looked amazing in her white dress and heels. Her wavy brown hair turned out to be able to reach past her shoulder blades and she didn't hold back the application of makeup and perfume.
