Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. – Albert Schweitzer

Jeff grew up in small town near Detroit, MI.  As a kid he dabbled in many sports and activities, but ultimately fell in love with Rugby, Football and Wrestling.  It was there that he learned work ethic and accountability.  It was also there that he found a passion for fitness and coaching.  To gain experience he volunteered to coach a few youth camps and assisted the coaches in the weight room, but wanted more.  He eventually earned his first personal training certification while attending Michigan State University.  On his path to earning a degree in exercise science, Jeff gained training experience by working as a sub contractor at several gyms, including small chains, globo gyms and university gyms.  He learned everything he could from these business models, the good and the bad.  He also had to learn how to sell, and quickly, in order to make any sort of a living.  

After graduation Jeff interned at a local sports club under supervision of the Fitness Manager and General Manager.  The fitness manager role appealed to him as a sustainable option, far more consistent than that of a trainer.  Following this internship, Jeff found a job in Grand Rapids, an hour commute from Lansing, selling personal training.  The only problem was that he wasn’t very good at sales, yet.  So he turned to sales books, podcasts and gurus, eventually digesting hundreds of books and thousands of hours of information on his 2 hour daily commute to work.  This overflow of knowledge combined with daily action on its teachings led Jeff to become the top salesman in the company out of 30+ gyms.

Eventually life would take Jeff and his wife to Virginia on a sort of mid 20’s adventure.  Here he would gain further sales and management experience in a much larger market.  He managed 7 multi-million dollar facilities with a staff of 7 Fitness managers, 4 Assistant managers and 160+ personal trainers.  This forced him to learn the ins and outs of management, including operations, employee motivation, interviewing, hiring, firing, and the occasional HR nightmare.  All of this while producing $1 million in personal training every month.

But the high stress and long hours began to wear on him, and after having his first daughter was born, he and his wife decided to move back home to Michigan.  Once back he began work at a local gym chain where he created their personal training structure and systems.  He managed 10 personal training departments, 10 managers and around 50 personal trainers.  In 2014, he finally took the plunge and opened his own CrossFit box.

Jeff opened Friction CrossFit with one coach while continuing to work his full time job. After 15 months of having minimal success, Jeff realized he needed to be all in. He left his day job and committed to making his business profitable. After seeking mentorship and joining Two Brain Business, Jeff dropped discounts, raised rates, hired coach and added multiple revenue streams. As a result, Friction has seen a 250% increase in revenue year over year.  He now works 3 days a week at the gym and spends the rest of his time with his Wife and two Daughters.

Jeff is excited to pursue his new passion as a business mentor with Two Brain!