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Thirteen years ago I signed a lease and opened a gym with no idea what I was doing. Still here.
This episode is the honest version of those thirteen years — what building Virtuous actually cost, and the lessons that only come from staying in the seat: the loneliness, the no-answers seasons, and the reason I never put it down.
If you’re building something — a business, a side thing, anything with your name on it — this one’s for you.
In this episode:
- What I thought I was building in 2013 vs. what I know now I was actually building
- Who you hire is the whole game — the hire that taught me the most, and why culture isn’t what you put on the wall, it’s who you put on the floor
- Multiple locations didn’t mean what I thought it would mean — what expansion actually multiplies, and what it exposes
- Saying no is a growth strategy — the programs I built, believed in, and killed anyway
- Premium is a spine, not a price tag — holding the line when discounting would’ve been easier, and why your price is a promise
- Some seasons the business grows. Some seasons you just refuse to die. Both count.
One ask: Building something right now? DM me “BUILDER” on Instagram and tell me what it is and where it’s heavy. I read every one — and the best ones are becoming a future episode.
Connect:
Instagram: @coachcodysmith
Gyms: @virtuousgymwa · @virtuousfitnesssouth · @virtuousgrappling