Turning a passion into a successful business sometimes means figuring it out as you go along. Here, Sonia Hare shares how she turned her passion for fitness into a thriving personal training business based in LA. Now you can download the app, The Sonia Series, and train with Sonia, no matter where you live!
1. What advice would you give your younger self?
That you don’t have to “have it all figured out” before starting my own business. Feeling “lost” and being open to new experiences and learning new skills is how you grow, develop new skills, and ultimately figure out what makes you tick.
I was one of those people who jumped into what I thought was the “perfect job” immediately after graduating college at a glossy magazine company in NYC. When it started to feel “not-so-perfect” and unfulfilling, I panicked. At the time, I couldn’t see that this job was giving me life experience and skills that I would use later on in a career that absolutely fulfilled me.
As though someone above heard my thoughts, my entire team at the company was let go about a month after I started contemplating if the job and career path were right for me. I was disappointed, but somewhere deep inside my intuition, I knew it was a blessing in disguise.
From there I floundered for a couple of years. I move across the country from NYC to LA. I worked part-time as a receptionist at a hair salon, then at a chiropractic office, and I worked for a social media marketing start-up with 2 guys out of their garage. Again, none of these were right for me BUT I can honestly say I learned something valuable in every one of those experiences that I use today for my business.
“The best thing to do when you feel stuck is to take action. No matter how big or small. A few steps each day and you will start to forge your path.”
Now, I run my own business, doing something I genuinely love and am passionate about. And the funny thing is, most days I STILL feel like I don’t have it all figured out. But that feeling is what keeps me motivated to keep learning, growing, and building my platform.
So my advice would be to lean into that feeling of not knowing exactly what you’re doing. And start creating experiences and opportunities to figure it out. Start taking action. The BEST thing to do when you feel stuck is to take action. No matter how big or small. A few steps each day and you will start to forge your path. You can’t be afraid to fail or you’ll never learn how to succeed.
I constantly relate this message back to my workouts. Many people procrastinate a workout or can’t get started because they build it up in their mind to be “impossible” or tell themselves they won’t be able to do it, because it will be too hard. Some days, even I feel this way. But taking one simple action like putting your workout clothes on, or completing that first rep, or first set builds self-confidence, which in turn, inspires motivation.
Motivation doesn’t come from an outside source. It starts within. We have to set ourselves up to be motivated. When you do physically hard things each day, like challenging yourself in a workout, you also train your mind to be able to accomplish mental challenges and roadblocks. I often say in classes “it doesn’t have to look pretty, it just has to get done!” or “it isn’t supposed to feel good, it’s supposed to feel challenging. THAT feeling is your body getting stronger. That feeling is progress.”
2. We love your message of self-determination. Who was your inspiration?
Both my parents are entrepreneurs. They own fitness centers in Vermont and I spent my high school years working part-time at the front desk. I think that experience showed me that creating your own path and future was possible. I didn’t see my parents clocking into a desk job or reporting to a boss. They were the boss, and I saw all the challenges and rewards that came along with that role. I never thought of myself as someone who would start their own business but it makes sense because that’s what was modeled for me growing up.
I also think that when someone is genuinely passionate about what they do, there is a sort of natural confidence that comes with it. It’s inspiring to others, and people trust it. Social media can be misleading, but I think at the end of the day, people are smart and can differentiate between the real deal and the gimmicks.
On that note, I have to give my now husband some credit as well. One day when I was in between jobs and really struggling with what to do, he sat me down and said, “Why not do something with fitness and health? You are so passionate about it, you truly live and breathe the lifestyle, and it comes naturally to you.”
I said something like, “You’re not wrong, but how and where do I even get started?” There was no “roadmap” or clear path to get started. Again, I had that feeling like I needed to have it “figured out” before even starting! The first step is to just get curious.
3. How do you help others get started on their journey?
I’ll get into the details of what “getting started” looked like for me, because it wasn’t pretty, and I had no idea if it was going to work. To me, that is the lesson.
I started by asking a personal trainer at a local gym if I could take him to coffee. Lesson number one: If you don’t know the answer, find someone who does.
He had some great advice. I took some of it and left what didn’t feel aligned. He also warned me that I could start building my clientele from scratch on my own, or I could work for a corporate gym that would feed me clients but take a large portion of the profit. The latter would be easier to get started, the former would be difficult up front, but pay off more in the long run. I chose the hard path and got started on my own.
There were months when I was teaching spin at a studio in Santa Monica and my Uber ride cost more than I was getting paid to teach the class (at the time I didn’t have a car). I felt discouraged but also empowered that I had found my way in and started somewhere.
I then got one personal training client as a referral and she stayed with me for a long time until she finally moved away during the pandemic. Each new opportunity that came my way was momentum and a sign from the universe that I was in the right place. Once I had gotten comfortable with a few regular clients, things started to feel stagnant again, and I knew I had to switch things up. So I started connecting with people, taking classes, and getting out there. Opportunities don’t just find you, you have to be in the right place to receive them.
Connecting with others in the industry led to a great opportunity and from there, they kept coming. My personal training clientele grew, I got certified in Integrative Nutrition along with my PT certification, and then just as things were humming along and my income had increased to something I could actually live off of, the pandemic happened.
I thought I finally “had it all figured out” and then we went into full lockdown and nobody was allowed, let alone wanted, to enter a gym. At the time, I was totally discouraged and thought I would have to put everything on hold and lose all that momentum. In hindsight, I can say this was the best thing that could have happened to me and my business.
My relationship with a fitness studio I had been teaching classes at had come to an end, and I needed to figure out a way to continue to work with clients. The ability to go to gyms and classes was not there, but the need to stay in shape certainly was. I started teaching some classes on IG live and training clients via Zoom and in the park.
And this is when “The Sonia Series” was born. It was scrappy, and amateurish, but it was a start! And that’s the other lesson that I still am reminding myself… ideas don’t have to be “perfect” to launch them. There is always room to grow. And your clientele will grow with you! That’s been one of my favorite parts.
I just did a rebrand a few months ago and my clients were so excited to see it. It created buzz and got the attention of new clients. You can spend countless days trying to work all the kinks out ahead of time, making sure your project looks “perfect” before revealing it to the world, but this can cause analysis paralysis. And truthfully, nothing is going to be perfect out the gate. You learn SO much once you launch and see how people interact with your creation. That’s where you REALLY start to fine-tune and perfect your product.
4. How do you stay motivated, not sit back and say “ I did it!”
I am the kind of person who is never satisfied. I’m only as good as my next idea. When I launched my rebrand, I felt a strong sense of achievement for about a week and then I was immediately thinking about what comes next…
Now, this comes with its pros and cons because I can be my own worst critic and when it doesn’t feel like things are progressing I get discouraged. Social media can create a lot of toxic comparisons. Sometimes I find myself comparing my posts and product with other people in my industry and feeling like “I’ll never get there, I should just give up now.”
But they didn’t get there with that mindset! I remind myself that I’m only seeing the highlights. I have no idea what it took them to get where they are, or what they are currently going through. And there is ALWAYS room for someone new. They are not me and that is my superpower. So I try to be inspired by all the success of others rather than get discouraged. There’s always enough to go around. Abundance mindset!
Social media can also feel isolating and lonely (ironic because it’s called “social” media). You put all this content and messaging out there but you never know who you’re reaching. That’s also the power in it… “you never know who is watching”… They might not convert on the first view, but over time they may become a long-time member.
You have to just keep putting yourself out there. Keep taking the steps forward. You never know who is going to see one of your posts and get inspired to join. Some days those steps feel like I’m walking through molasses and it takes everything in me to post, and other days it feels like I’m sprinting at full speed.
Not all the days are going to be sprints, but as long as you do something each day to move the needle, over time all those steps add up. On days when I feel discouraged, I have to remember to look back and realize all I have accomplished and remind myself that the “limit does not exist.” AND that I’m worthy of all the more I want to achieve.
5. Anything else we should have asked? Your secrets to success?
What’s cool about my career is that my clients are a big source of inspiration for me. I have received amazing, emotional messages from clients about how I have changed their lives, given them confidence, helped them walk down the aisle at their wedding, get in shape, changed their relationship with food and their bodies, and believe in themself.
I put a lot of work into what I do but it can also be incredibly rewarding. Something I heard once that really stuck with me was to celebrate all the “no’s” or the failures along the way because they are signs that you’re one step closer to success. It’s all part of the path to being a successful entrepreneur. It means that you’re actually taking action, putting yourself out there.
Most people choose to stay “safe” and comfortable but you’re taking risks and that’s admirable. Hearing “no” or trying to launch something that doesn’t work right away will make you that much more powerful in the long run. Another opportunity to learn and sharpen your craft. I’ve been ghosted by clients, told I didn’t have what it takes to teach at some studios, felt like all my work was for nothing, but if I let any of those moments stop me, I’d never have gotten where I am today.
And guess what? I still experience failures and roadblocks. I still don’t “have it all figured out.” But I’ve learned that that’s the key to success. The moment I pretend I do, I stop growing.
Bio: Sonia Hare, originally from Vermont, lives in sunny LA with her husband. She is the founder of The Sonia Series, an online workout and nutrition membership, which just became an App! She likes to think of it as your “pocket personal trainer”. She trains a few private clients in person out of a studio in West Hollywood and coaches clients in holistic nutrition virtually. She is excited about growing The Sonia Series to spread the message that health and wellness don’t have to be complicated. With proper guidance and a method that’s backed by science, all it takes is a little consistency.
Follow Sonia:www.instagram.com/soniahare.fit
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