What should you look for when working with a specialist instructor?

For years and years, the health, fitness and sporting industries have all struggled with the same issue. An issue that comes to life when searching for and deciding which specialist instructor is best for you.

But before we dive into the nitty-gritty of the longstanding problem that stands before us, I’m sure we can all agree that the values we attach to the personal relationships in our lives and the need to maintain a good level of physical and mental health are probably greater now than ever before. So then why have we as a society struggled to truly value the importance of the relationships we hold with the personal trainers, yoga instructors, sports coaches or any other health and fitness specialists that help us on our journey toward achieving our goals no matter how big or small?

First and foremost, we’re spoiled for choice. With so many qualified and experienced specialists out there, how do we really know which one is best? What factors do we use to lead our decision-making process? Is it price? Or could it be the location? Maybe even the level of experience?

Unfortunately, when we conduct our searches for specialists in our preferred disciplines or sporting codes, we tend to generally prioritise one of, or all three, of those leading factors. But what we fail to do, and in our opinion, where we go wrong, is that we fail to make a decision based on the strengths and weaknesses of the personal relationship that may exist between ourselves and the specialist.

To date, the only real way one has been able to do this is to go through a solid consultation process prior to booking a session or, booking a few sessions, seeing if it works out and then either make a decision to stick with the specialist or move on which can be extremely costly with little return on investment. But while all that is said and done, how do we know if we’re truly getting the most out of it?

The strength of a great athlete-specialist relationship lies in the ability of the specialist to help the athlete grow as a positive, ethical and moral person, to be able to connect with the athlete on a personal level, to truly understand what motivates and hinders the athlete in their journey to improved performance and most importantly, to help the athlete develop their skills in their preferred discipline.

Great specialists understand that success without effective relationships produces athletes with ability, but with no personal growth. Specialists must understand their job isn’t just about physical progress, it’s about setting their athletes up for success and providing them with the tools to advance their journey.

So the next time you’re considering looking for a specialist to work with, ask yourself the following questions;

• Is the inter-personal relationship strong enough to help me achieve maximum performance?
• Does the specialist truly understand me, my background and my goals?
• What is their history of success?
• Does their coaching style match my learning style?

With all that said, you’re probably asking yourself, “where do you find the right match?”

By simply downloading Forte. Forte was created by athletes and specialists to help drive and optimise the high-performance relationship-building process between athletes and specialists in the health and fitness industry. Our mobile application offers you the opportunity to find the specialists best suited to you and your needs. Choose from a wide variety of highly qualified and vetted specialists that are ready to help you get the best results.