Cultivating Your Gut...
So here’s the thing about me: I am not a thrill seeker. I hate to
gamble, in every sense of the
word. I despise Vegas . I don’t purchase raffle tickets. I don’t play Lotto. I want to get what I pay for. I don’t enjoy roller-coasters. I have no interest in surfing, skiing, or
mountain biking. (Paddleboarding? Yes.
Cross-Country skiing? Yes.) I
have never indulged in illegal drugs (only the legal ones). I always thought I would climb to the top of
Half Dome in Yosemite with my son once he got
old enough. Now he is thirteen and I
have actually watched that cable ascent on YouTube. Don’t think that is going to happen now.
When I left the professional dance world to teach Pilates
all of my clients told me I needed to open my own studio. I had plenty of opportunity and investment to
do so, but I was terrified. Instead, at
28 I bought into a business, gained a partner, and my career began. It felt safe.
Five years later my partner wanted out to be a full-time mom. I was left alone steering the ship. I was certain in that moment that it was one
of the worst things that ever happened to me, but Bodyline was in the right
place at the right time. That is the other
thing about me: I consider myself lucky.
Business grew pretty easily as Pilates became a household name. Bodyline has survived for nearly 20 years,
hidden in I acquired a new landlord five years ago and my lease came up for renewal this past August. Against all rationality, he refused to negotiate with me on rent. I had no intention of ever leaving. I had no time in my life to deal with moving Bodyline. I think he was certain that I would re-sign the lease at the last moment, but here is another integral part of my psyche: I hate being overcharged for anything. (Don’t confuse this with being cheap.) I get great prices on cars. I bring water to the movies. I only shop at outlets and I LOVE CostCo! It made no sense for me to stay in a location that needed updating with no signage, visibility, or parking and pay over market price. Of course I did not realize at the time that it is nearly impossible to open a fitness location legally in
I spent the next six months consumed with finding a
location. The commercial real estate
game is very slippery. I do not have the
stomach for it. I am way too
honest. That’s what my realtor told
me! I had offers on many tables and lost
some locations that I cried about. I got
the opinions of everyone I knew on this place and that place. I sent pictures. I made pro and con lists. I measured.
Planned layouts. Phoned in many
favors in regards to permits —and I waited and waited. The place I really wanted had three other
offers for the entire space (6,000 sq feet; I only wanted two). They were not interested in me so I moved
on. While waiting on them, I lost my
backup location. I fell into
despair. My lease was approaching its
end. There were whispers of “Why doesn’t she just stay here?” around the
studio. I wondered if I had lost my mind
and was just being stubborn. I did want
to win—badly—but it was getting very risky.
The possibility of having to close for a period of time would have
mortally wounded me financially. Then I spoke to a client who gave me the
proverbial kick in the butt. Gary Gary
Time passed and I did find a location on
Pico. Again I negotiated, designed,
measured, photographed. It would be
brand new. It had high ceilings. It had parking. They would design and pay for the build
out. I really liked the landlord and he
liked me. It felt safe. Every day I asked clients, friends, and
family members what they thought. I
drove my realtor crazy as I
flip-flopped around. But the location
was just okay. And the price? Just
OK. Out of the blue I got a call about
the original location I wanted, 9171 Wilshire.
Their other deals had fallen apart; was I still interested?
I only had two months left on my lease.
I would have to be out of my studio before I could even have a deal
signed on 9171 Wilshire. My landlord was not playing nice. I was receiving certified letters every
couple of days about some small violation I had made. One time it was because a suction cup was
missing on the sign
in my door front. It
was clear I could not stay even a day over
my lease without severe financial and legal repercussions. Three other deals had already fallen apart
for this location. How would the owners
be to deal with? How much would it
cost? The space was completely raw and
would need to be built from top to bottom. Plus, I would need to find an interim solution if I were to
proceed. That meant a double move,
double headache, double stress. And how does one find temporary space? Meanwhile a lease on the Pico location was
drawn up, delivered, and awaiting my signature, but I was indecisive. It was driving me nuts. One day I was ready to sign, next day, not so
much. The stress was enormous and it
was affecting me in my work and with my family.
I decided to take a
risk. I passed on Pico, made an offer on the 9171 Wilshire deal and a
funny thing happened: my stress went
away. I got some good sleep. I stopped asking confidantes what they
thought. I just moved forward. Everything began to line up. The universe was working with me now. I found a fantastic temporary spot in three
days and signed a lease. They allowed me
to take possession early so my move was painless.. A neighboring business is allowing my clients
to use their parking lot. The parking
requirement in Beverly Hills Beverly Hills Wilshire Blvd.
I listened to Steve Jobs’s autobiography while
driving to and from the That is just not an available option for me: not
When I signed my lease my realtor proclaimed, “You went with your gut. This was the location you always wanted.” I knew she was right. It was. And I had my Oprah ” ah-ha” moment. My gut had been guiding me the entire time! I couldn’t “hear” it but I was being sent strong signals that I hadn’t picked up on. Just like getting a headache instead of feeling hunger, I had symptoms that were indicative of my gut not being right. I realize now that when I get stuck making a decision that that direction is not right for me. I don’t need lots of different opinions when the right option is in front of me. I am following my gut when I feel nervous but excited at the same time, not stressed out and depressed. I think it is like this for most people. We all have that inner voice . We just need to figure out what signals our bodies give us when we aren’t hearing it.
