Meet Laurel Roach | Passionate Fitness Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Laurel Roach and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Laurel, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
The most important factor behind my success is not one thing, but a contribution of a few things. Work ethic, resilience, leadership, and the desire to learn & grow. These are the areas that I am constantly assessing my performance in, and being really honest with where I’m doing OK, and where I suck.

There are plenty of people that work hard – the guy doing your landscaping, or the janitor taking out the trash works hard as hell. But what elevates a person in skill level and income potential is their ability to create VALUE and solve more difficult problems. Working hard is not enough.

Resilience is important because a million things can go wrong, and an entrepreneur needs to remain positive and enthusiastic in the face of constant problems.

Leadership is a big one. Leadership encompasses everything from the ability to lead yourself, to casting the vision for the organization, and getting the team to believe in a greater purpose behind their work. It’s finding what motivates people, inspiring them to be their best, and to communicate in an effective manner.

Lastly, the desire to learn and grow is essential. We’ve all seen massive brands fail (Blockbuster, Blackberry, etc) because they failed to innovate and pivot when something wasn’t working. A desire to learn is both the curiosity as a person to want to improve, but also constantly looking at your business for what can be improved, tweaked or optimized.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I believe what sets me apart from others is my ability to connect with people. I don’t have to TRY to do this — I just have such a love and passion for helping people. That could be helping an employee gain new skills and seeing them grow, or it could be changing the life and improving the health of a new member at my studio. I genuinely love every conversation, and I think I make people feel loved, appreciated and accepted. I’m proud of the impact that I have on the people that I meet, and what I’m excited about it leveraging that skill to be a better leader as I open my six new studios. If I can be a better leader, inspiring others to be better leaders, there is a positive ripple effect in the world. The health of the average American is absolutely heartbreaking at 60% + of our country overweight or obese, and now over 30% of children overweight or obese. I’m extremely driven and motivated to make a difference in this area.

I got to where I am professionally because I’m so passionate about everything that I do. I think that passion inspires others to want to join my mission and help make a difference too. It’s not easy to remain positive in the face of all the challenges entrepreneurs face on a daily basis but I believe if you have a true purpose and mission behind your work, you can more easily accept the difficult road you’ve chosen because it matters, and matters deeply to you.

In my mind, sure I could do a million other mindless jobs that might be easier, or less stressful, but at the end of my life, I want to know that I mad an impact on that world. That is what helps me to put the hard stuff in perspective and overall stay pretty positive. Some of the lessons I’ve learned are:

– Have the ability to lead yourself before you try to lead others. If you feel out of integrity with yourself because you know you aren’t doing the things you should be doing, you will struggle to lead others.

– Know your numbers! If you don’t make a profit in your business, you will fail. Cash is essential, and you can’t help anyone if you go out of business.

– Focus on your product. Make the product amazing. Talk to your customer. Continue to make things better and better.

I’d like the world to know about our brand – Alloy Personal Training – because I know we are doing things in the fitness space that others are not doing. The majority of people have no idea what they are doing in the gym. Alloy allows the average person to work with a personal trainer, gain the experience and knowledge they need for a lifetime of health – at a fraction of the cost of one-on-one personal training. We are opening six studios in the Phoenix market over the next few years, so be on the lookout for a location in your area coming soon!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would take my friends to some of the beautiful hikes in Arizona such as Pinnacle Peak or Camelback mountain. We might go on a mountain bike trail at Browns Ranch too. We have beautiful resorts here as well and I love places like Civana wellness resort to take some classes and go to the spa in Cave Creek, The Four Seasons Resort for amazing scenery and food, or Omni Montelucia.

Depending on the time of year I love the pool parties in town like at the W hotel, or maybe some of the nightlife in Old Town Scottsdale.

My favorite restaurants are Maple and Ash, Mastros or Toca Madera.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Absolutely! I have had so many mentors along the way that have helped me. My first mentors were my mom and dad who always encouraged me to be my best, and modeled hard work. Second was my boss at Oranje Commercial Cleaning, Ryan Stark. He wanted me to share creative ideas, challenge him and gave me a lot of autonomy. This was the first job where I truly saw my ability to make a difference and spread my wings.

Mike Arce, CEO of Loud Rumor and also my business partner has been one of my greatest mentors. I have watched his success over the years, and how much he has grown as a person and a business owner. He invests hundreds of thousands of dollars in masterminds, coaching and books. I’m also a member of his mastermind group, with about 200 studio owners that I can learn from, share strategies and that has been incredibly helpful for me. Mike is also just a great human being. We talk about philosophy such as stoicism, and challenge each other to be better and keep growing.

Lastly, I’m always learning from my team. They are the real superstars, and without them I wouldn’t have a business in the first place.

Website: www.alloypersonaltraining.com; www.trifitwellness.com

Instagram: @trifitwellness

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurelroach/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/grouptrainingphoenix/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/trifit-wellness-phoenix-2

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TrifitwellnessPhoenixAZ

Image Credits
Brandon Sullivan Photography