It’s the Golden Rule right? Treat others the way you’d like to be treated. I’ve prided myself on that. Funny however, that in both business and personal, I’ve been taken for a fool. Well, attempted anyway. Joke was actually on them.
I’d been with Orangetheory Fitness a few months and our studio was recently opened at this time. Post construction we needed a deep clean, and Ned had been using a cleaning crew in the New Providence location. That location is every bit of 50 minutes from our Middletown location. Ned wasn’t sure these guys would come down here, but he’d assured me what a ‘great guy’ he was and that he’d talk with him. Not knowing a lot of people in the Middletown area and Ned not having full trust in me yet, I left it to him.
Now, talking about kindness; Ned is probably one of the nicest guys you can meet. Sees the good in everyone. The man totally gives everyone he meets the benefit of the doubt. Personally, this is amazing. In business, however, well…you’ll see…
The cleaning crew did our post construction clean up as agreed and through negotiations with Ned, had taken the job to clean our studio weekly. These studios are no easy task; we have a wall of glass that needs to be cleaned on both sides and three walls of mirrors…every thing shows if it’s not done correctly. This is in addition to the regular bathrooms, showers, floors, shelves, equipment, and treadmills that generate a tremendous amount of dust in and around them. Being in a studio, like a gym, there’s DNA everywhere also. The number one reason that people leave gyms/fitness places is lack of cleanliness. Ned was confident that these guys were going to take care of him, after all, they’d been ‘his guys’ since New Providence opened.
Well, I didn’t see it that way. Hell, Ray Charles could see these guys were taking full advantage of Ned.
I was totally underwhelmed by their efforts and truly disappointed to come in and see that things weren’t touched, glass was spot cleaned and not done in its entirety, and so on. If I have to ask if the cleaners have been here, it’s a problem.
And that line was the subject of my email to them.
After just a few short weeks of being opened and dealing with the sub par cleaning crew; I’d taken it upon myself to address it. After all, that’s what Ned hired me for. To run the business, to deal with the operations, to control costs…and these guys were robbing us clearly; they just weren’t wearing a disguise while doing so.
The email outlined several issues and prior conversations of concerns. It was detailed and professionally written, until the last paragraph….I’d stated, “if you are going to continue to fuck Ned, at least take the man to dinner.”
I hit send.
Not long after, Ned called me. Like a lunatic. I’d not heard Ned raise his voice and I’ll tell you that I was actually scared that I was going to be fired. Ned was pissed. “What is wrong with you?! This guy is a business owner and you send an email saying he’s fucking me?!!? What were you thinking?!?!” He went on and on like this. I’d responded, with full confidence, “He is fucking you, Ned. And you’re paying him for it.” He says to me, “He may quit because he says he can’t work with you.”
“Let him know he’s fired. Because he’s not doing the work you’re paying him for.”
I’m pretty sure at this time Ned thought he may had made a mistake in hiring me. I looked like a loose cannon. I appeared unprofessional. Could I have handled it differently? Yes. Do I look back and wish I had? Not for a fucking second. This guy was a crook and he proved himself. It was awesome.
Ned continued carrying on and said that if I was firing this guy, then we would have to clean the studios ourselves. So we did. We did a much better job than this guy ever did and the studio thrived all while saving thousands of dollars.
It took a while, but I’d earned Neds trust back and he’d seen my determination. He’d also seen my commitment to him, the business and the members. Eventually, we shared some big laughs over this and it’s another story that Ned has told over and over. It could have ended much differently, but I took the risk and it was worth the reward.
They appreciatively refer to me as the Velvet Hammer now. Urban Dictionary says this: The Velvet Hammer is a woman leader or professor who can manage with grace and eloquence and still get things done. She is very tough on her underlings, but fair and brilliant.
It’s certainly nice to be appreciated. They know that I’ve got their backs and I know that they have mine. Ned is still the one that is the nicest, and I’m still the one that comes up from behind to handle things. At least he expects it now.
Gym Girl Dana 