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Daniel Speirs
Contact Me
NZIHF Role:
Tutor and Resource Developer
Talk to me if:
You know some great mountains to climb and how to do so when afflicted with vertigo and a touch of ‘nannaness’-yes it’s a real word. You could also contact me for a yarn relating to training and professional development including getting hold of additional information, resources or support or any feedback you might have on extra content that needs to be covered or future courses you’d like to see developed that will help you and the industry improve what it delivers to its consumers.
About me:
Born and bred in dirty old dunners (that’s Dunedin for the folks north of Cook Strait) and a loyal, if slightly misguided supporter of anything blue and gold. In my dreams I was the greatest All Black that never was, but mornings dawn with the reality that the only thing I can do better than Richie McCaw (he’s from Otago you know) is protect my ears from resembling vegetables! Aside from that however, I love the outdoors and most things with a physical element, so a combination of the two usually brings a contented smile.
Industry experience:
After completing a degree in Physical Education at Otago University it seemed a logical progression to enter the fitness industry, starting with a fitness consultant’s role at a gym in Dunedin. After a year or so of this (and a few too many Dunedin winters) I moved to Western Australia and worked in a very customer focused gym as a Personal Trainer for a couple of years, learning heaps from two wise gym owners (and a fair few clients) about the practicalities of training, supporting, understanding and in many ways ‘mentoring’ clients, to ensure their, and the business’s success. I then had a stint in Edinburgh as a Personal Trainer / Fitness Instructor at the Next Generation fitness club (valuable experience-hmmmm) before returning to NZ where I bought into a personal training business focused on recruiting, training, mentoring and managing personal trainers for a group of gyms in the upper south island. This bought me face to face with the realities of helping others (many of whom were unprepared for the realities of Personal Training) to become ready to run a successful Personal Training business. Its not easy being building and maintaining a Personal Training business but the rewards can be great, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed helping trainers on their way to realise this. It has also highlighted to me the need for a training course designed to provide students with nothing but the specific theoretical and practical skills necessary to be a great Fitness Consultant or Personal Trainer so they can ‘hit the floor running’ which NZIHF have done. Before working with NZIHF I worked for the industry standard setting body (Sfrito) to help design the backbone of the industry qualifications and encourage their use. The fitness industry has a product/service that few others can match for customer value yet in many ways it sadly fails to deliver which has always been a frustration. We need more good people working in it with a desire to help others realise and achieve their aspirations and by virtue of doing so achieve their own, and people (like the NZIHF crew!) willing to guide you on that path.
Education highlights:
A degree in Physical Education at Otago has lots of highlights (not always academic) but I found one paper in particular ‘inspiring’, Sports Sociology, which encouraged us to think critically about the role of sport in society. This critical thinking I’ve found to be a great asset and one I think really helps fitness professionals because all clients are unique and often you must think ‘outside the square’ to find solutions that fit them. To learn some skills to help run my business I completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration from Massey Universtity. While academic courses are extremely valuable I’ve come to find every session with a client, a student or trainer is in its way an educational experience that can be learnt from to keep improving whether its in delivering a better session or providing better support or guidance.
Recommendations:
Develop your critical thinking skills, ask questions, continually strive to be better at what you do and enjoy the process. Check out the info and articles on the site and let us know about others you'd like written
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