I get a lot of email every single day – just like you.
Most of the time it is either awesome or mundane, but some get my attention for other reasons. I was going to share a few of the ones I have received in the last 10-days, but then I thought I would categorize them and let you know what will get you the best reponse.
Let me say up front that I am always happy to hear from you and I will always answer you, unless you are rude and then I will typically blacklist you from my email. But here is an inside look at how to get the best response back.
Be Specific…
The ‘if you could just tell me every single muscle a goalie needs to stretch and how to stretch it, that would be great, thanks’ email.
There are many variations of this email I also like the – ‘Could you just send me a detailed workout with all the exercises, sets and reps for my off-season training? Thanks.’
For a general question like this, I will typically direct you to both www.HockeyTrainingPro.com and www.YouTube.com/RevolutionCondition because there is more than enough info to get you going there, including complete stretching, strength and speed training workouts.
I think many of you know that in addition to spending about 15-20 hours per week running www.HockeyTrainingPro.com, I also own and operate Revolution Sport Conditioning, an athlete training studio in London, ON, so I spend 40+ hours per week there.
I wish I could pump out programs all day, but unfortunately I just don’t have that time and this is the main reason I pump out so much free content, so that anyone, anywhere can have access to awesome off-ice hockey training tactics.
Can you see how this is a little bit like asking the chef at your favourite restaurant to just stop by and whip up some dinner for you?
If you want the exact recipe, I have the online products available for sale. The prices range from $10 to $97 and you can access them anytime.
If you have a specific question about an exercise, or even a question about a specific body part, then I can give you a more specific answer.
Do What I Tell You…
The ‘I want to play in the OHL, NCAA, NHL (you pick the league) can you give me a program to get me there’ email.
I always answer this question with questions – Where do you currently play? What do you currently do for training? How old are you?
I ask these questions so I can have a better understanding of where you are coming from and how serious you are about getting there. Then I can recommend a course of action. I will still not send you a custom designed program, but I will give you a recommendation of where to start.
Then it is up to you to take the action. Stop looking for the short cut. I have been a fitness professional for 19-years, if there was a short cut, I would tell you. Start right away, don’t wait to be in better shape, to find a better team, to join the right gym. Start today!
Don’t fool yourself by creating reasons why you should not go after your dreams – many of you don’t even know you are doing it.
Here are some of my favourite ‘reasons’ – remember, these are from players who want to play pro hockey…
- I don’t have any equipment
- I am too busy
- I don’t know what to do
- I designed my own program
- my teammates don’t support me
- I am going to take this year off to train and get more fit so I will really impress coaches next season
- I have to take my Mercedes to the shop (yes, that is a real one)
- I don’t live close to a gym
- My apartment is too small
You get the idea – stop shuffling your feet and start taking steps.
Be Nice.
Finally there is the ‘you are a crook’ email.
It may come to a surprise to you but, the internet is not perfect. Have you ever, ever had your computer glitch? Well, sometimes the inter-webz can do the same thing at an in-opportune time, like when you are buying one of my programs.
Or sometimes you forget to bookmark the login page and then cannot find it again. Or sometimes you forget what your password is (I do that too).
But my point is, you don’t have to be mad at me about it. And you do not have to accuse me of being a crook. That actually hurts my feelings and I am sure you don’t mean it.
Like people who give another driver the finger when they are in the car – you probably would not do that if someone pulled out in front of you with their shopping cart at the grocery store, so don’t do it in your car or over email.
So, if you have an issue, that is not cool at all and I want to help get it fixed. Just let me know who you are, which program is giving you grief, the name that was used to purchase and register the program (sometimes they are different) and exactly what the trouble is. Then we can get it squared away.
So there is some email etiquette for you and some insider tips on how to get useful information. Like I said, I am always happy to hear from you and I do read and try to answer all of my email, we are in this together, so it would be most appreciated if you could ‘help me help you’ (channeling Jerry Maguire there) by avoiding a few of the pitfalls mentioned above.
Have a beauty day!
Cheers,
M
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