From CrossFit to Code: Lessons in Building Businesses

When I opened Southeast CT CrossFit in 2007, was 26 years old. I had no idea what I was doing, and happened convinced a few people to pay me to make them do burpees at 6 AM. Fast forward to today, and I’m running Shoreline Web Solutions, building custom websites and applications for small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs). On the surface, these businesses couldn’t be more different. However, the lessons I learned from both ventures are almost identical.

Nobody Wants a Template

The thing about CrossFit that people didn’t always get was the workouts are universal, but the execution is individual. Everyone does “Fran”, which is a workout consisting of 21-15-9 repetitions of Thrusters and Pull-ups. Your version of Fran probably looks different than mine though, and that’s a great thing. Maybe you’re using a band for pull-ups, or maybe you’re scaling the weight. The point is, you’re getting what YOU need, not what some generic program assumes you need.

CrossFit is essentially open-source fitness. The methodology is published for free on CrossFit’s website. The daily workouts are free online and anyone can access the programming. That’s not what people pay for though. They pay for the coaching, the customization and for someone to look at their specific limitations and abilities and say “here’s your version of this workout.”

This is exactly why I don’t build sites using site builder platforms like Wordpress, Wix or Squarespace anymore. When a client comes to me, they don’t need a template with their logo swapped in. Most of time they don’t even need a CMS solution. They need a solution built for their specific business, their customers their goals. A restaurant in Old Saybrook doesn’t have the same needs as an electrical contractor in Waterford. So why would I give them the same website? I wouldn’t.

Every tool, application or website I build is custom. It usually takes longer. It may cost more, but it generally works better. Just like that scaled version of Fran works better than telling a 60-year-old grandmother to do the same workout as a 25-year-old former college athlete.

You Don’t Need Permission to Start

I didn’t wait for the perfect gym space and I definitely didn’t wait until I had every piece of equipment. I started simple with a small space in an old rundown mill (it had character), some barbells, and a website I built myself on Blogger.com (it was terrible, by the way).

My first few clients weren’t friends who were willing to take a chance. Even they thought I was crazy. Instead, it was random strangers who found me on the Internet. We figured it out together and enjoyed shared suffering. Some workouts were great, while others were disasters. However, we kept showing up and putting in the work.

It’s the same with Shoreline Web Solutions. My first websites weren’t masterpieces. But they worked, and they keep getting better with every project. My review response system that I am currently working on started as a Python script I cobbled together because I was tired of manually checking Google reviews for myself. Now it’s an actual product I’m trying to sell. You improve by doing, not by waiting for the perfect moment.

Systems Free You Up to Care

In the gym, I started to create programming templates, structured warm-ups, coaching progressions, and recovery protocols. This wasn’t to make things robotic. I did it to free up mental space so I could focus on what mattered most, which was my clients.

When you’ve got solid systems, you can actually be present. You’re not scrambling to figure out what workout to do today. You’re watching form, adjusting weights, and having conversations.

Now I build systems for the same reason. My review respone system automatically monitors Google Business Profile reviews and generates responses. Why? So I can focus on running my business instead of dealing with manual, repeptive tasks. The system handles the routine stuff. I handle the human stuff. Good systems don’t replace the personal touch. They protect it.

Working ON It, Not Just IN It

This one took me way too long to learn and cost me a lot in the process. At the gym, I was the guy who coached every class. Every single one. I’d be there at 6 AM, noon, and 6 PM and I was proud of that. I thought “Look how dedicated I am! Look how hard I’m working!” But I wasn’t building a business. I was building myself a really demanding job.

There was no time to work on marketing and attracting new members. There was no time to develop new programs and no time to think strategically about growth. I was so busy coaching classes that I couldn’t step back and actually run the business.

I am trying hard no to fall into the same trap with Shoreline Web Solutions. It’s so easy to say yes to every client project, personally handle every project tweak and jump on every support request. It feels productive. It feels necessary.

The reality is that if I’m always in the weeds writing code, who’s building the business? Who’s developing new products and services and who’s creating the systems that let the business run without me? The hardest lesson has been learning to say no to client work, especially projects I did not initiate, so I can say yes to business work. This means building automation tools instead of doing manual work and creating processes instead of being the process. It’s uncomfortable, unintuitive and it feels lazy at first. I think “shouldn’t I be doing more?”

Unfortunately, doing more IN the business isn’t the same as doing what’s right FOR the business. Sometimes the most important work is the work that doesn’t feel like work – the planning, the strategizing, the system-building.

I’m still learning this one and I still catch myself spending entire weeks just executing client work instead of building the infrastructure that would make client work easier. A least now I know what I’m supposed to be doing, even when I’m not doing it.

Community Compounds

My best marketing for the gym was never Facebook ads or flyers. It was Sarah telling her coworker about her first pull-up. It was Mike bringing his buddy to try a class. People who got results almost always became evangelists.

In my software business, it’s the same. I’m active in Shoreline United Networking not necessarily because I’m hunting for leads, but because I genuinely believe in building relationships. Half my clients have come from S.U.N. members who either hired me directly or referred someone who did.

However, building trust and rapport takes time. Once you’ve got it, though, it’s self-sustaining. That restaurant owner tells another restaurant owner. That electrician recommends you to another contractor. Before long, your network becomes your moat.

Sell Outcomes, Not Features

The truth is nobody joined my gym because they wanted to do Olympic lifts or Burpees. They joined because they wanted to lose 30 pounds, or get off blood pressure medication, or keep up with their kids. The barbell was just the tool.

It is the same with websites. Nobody wakes up thinking “I need a custom-coded site with responsive design and modern frameworks.” They wake up thinking “I need more customers” or “My website makes me look unprofessional” or “I’m losing business to my competitor’s better online presence.” The code is just the tool.

I learned this the hard way in the gym. When I talked about snatch technique and metabolic conditioning, people’s eyes glazed over. When I talked about fitting into their wedding dress or playing with their grandkids without getting winded, they paid attention.

Now when I talk to clients I try to lead with results. In general this seems to present a more professional image and tends to lead to conversations that allow me to discover business pain points. The technical stuff comes later, if they ask.

The Uncomfortable Truth

Both businesses taught me the same uncomfortable lesson: most people don’t want what they need. In the gym, people wanted abs. What they needed was to show up consistently for six months and fix their relationship with food.

In web development, people want a cheap, fast website. What they need is a strategic digital presence that actually converts visitors into customers. The hard part isn’t doing the work. The hard part is helping people understand what they actually need, and then trusting you enough to do it.

What I’m Building Now

These days I’m at the intersection of software development, education and entrepreneurship. I run Shoreline Web Solutions, building custom sites and AI-powered applications for businesses. I coordinate digital marketing for S.U.N. group, which helps local businesses connect with each other. I’m even going back to teaching and working on my Connecticut teaching certification because I miss being in the classroom. It all comes back to those early mornings in 2007, trying to convince people that they were stronger than they thought they were. The business changed. The lesson didn’t.