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With over 30 years’ experience, veteran educator and Innerva trainer Keith Smith says staff are your greatest asset when engaging older adults and people with health conditions.

When it comes to successfully working with older adults and people with health conditions, your staff matter more than anything else. You can have the most beautiful space and the best equipment, but if you don’t have the right people with the right skills, you won’t succeed.

Older adults and people living with chronic diseases are a unique demographic. Your instructors need to know how to connect with them, how to make them feel safe and how to build trust from the very first moment.

That’s why I always start my education sessions with an ‘empathy’ task. I create an avatar of a person who might use the studio. For example, someone who hasn’t done structured exercise for 30 years. Someone who feels anxious because of the typical images of fitness and gyms they see on social media. Someone who worries they won’t keep up. I ask instructors to imagine how it would feel to be that person walking through your door for the first time. Would they feel nervous, anxious, even scared?

Human connection matters

Of course, instructors need to understand the body, medical conditions and exercise science, but knowledge on its own is not enough. This group of users don’t care about your qualifications or CPD certificates. They care about how you make them feel, whether you make them feel welcome, valued and safe.

Think about someone who struggles to get out of a chair or doesn’t have the arm strength to get out of the bath. For them, exercising is about maintaining their independence, dignity and quality of life. That’s why empathy is vital. You staff need to understand their motivations, their lived experience and tailor their communication, coaching and encouragement accordingly.

Feelings drive behaviour

In reality, most of the decisions we make are driven by emotions. How your staff interact with these members will create feelings that drive their behaviour. Too often in our industry, we‘re so focussed on long-term goals that we forget about the moments – how members feel right now. And that’s especially important for older adultsand those with health conditions. From the welcome at the door, the smile and the wave to the reassurance that they are doing well and the goodbye at the end of the session, these small nudges give confidence and reduce anxiety. These are the ‘moments’ that change behaviour and help drive retention.

Too many instructors in our industry lack the confidence and capability for working with this audience. And very often, not enough is done to develop and mentor instructors in the workplace so they can successfully work with these customers and create the feelings that drive behaviour.

Support your staff

Operators need to view instructor development as a continuous process. It’s not enough to provide a training session and expect their behaviour to change overnight. Behavioural change only happens when instructors apply what they’ve learned and receive feedback, support and ongoing mentoring. The same patience you give your members when supporting them on their wellness journeys should be applied to the development of your staff.

So, my number one piece of advice to operators is this: choose the right people and mentor them. Don’t just pick the most knowledgeable person. Knowledge without people skills won’t work for this audience. You need staff who are warm, empathetic and able to build trust. Then support and develop them, because when it comes to it, your staff are what matter most and will create those moments that ensure your members come back.

Keith’s recommended reads:

• The Illusion of Choice by Richard Shotton
• Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth and Happiness by Richard H. Thaler and Cass R Sunstein
• The Experience Economy: Competing for Customer Time, Attention and Money by B. Joseph Pine II and James H. Gilmore