Fire Me Friday

Hosted by Scott & Alli

Business EntrepreneurshipInterviews guests

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Latest episode

Oct 2026

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EN-US

About the show

Welcome to our podcast where we share our stories, lessons, frustrations and triumphs in running a service business. We will also give you some of our best tools and tactics for living your best life. Why Fire Me Friday? Every Friday, we fire ourselves so we can come back Monday morning with a new perspective. We always want to “earn” our position as owners, leaders and as trainers! Co-Hosts, Scott Norton (Founder/CEO) and Allison Allen (COO) of AXIS Personal Trainers, bring you an unedited and unscripted conversation each week with a glimpse of how business decisions are made, the many mistakes they have made over the years, and ways in which they help their team and their clients thrive. AXIS, located in Menlo Park, CA, is one of the premier personal training and restoration facilities in the country. With a partnership built on trust, dedication, and a continuous drive to be better, Scott and Alli have a successful business that is thriving over 30 years after its inception. The valuable experience gained through the economic downturns of 2001, 2008, and most notably 2020, is priceless. The many challenges and lessons learned have given them the knowledge and skills necessary to build a team and a business with a strong foundation to succeed through the good times and the bad. Both continue to see personal training clients and focus much of their time on helping to develop their team members, as well as researching and experiencing the latest in health, wellness and longevity.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

October 9, 2026Episode 204 min

Thank you!

Celebrating the 30 year milestone was better than we imagined. At the top of your game is when you need to be the most paranoid and press on the accelerator.

October 2, 2026Episode 1916 min

Success Secrets: 30 Years of AXIS

Tuesday we celebrate our 30th year in business. Today we share some of the most important things we have done to continue to be successful. Thank you to our amazing team and community (past and present) for 30 years of AXIS! #axispersonaltrainers #30thanniversary #smallbusiness #gymbusiness #fitnessbusiness

September 25, 2026Episode 185 min

Why We Don't Do Reviews - and what we do instead.

We meet 3 times/year with each team member to check in, discuss goals, progress, etc. Today we're sharing our process, why we don't do standard annual reviews, and how we have continued to improve the experience and value for our team with these meetings.

September 11, 2026Episode 177 min

Don't Take Advice From Those Who Haven't Done It!

Who you listen to matters. There are plenty of people out there who will give you advice about your business. Listen to the ones who have done it themselves, who have failed, who have succeeded and who will admit their mistakes and share their lessons learned.

September 4, 2026Episode 1610 min

From The Vault

Please enjoy our first podcast episode that we recorded from a conference. The Vault was a great mix of interesting speakers and interviews with actionable business operations ideas. It gave us the opportunity to get away and work on the business, rather than in the business.

August 28, 2026Episode 1512 min

Redefining Excellence

We have spent the last few weeks implementing and iterating on our AXIS Academy. What started as a one week training program, then a 4 week Academy, has now become 6 weeks of immersion in our culture, systems and standards, all led by our most experienced team members. We are learning to step back and let our leaders lead.

July 24, 2026Episode 1412 min

Team Meetings

We usually debrief after our team meetings - how did it go? How was our communication? What we thought was effective, positive, etc... today we saved that for our podcast listeners. We generally get the whole team together about 3 times per year to discuss the current status of the business, where are, and where we are going. Our meeting this week was truly one of our best. Please enjoy this unedited glimpse into the topics we discuss in our team meetings and the strategies we use to improve our business.

July 17, 202611 min

AXIS Academy - What is Old is New Again

To succeed, you have to put in the work. There are no short cuts. Keep learning everyday. Today we are talking about the AXIS Academy and the path of our continuing education program over 30 years.

July 3, 2026Episode 129 min

Operations & Leadership

Today we discuss a recent conference we attended on gym operations and how we continue to learn best practices and empower our leadership team.

June 26, 2026Episode 115 min

Know Your Demographics

How to communicate is essential - this is one of the most important things for anyone in any field to learn. Understand who you are talking to. A high school locker room is not the same as a top tier personal training facility.