One Day, One Job » fitness

Athletes’ Performance

Willy Franzen — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:50:25 +0000

One essential part of the job search that is rarely mentioned is working out. You won’t often read about it career advice books or have your college’s career counselor advise you to get a gym membership, but I think that it’s extremely important. The self-discipline required to stay in good shape is the same that is required to land a job. Beyond that, the gym provides a good break from job searching and can even be a decent place to do some networking. But what if you’re a professional athlete? Going to the gym has a completely different meaning in relation to your job search—it’s absolutely essential. The problem is that most gyms don’t cater to athletes. They cater to people who are trying to lose a few pounds, socialize, or watch tv while “working out.” Athletes’ Performance is a different kind of gym. They aim “to provide the finest methods, specialists and facilities seamlessly integrated to efficiently and ethically enhance [their] athletes’ performance.”

How Will You Perform?

Athletes’ Performance has taken a scientific approach to training that is built on three core principles: improving performance, decreasing injury potential, and motivating through education. They currently have locations in Phoenix, AZ; Gulf Breeze, FL; and Carson, CA with an extremely ambitious plan to “roll out 125 sites over the next five years in 25 key metropolitan areas.” Obviously that kind of growth can’t happen while only catering to pro athletes, but I’ll bet there are plenty of non-professionals who would pay a significant premium to work out and train like they’re pros. Niche gyms are a growing market, and Athletes’ Performance seems to be well positioned to take advantage of the fact that not everyone is happy with an elliptical machine and some free weights. If you’re intrigued, you should check out jobs at Athletes’ Performance. Most of their “entry level” openings are located in Frisco, TX for what must be a new location. These positions include Performance Consultant (Sales), Performance Nutritionist, Performance Physical Therapist, and Performance Specialist. You can apply online for these jobs, but you better have a background in sports.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Would you train at a gym like Athletes’ Performance?

Sony Pictures

Willy Franzen — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:00:22 +0000

I’ve never really understood the idea of the “Summer Blockbuster.” Why would you want to sit inside and watch a movie when it’s nice and hot outside? I guess sometimes it gets too hot, and sometimes it rains, but I’d rather be outside. If you disagree with me, then you’re probably a big fan of Culver City, CA’s Sony Pictures. They’re in the business of producing, marketing, and distributing entertainment, and you’re probably familiar with some of their recent an upcoming releases like: Julie and Julia, Angels & Demons, and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. They’re also responsible for Seinfeld. Since I’m not much of a movie buff, I don’t know if anyone actually cares what production house puts out a movie, but I do know that Sony Pictures’ end products seem to pretty darn good—they even made my favorite movie (about the outdoors, obviously), A River Runs Through It.

Picture Yourself at Sony Pictures

Sony Pictures is obviously part of Sony, but there are also a number of distinct businesses within Sony Pictures. There is the Motion Picture Group, which has multiple labels including Columbia Pictures, Screen Gems, and Sony Pictures Classics. Then there’s Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, which brings feature films along with tv episodes right into your home. You also have Sony Pictures Television, which is actually responsible for those tv episodes and other tv programming, and Sony Pictures Digital Productions, which does visual effects and animation. If you’d like to work in any of these businesses or the Corporate arm of Sony Pictures, then you’ll need to head over to SonyPictures.com. It’s not a particularly great Careers site, but it gets the job done. From there you can check out all of their posted jobs, where you’ll see entry level opportunities like Financial Analyst, Global Ad Sales & Digital Media Coordinator, Marketing Assistant, Fitness Assistant, and Data Security Administrator. You can apply for any of the jobs with Sony Pictures online, and although nothing appears to be directly related to movie production, I’d bet that those jobs don’t just pop up on their job board all of the time (read: try networking).

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite movie to come out of Sony Pictures?

Fitbit

Willy Franzen — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:12:17 +0000

Have you ever tried using a pedometer? It’s a neat idea, but it’s not very useful to know how many steps you’ve taken. To get a sense of how many calories you’ve burned, you have to do some calculations, and it’s pretty likely that whatever you calculate will be far from accurate. As technology continues to improve, we’re going to see more and more devices that provide data about our every day lives. The pedometer was the start, but things are going to get better and better. Fitbit is an impressive next step (pun intended!). We found out about them from Lifehacker’s list of Top 10 Up and Coming Products, and we’re pretty impressed. Fitbit automatically tracks your fitness and your sleep and then uploads the data to your computer wirelessly. They’re a startup that just launched at the TechCrunch50 Conference this week, and now that they’re out of stealth mode they’re looking for new people to join their team.

Are You a Good Fit for Fitbit?

Fitbit (which is the device and the company name, we’re talking about the device now) is based on an accelerometer like you’d find in the Nintendo Wii controller. It’s able to measure all kinds of data about your movement during the day. It then sends this data wirelessly to your computer when ever you come within close enough range. Web based software on your computer makes sense of the data and gives you insights into how you’re doing in terms of fitness.

Here’s a video with Fitbit founder James Park that will give you all the details about what Fitbit does:

There’s still a lot more that we’d like to know about the Fitbit, and we’ll probably have to wait until closer to December, when they officially release the product, to get all of the details. So what about jobs with Fitbit? There’s not a lot of info, but their About page says that they’re looking for talented people in software, hardware, marketing and business development. Early stage startups can be very entry level friendly, so this could be a really great chance to get in early on something big. We don’t know if Fitbit’s team is any bigger than their two founders right now, but you might as well consider joining them.

We can’t for the life of us figure out where Fitbit is actually located (edit: we’re now pretty sure that they’re based out of San Francisco, CA), but if you’re moved (pun intended, again!) by their product, reach out to them at jobs@fitbit.com. They’ll probably be thrilled to hear from you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Fitbit.com
About Fitbit (Job contact info here too)
Fitbit’s FAQ

Speaking of cool gadgets, we won the iPod touch in The Talent Buzz’s guest blogging contest with this guest post on using Twitter for networking. That means that we’ll be giving away an iPod touch in the coming weeks. We’re still figuring out what kind of contest we want to run, but we’re open to suggestions in the comments section or via e-mail at info@onedayonejob.com.

Equinox

Willy Franzen — Fri, 16 May 2008 13:08:37 +0000

The time after graduation is perfect for rest, relaxation, and taking care of the things that you’ve ignored in college, for instance, your bank account or your waistline. In January we offered up Mint as a company that has entry-level jobs and a product that will help you manage your finances. Today we’re going to look at Equinox, a company that operates full-service fitness facilities in New York, Illinois, California, Florida, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, and also has quite a few career opportunities at the entry-level.

A Fitness Lifestyle Brand

Equinox, started in 1991, has “developed a lifestyle brand that represents service, quality, value, innovation, attention to detail and results.” They offer a wide array of products and services, including strength and cardio training, group fitness classes, personal training, spa services, apparel, and food/juice bars. The difference between Equinox and other gyms is the way that they do things. Equinox is upscale in every way. Just look at the right sidebar on their Press Page – recent celebrities spotted at Equinox locations include Hilary Swank, Renee Zellweger, Matt Damon, and Barack Obama. Ok, so who cares if celebrities work out at a health club? They may need to have nice bodies, but are they really physically fit? Well, fellow One Day, One Jobber Amy happened to have a membership at an Equinox club two summers ago. She was often working out next to members of the great Chicago Bulls championship teams of the 90s. So, yes, when it comes to working out, Equinox clubs are the places to be.

Winter to Spring, Summer to Fall

Although the following are full-time, year-round jobs, an equinox represents the change of seasons, which is a perfect metaphor for the life changing decisions that joining (or working for) an Equinox club can initiate. Equinox takes fitness seriously, so a job with them is a lot more than picking up sweaty towels and wiping down equipment. They have a number of job opportunities for new college grads across the country. The best way to find a job listing at Equinox is to use their job search function. Current offerings that appear to be entry-level include: Membership Advisor (Westchester, NY; Long Island, NY; Aventura, FL; Newport Beach, CA; San Francisco, CA; and New York, NY), Assistant General Manager (Dallas, TX; New York, NY; Long Island, NY; Los Angeles, CA; and San Francisco, CA), Sales Advisor (Boston, MA), or Personal Trainer Tier 1 (Westchester, NY; Darien, CT; Miami, FL; Vienna, VA; Long Island, NY; Los Angeles, CA; San Francisco, CA; Boston, MA; New York, NY; and Chicago, IL). These positions require varying levels of work experience, but they’re all positions that a new grad could fill. If you’re interested in being a trainer, but don’t have the required background, you may want to look at the Equinox Academy for Trainers.

As you can see, there are Equinox locations all across the country. Whether you’re interested in getting serious about your own health (Equinox offers their employees complimentary memberships), or helping others to do the same, a job at Equinox is a great way to get started on a career in the world of physical fitness.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever worked out at an Equinox club? What’s it like?