LAMARK: For me, success isn’t even about money. It’s about getting to do what you love and supporting yourself. Everything that comes after that is a bonus, unless your only goal is to make money. If that’s your goal, you’re going to find out that once you have a little bit, you want a lot. Then once you have a lot, you want a lot more. The critical part of a balance in life is choosing priorities. If you are trying to balance a family and a career, the choices are complex because both are important. Yet one has to come first. That’s where it gets tricky, depending on your circumstances.

BEN: Interesting. Being a high-level work-a-holic, I have personally struggled with balancing a relationship and my work/career. Got any advice for me?

LAMARK: I try to get most of what I need done while Doré is at work. Being a work-a-holic you’ll always find a way to get it done. That’s how you function. Scheduling time for each other always works. You wake up early and go to bed late so you can eventually catch up with any lost time.

BEN: Very nice. I will definitely have to keep these tips in mind! How long have you been an entrepreneur, in business for yourself? Did you ever have a “regular job”?

LAMARK: I have been in business for over thirty years. I worked for Motorola out of college briefly.

BEN: Have your business ventures all been within the fitness industry?

LAMARK: Yes.

BEN: What would you say has been the biggest challenge for you in business, and how did you overcome it? On the other side of that coin, what has been your greatest victory to date? And what would you say was responsible for the success?

LAMARK: I would say making the decision to close my gyms and relocate after fifteen years was my biggest challenge in business. I was able to overcome the closing and relocate by focusing my attention on my current home gym and online clientele. They both have given me peace of mind, allowed me to spend more time with my family and the luxury of being a stay-at-home dad for my 3 year old daughter Sky, which has been my greatest victory to date! I contribute my success to my experience and the support of my loving wife.

BEN: How do you find the motivation and the energy to get everything done? And how do you motivate others?

LAMARK: I never get everything done! Busy hands achieve more than idle tongues. You can never escape life, so I don’t worry about it. We have to stop waiting for everything to come together. You have to  become a goal chaser and get busy doing what you can with what you have.

     In order to get anywhere you must first know where you are now. I might add that it’s good to know how you got there, so you wind up moving forward rather than going back to where you’ve already been.

     When it comes to motivating others, I would actually state that I challenge people to get out of their comfort zones. A lot of times it works and a lot of times it doesn’t. I think it only makes sense to test your threshold. The roughest roads often lead to the top!

BEN: Great words and perspective, my man! You ever think about writing a book? You would crush that!