Taylor Norris, Cofounder Of LIT Method On Using Collaboration To Strengthen Your Business

When Taylor and Justin Norris first developed the idea of the Low Impact Training (LIT) Method back in 2013, they faced their fair share of scepticism and derision from fellow fitness professionals. “It was at the peak of popularity for CrossFit and bootcamp classes,” explains Taylor Norris, “and everyone thought we were crazy to open a studio with a method backed completely around training that was low impact.” 

HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) has been amongst the American College of Sports Medicine’s annual top five fitness trends since 2013 and, thanks to its promise to burn significant amounts of calories in a short space of time, has remained a firm favourite amongst fitness fans for years. Pledging to get participants fit with little more than body resistance, hone gym equipment and a yoga mat, its appeal is obvious – particularly within the context of the pandemic – but with its heavy reliance on high impact exercises (those that involve running or jumping) Taylor and Justin found that more people were coming to them injured, looking for an alternative. Despite the scepticism from their peers, the combination of resistance-based exercises in high-intensity bursts LIT Method provided proved just as effective at losing fat and building muscle as its jumping and running focused counterparts.

Having met at a gym, Taylor gained her own personal training qualification before joining forces with Justin to training with an injury prevention focus. Before meeting, Justin had suffered a life-threatening injury and been told to wave goodbye to his fitness. This, Taylor says, became the early blueprint for LIT Method: “After using resistance bands for physical therapy, he was inspired to include more of them in his training routine. Before I met him, I was struggling with athletic injuries of my own. Together, we began offering personal training sessions with a focus on our specific low-impact workouts.”

When they could no longer take on anymore one to one clients, they looked to the next step. “The natural next step was to find a better way to make the method accessible to more people — to create a home for it, to make a space of our own where we could reach more people in a group setting. That’s how the first LIT studio was born in 2016.” Since then, they have moved to a 5,000 sq ft. space in West Hollywood.

Like the rest of the fitness injury, though, when the Pandemic hit, they had to pivot quickly. Thanks to the appeal of their focus, their following has grown, they’ve successfully launched a LIT Strength Machine and now offer a full range of on-demand classes via their online portal, with clients all over the world and a growing community of likeminded followers. Known for their tagline, ‘we want to build you, not break you,’ those looking for alternatives to weight training or suffering injuries from home HIIT workouts have flocked to them in droves. As Taylor says, their “differentiator became [their] biggest strength” and is ultimately what has helped them build a successful fitness brand even in the midst of a global crisis. It’s also something she puts down to the successful partnership she has cultivated with her husband and cofounder, Justin.

Regardless of whether or not you work in the fitness industry or have a business partner or cofounder, Taylor and Justin Norris’ efforts in building LIT Method are testament to the fact that successful collaboration can have a profound effect on your business. Here are the ways you can use it to strengthen your own today.

Harness collaboration to allow you to play to your strengths and get the support you need for your weaknesses

Successful business owners know that understanding their strengths and weaknesses sets them up for longevity. It calls for them to continually cultivate objectivity and seek support for the areas of business that don’t come naturally to them. Norris explained that with LIT Method, her and Justin not only did this to build a strong foundation but to also free up more time: “I am the creative thinker; the dreamer and Justin is the financial and pragmatic thinker. When we first started LIT, we were doing everything but we quickly realized that there weren’t enough hours in a day.”

It was through this continual assessment that they were able to collaborate further by bringing more people onto the team. People who could strengthen the business in ways they themselves couldn’t. “As cheesy as it may sound, we tell people part of ‘getting LIT’ means letting go. Today, we still operate as Co-CEOs and every decision flows through both of us, but over the years we found that it was in our best interest to do the same by amplifying other people’s strengths and looking at the unique capabilities they could bring to the community we were trying to inspire.”

Use it to push you further

“We push each other to be better every single day. We are each other’s support systems but there’s no comfort zone in our relationship. There’s no falling into routines — personally or professionally. And we like it that way,” Norris replied when asked on how they cultivate collaboration within LIT Method.

The American Society of Training and Development (ASTD) found that having an accountability partner can increase your chances of success by up to 95%. This is because we often feel more obligated to fulfil our commitments to others than we do to ourselves.

Similar to the way it’s common to work harder in a fitness class than you might on your own, collaborating allows you to take advantage of another’s objectivity and encourages you to work harder to meet their expectations.

Use it to remind you of your passion

The American Bar Association stresses the importance of a support system in maintaining a long, successful and stable career. Following your dreams can sometimes feel like a lonely road and when you face adversity, it can be hard to remember why you started in the first place. This continual supportive communication, Norris stresses, is “the key to any effective business relationship,” and believes this has been her and Justin’s “biggest advantage” as partners and collaborators.  

“We are constantly communicating as we push towards the same end goal. Finding a partner who is as passionate as you are about your business will only bring forth success.”

Having collaborated throughout their business journey – from working as personal trainers to running a successful brand, overseeing a team and leading a thousands-strong movement – Taylor and Justin Norris have built a scale-able system of support that is even mirrored within their method itself. By understanding and reaping the benefits of collaboration backstage of the business, they’ve been able to ripple that mindset out to their clientele, finding that the group setting – collaborating and supporting each other in classes or via the online portal – has helped push people beyond their “self-consciousness and doubts.”

“Justin always says, “Strong alone but unstoppable together,”” explains Taylor. “And that is exactly the attitude we have fostered and will continue to uphold within LIT Method.”

To find out more about LIT Method, Justin and Taylor Norris and the projects they have coming up, visit their website or find them on Instagram.