We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jacob Oak. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jacob below.
Hi Jacob, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?
We glorify finding your purpose as if it is an easy task. I think the hard truth about finding our purpose is that it’s actually a lot of hard work and can be quite uncomfortable at times. From an early age, I have always been one to question things. When I was younger, it actually made a lot of people upset, but as I have gotten older and understand social settings a little better, I have learned how to develop it into a tool that I now look at as curiosity.
For the majority of my life, I asked “why,” especially during difficult times; parents’ divorce, struggles with being overweight/body dysmorphia, issues with feeling like I didn’t belong in social settings, always having a hard time keeping up with other people in the fitness arena. I used to ask people and myself “why” all the time. Why me? Why them? Why not them? Why is this so hard?
As I grew up, this tendency to ask “why” allowed me to dig deeper into conversations with friends, parents, partners, mentors, etc., and allowed me to grow rather quickly as a professional and entrepreneur. I always knew I struggled with doing things I wasn’t super passionate about, but it was not until I had a mentor give me a piece of advice that allowed me to start the path to truly finding my purpose.
They said, “Jacob, the best way to figure out what you want to do with your entrepreneur journey is to think about what makes you upset in this world and work your hardest to solve that issue.”
For me, I thought back to all the spaces I felt like I was left out of, excluded or abandoned from, etc. I wanted to never feel those things again, but I also didn’t want other people to feel those things either. From there, it was a matter of finding a means to ensure that I could live out that purpose.
Another piece of advice I received about this topic was to try as many things as possible and figure out what I didn’t like before being focused on one thing. So I did that. I’ve had numerous jobs, been a part of a variety of clubs, tried different sports, etc. Some things were quicker to fall off my list than others, but the endurance sports realm (running, biking, skiing, etc) in particular has always been one of the main staples in my life that I have used to work through my mental battles and find what my purpose looked like. For me, it has been one of the only things I have stayed focused on for the majority of my life.
Once I had that narrowed down, it was a matter of putting my purpose to the test and building a business and life that allowed me to focus my time on creating safe communities for individuals who typically feel as though they are excluded from the endurance or even fitness world. Space so that they can utilize the community and exercise to work through whatever it is they need to work through.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
My name is Jacob Oak and I am a personal trainer and run coach in the Minneapolis, Minnesota area. I work about 50% of my time in-person with clients and the rest of my time online crafting training plans to help endurance athletes reach their goals. My ultimate goal is to create safe communities and spaces for endurance athletes to enjoy their journey. In the process of that, I also help individuals unlock their true “why” in their sport so that they can understand what is truly most important to them. I’ve found that a lot of times, endurance athletes are using the sport to run away from something going on in their life. I know I’ve been there numerous times.
All of this is done through my business, Oak Endurance. Where I work with athletes that want to stay healthy or perform better. Whatever that looks like to them. This is done through personal training, group strength classes, group runs, seminars for athletes and other coaches, gait analysis/mechanics for athletes, and online coaching. A lot of times athletes come to me because of a chronic injury/issue that they have been dealing with for a substantial amount of time, to break a certain time in a race, to reach a certain amount of training volume in a time period, or to move more effectively. What typically happens is that we start there and work towards a much more meaningful relationship with their sport that allows them to become better humans, stay lifelong athletes, and love their life and sport in a way they did not before.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
When I think back on my journey thus far, there are a few key things that I have helped me get to where I am at. I can’t take credit for any of these as I learned them from books or mentors. I can say though that the three items below are core values that have made a huge impact on getting me to where I am at so far.
The first would be ego. Understanding that the more you learn and the better you get at whatever your craft is, the less you know. This is important. I have seen so many other entrepreneurs let their ego get the best of them and it ultimately leads to their demise. Remember that there is rarely one right answer, you should always listen to other people’s opinions, and that you are not better than anyone else because you may have more knowledge, experience, or letters behind your name.
Second, is finding mentors/people you can do apprentice work underneath. I have learned substantially more by finding individuals who are further than me, taking them out to coffee or lunch, shadowing, etc. than I have from any textbook or class. Find people that are doing what you want and go learn from them. I’ve found that great practitioners/mentors are always okay with people shadowing them as they usually just want to help the next generation, but also because they have good ego levels and understand that they will also likely learn from you.
Lastly, remember that you have one life. You will die someday and this will all go by faster than you can comprehend. I love to tell people that “we get to do this.” Whatever that means to you. Try to spend as little time as possible doing things you do not enjoy doing.
Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?
My ideal client is someone who feels like they do not fit into the world as your typical “endurance athlete.” Whether that is someone who has issues with body dysmorphia, maybe feels like they aren’t fast or strong enough, or even someone who has tried tons of different things and can’t seem to stay healthy.
At the end of the day, I want to work with people who want to work towards their goals creatively, together. Individuals that are willing to discuss their wants, really dive into their why, and are not afraid to wake up every day and do the work they need to do to achieve whatever goal it is that they are chasing. BUT will also remember that no one is perfect and that there will be mess-ups and misses along the journey. That is what it is all about.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.oakendurance.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coachjacoboak/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacoboak/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Oakendurance
Image Credits
Jessica Knighton
