Meet Nick Pags | Mindset Mentor & Perspective Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nick Pags and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nick, what inspires you?
I’m inspired by people who do amazing things in the world and serve people in a big way, who also put their mental, physical, and emotional health as first priority.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I got my start wiping down machines in the local gym when I would come home for college breaks. That really was where I learned to care about people in the workplace. My Dad owns a 3rd-generation family-owned pharmacy in The Bronx NY and built his successful career with the foundational belief that doing the right thing by your customers is always the right thing. My Mom was a volunteer-aholic. If there was a way for her to take care of others, she did it without ever asking for anything in return. As I built my career as a fitness professional, I leaned on these examples of how to take care of people and to always do right thing. It served me well as I became a gym owner in NYC and my success in the industry quickly grew. I found that I always had a gift for shifting someone’s day. I had a way of offering perspective that they couldn’t see. I used this in both my personal training sessions as well as group training settings. Quickly, my coaching became more mentally and emotionally transformational than they were physically. I realized that the fitness felt like it was getting in the way of the real work that was happening with my clients. That’s when I made the decision to put my fitness career on pause to focus on the mindset work. Before I knew it, I was speaking regularly at events, hosting group coaching sessions and working with people one-on-one. My work was routed in questioning rather than telling. At the first “prime-time” fitness class I ever taught, my boss at the time suggested I read a motivational book and steal some quotes so that I can motivate people during the class. Naïvely, I listened and came prepared with a long list of motivational lines. After the class, the feedback was brutal. Mortified, I was clear that telling people how to live their life at the age of 23 wasn’t an attractive or inspiring way to teach. It begged the question, “If telling them what to do didn’t work, how about asking them?”
In hindsight, I can tell you that this was the moment that changed everything for me. It gave me permission to question rather than tell, which I learned was a much more powerful way to invite transformation and change into someone’s life. It brought me back to my Counseling and Human Services days in college where I learned that powerful questioning is much more effective than simply telling, and I’ve stuck to that belief ever since.
That’s what my work is all about. I think it’s easy to look at what I do and think that I am trying to convince people of something or get them to believe what I believe. That is actually the opposite of what I am after. The intention of my work is to hold up the mirror for people. To give them a safe space to explore their own perspectives, beliefs (limiting or not), assumptions, and truths about themselves and the world. A space where they can answer the questions they weren’t aware they needed to be asked, to get the answers they didn’t know they needed. My intention is to support people in empowering and expanding themselves, however we get there together.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I honestly don’t know much about LA. I would always suggest the beach of course, but I think driving up the pacific coast is one of the coolest thing this country has to offer.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My family has always been my biggest support system since day one. They have given me the opportunity to create the life of my dreams and supported me along the way. I’m so grateful for that. My wife is now the most important supporter I have in my life. Choosing our relationship has undoubtedly been the most impactful decision in my life, and she unknowingly proves to me every day that it is the best decision I’ve ever made. I have specific coaches, programs, and books that have greatly supported me along the way as well. Leaders before me in the industry of personal development have inspired me to do the work I do, people like Dr. Eric Thomas, Tony Robbins, Kyle Cease, Eckhart Tolle, Ed Mylet, Zig Ziglar, Jim Rohn, and Les Brown to name a few.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamnickpags/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickpags/