Steve Conca is the owner of Conca Sport and Fitness since 2009 in West Springfield Massachusetts. His business is a customer-based business that deals with fitness and athletic performance and recently has expanded to a post-rehab, helping people get back to playing. 

Evan Knowlton is a physical therapist that studied at Springfield College in an accelerated seven-year program getting his doctorate in 2017. He works in health patient orthopedic settings, currently working in an independent practice in Keene, New Hampshire. 

1. What is your inspiration for coming into the field?

   • Two things, one I was always an athlete that was constantly searching for help to become better, and back in the 90s strength and condition wasn't as prominent as today but I was very fortunate to have a high school that had a strength and conditioning program that was unique at this time. Fast forward to college, I studied exercise science and at that time there was no profession in the private sector. I was working part-time at a health club where I witnessed what commercial business was all about, and I noticed that nobody could really help them without paying a very high premium. And I always thought that so many more people need help and if I could do that in a more affordable structure I could help and serve more people.    

2. What was your career path, education, and journey here?

   • I think education is maybe 30%, yes you have to have the background, the sciences, and you have to know and understand anatomy but at the end of the day it's all about customer service and making sure you're doing the right thing business-wise, and that is very tricky because they don't teach you that in school, you get that from mentoring other people and gaining knowledge from them and formulating your own plan. You definitely need the academic background to start but I think it's really important to have a mentor to help guide you because it's very difficult to do it on your own. 

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3. Can you share a little bit about the day in the life of Steve Conca? 

   • I try to practice as much self-care as possible for myself because it's part of the routine and what we do. My day will start out with a workout, then it's usually client's first part of the morning and some administrative work in between, and more clients mid-afternoon. I try to structure my day around my kid's needs as well. 

4. What do you wish you had known before you entered the field?

   • I wish I would've known how to run a better business, I knew what I was doing on the technical side of things but knowing how to run a better business, managing numbers, and being able to manage people better is something you don't learn in exercise science. Taking more business courses, doing more mentorships, and getting a coach early on, can prevent you from failing in certain areas. Getting this advice early on and not waiting for yourself to struggle is key. For example, sports training is the same thing, staying proactive with your health or that will catch up to you later on. I think business is the same way, you could be successful in business but if you're not running the business correctly and managing the things that matter, that will come back and hurt you later. 

5. What do you love about your work?

   • The gratification of helping people that really want to be helped and knowing that you can help them. To build that know, like, and trust, I want them to get to know me and trust that I'm going to take care of them like a family member.

6. How did you grow and create a successful business?

   • I was very fortunate to have some very great coaches, that shared the same philosophy of treating people as I would want to be treated, and I think if you do a good job with word of mouth that is super important because it resonates and spreads very quickly. I think there are a lot of different factors but the most important is being a kind and genuine person that people like and respect. Someone told me once the only certification that matter is "CNP" Certified Nice Person. It doesn't matter how good you are or what you do if people don't want to be around you, it is hard to be successful. 

7. What advice can you provide for someone considering your career path?

   • Take time to think about yourself in this career and make sure it's something you're truly passionate about, something that you're excited about. And your passions might change and that's okay but for the here and now if you really want to be a servant leader and help people through fitness, wellness, mentality, and more then you're 100% made to do that. And make sure you surround yourself with the right coaching group to help guide you in the right direction when you get started. Mentor under different people and see what it's like to work for other people first before you work for yourself because that will give you a whole new perspective on everything. 

8. Anything else you would like to share?

   • I would recommend journaling your thoughts, your dreams, and what you want to see yourself accomplish and put it on paper. Because there's going to be a lot of roadblocks in the way to get started on a career like this. Your going to hear a lot of negativity and the only person that's going to be able to plow through that is yourself. Self-doubt creeps up a lot in sports, business, and life and to really understand your why is important, what is going to get you up at 4 am and keep you up late at night. You truly have to love what you're doing and have a passion for it. If you write and document to make sure you are going in the right direction, that's going to help a lot. 

1. What is your inspiration for coming into the field?

   • I knew I could sit in a cubicle all day and for somebody that spent a lot of time in school I never actually enjoyed it-the process wasn't for me. Eventually, I had a series of injuries that landed me in a PT clinic and I enjoyed the atmosphere and the people, between the main therapist and the aid staff that was extremely active in helping and talking with patients which is an atmosphere I enjoyed. When it came time to choose a path I knew I wanted to do physical therapy and I've never strayed since. 

2. What was your career path, education, and journey here?

   • I went to Springfield College which has competitive programs to get into. I was lucky enough to get into a program which was hard, I would say it's not for the faint of heart because it does consume seven years of your life. It's like med school junior in its own way because where the profession is heading which is the emphasis of doctorate education which means you are expected to be a doctor-level clinician. It took me seven years to graduate from Springfield College where I began to do three different rotations in three different settings. One inpatient setting, one outpatient setting, and one neuro base setting. I think the unique and cool thing about PT is you graduate with thirty other PTs and none do the same thing because of the variety of fields within PT. I choose the outpatient route with a heavy emphasis on neurological.  I have formed myself into my own kind of business and being able to work for myself allows me to have a hybrid approach and offer a different setting because who I am as a person led me to this place. 

3. Can you share a little bit about the day in the life of Evan Knowlton?

   • It ends up being a nine-to-five schedule and I've gained more flexibility as I gained more experience. As a new grad, you expect to work full days every day of the week. I've gotten to the point where I start at nine and see around five to seven patients a day and I've set myself up so I can see each person for a one-hour session which is not normal for the profession. There are, depending on the setting you choose different expectations with hours. If I see twenty patients a week around fifteen of them will be returning clients and five will be new evaluations. Evaluations are where I get the history of the patient and assess the process, and I find that process never ends because each visit is an assessment and intervention at the same time. You are still seeing how the person responds and see what could be a limitation or a door opening for greater growth or limited rehab. I say I spent my whole day solving five thousand-piece puzzles. 

4. What do you wish you had known before you entered the field?

   • As much as there is individuality in each patient, there is individuality in physical therapists out there. While you have to have the assumption that most are trying their hardest and doing their best, there are some people that think it is a simple job, not everyone has the same investment in the profession.  You have to be the best you can be along the way and that can be a taxing experience. It's an ever-growing educational experience, it's not just seven years of school it's thirty-seven years of schooling because you're constantly learning through your entire career. You learn the basics in school but you have to intentionally make yourself a good therapist every day you go to work. 

5. What do you love about your work?

   • Teaching people about themselves, whether that be this is your exact anatomy or this is a theory of physiology. I enjoy getting to know people through the sharing of knowledge. My interest in anatomy is something that fits well into my profession. Being able to explain anatomy in a way that helps people is something that is rewarding and people are genuinely appreciative of that. Also making good connections and meeting great people through my profession which is a unique way to engage with humanity. As a provider but also a member of the community you never know who you are going to meet and have enriching conversations. You get to talk and connect with a lot of different people which is something I enjoy.   

6. How did you grow and create a successful business?

   • As I said from the beginning I want to build a base of past happy customers and I went them to go out in the world and when they bump into a friend that complains about his shoulder they say, "Oh, I know a guy'. I want to be the guy that genuinely helps people and is good at his profession. 

7. What advice can you provide for someone considering your career path?

   • I would advise keeping your mind open, and aware of all the different settings that this career can take you in. If your athlete minded but you go into cardiac rehab and that might work better. Being open to shifting and adapting in those ways. Also, don't shy away from learning experiences along the way outside of school. I would recommend taking the school work seriously but also taking other learning experiences seriously because learning is cool. The process of education never stops serving you in your field.   

8. Anything else you would like to share?

   • I think this is a great career to be in, it offers a lot of opportunity. It's forever changing, for example, you will spend time in clinics doing observation hours and when you graduate you know what to expect but it might be drastically different. Understand that you have to fall in love with concepts and the atmospheres more than the nuts and bolts of the thing as it exists now because it's going to evolve and change, if you accept that adaptability you'll fit right in. 

• Through this interview, I saw the importance of having a mentor or coach that can help you learn when opening a business or pursuing a career path. 

• I saw the importance of being a kind, fun, respectable, and trustworthy person that your clients can trust and feel welcomed and motivated in the environment you create. 

• The enjoyment of building community and building a business.  

• The education involved with becoming a Physical Therapist is significant and a rigorous and long process 

• Constantly learning through your career because each patient is unique and there's only so much you can learn in school.

• The wide variety of settings you can choose and develop your career into after schooling.