Moving Fast, Not Breaking Things

Innovations, especially in technology, demand knowing the difference between adopting and adapting. What does this have to do with The HFA Show 2026? Plenty.

“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” • Steve Jobs

“Move fast and break things” was a motto attributed to Mark Zuckerberg, who years ago pressed it upon his employees at Facebook (now Meta Platforms). The idea was to move fearlessly ahead with innovations that would disrupt established markets and introduce new technology that upended the traditional corporate model.

I’ll leave it up to others to debate what Zuckerberg has or has not broken, but his motto became a kind of Silicon Valley war cry. Tech leaders saw a landscape of bloated businesses that needed to be challenged (if not destroyed), and charged ahead.

This is where the importance of leadership comes in, as referenced by Steve Jobs. While disruption can create new markets and destroy others, it’s not always a zero-sum game. In an environment with accelerated technological advancement, business owners make critical decisions every day in navigating fast-changing market forces that can make or break their businesses. And sometimes innovations elevate an entire sector.

Adopt vs. Adapt

In the parlance of the tech industry, early adopters are individuals or organizations that embrace innovations before the mainstream. This means not only technology and hardware but also management concepts and best practices.

In business, being an early adopter brings great risk. Leaders need to be certain that they don’t move too fast and break their own business because their interior teams or customers aren’t ready to adapt.

For instance, Sony lost $1 billion on an investment in 3D televisions (the market didn’t adapt). Then there’s Zuckerberg’s company, Meta Platforms, which bet heavily on virtual reality offices and other products for Reality Labs, a decision made during Covid that lost the company $73 billion. In that case, neither the public nor Meta’s internal teams adapted.

Meta can afford these types of losses. You can’t.

“You need information that will help you make a smart investment decision—one you have to get right for your business to succeed. You’ll get that at The HFA Show 2026.”

The HFA Show—Innovations You Can Trust

Owners of fitness businesses, especially studio and club operators, don’t have billions at the ready to make up margins. When they make decisions on new innovations, they need to know that their employees and customers are ready and eager to adapt. And just as you have to avoid going too fast, going too slow to adopt innovations can be just as ruinous.

This is why The HFA Show is so valuable to decision-makers entrusted to make the right choice. The trade show offers exposure to the products and the manufacturers behind them. And this year, HFA will take the experience up a notch by featuring the first-ever Innovation Alley. This will be a section of the trade show floor dedicated to startups or companies new to the fitness world. Attendees will get hands-on experience with new products and services, some of which haven’t hit the broader market.

Beyond the trade show, the conference sessions offer lessons and advice on what does or doesn’t work when it comes to innovations in programming, systems, and business practices. If you ask, “Should I adopt a heavy AI-based billing and payments system?,” there’s a session for that. “Should I expand my pickleball courts, and if I do, how do I make sure I’ll make a profit?” There’s a session for that, too. Biometrics, staffing, franchising—the range of subject matter is not just relevant; to some attendees, it’s crucial so they can build an understanding of a subject on a real-world level. The sessions at The HFA Show deliver just that kind of knowledge.

Like Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs knew how to break things, but he also understood that successful leaders know when to slow down, do the research, and make strategic decisions that grow businesses and sometimes even entire markets.

You need information that will help you make a smart investment decision—one you have to get right for your business to succeed. You’ll get that at The HFA Show 2026.

Contributors

John Agoglia

John Agoglia has spent more than 30 years covering the fitness industry while staying closely connected to it on the club floor. He served as fitness editor at Sporting Goods Business and as an editor for Club Industry, reporting on the people, trends, and business forces shaping commercial fitness. Before, during, and after his editorial career, Agoglia worked in health clubs as a personal trainer and later in training management and general and regional leadership roles with brands including Equinox, Gold's Gym, Boston Sports Club, 92nd Street Y, and GymIt. He continues to cover the industry as a freelance writer and editor. Agoglia can be reached at StoryScaleConsulting @gmail.com.

Anne Marie Chaker

Anne Marie Chaker is a veteran journalist, professional bodybuilder, and author of "LIFT: How Women Can Reclaim Their Physical Power and Transform Their Lives" (Penguin Random House). She is also the co-host of LIFT, a new, live SiriusXM show exploring women, strength, and power, co-hosted with Pattie Sellers, founder of Fortune Most Powerful Women. Click to learn more about LIFT.

During her two-decade career at The Wall Street Journal, Chaker held reporting roles across the paper, from regional editions to the Spot News Desk during the September 11 attacks. She has covered politics, major news events, consumer trends, education, the workplace, and the defining sociological shifts of our time. Chaker lives in the Washington, DC area. She can be contacted at amchaker@gmail.com.

Jon Feld

Jon Feld has been writing for four decades. He has a diverse and varied background: editor for Club Industry magazine, publications director at Boston University, director of Content Development at Inc. Magazine, media business owner, and more. One thread has been a near constant for most of his career: He’s been writing for HFA since 1987. He can be contacted at jfeld@oncoremedia.net.

Julie King

Julie King is a freelance writer with more than 30 years of experience in the fitness industry. She’s worked as a content creator, personal trainer, group fitness instructor, fitness director, fitness/wellness coordinator, and health club manager. Since 2002, King has been a contributing writer to Health & Fitness Business. Her work has also appeared in the Journal on Active Aging, Club Solutions, Recreation Management, Campus Recreation, National Fitness Trade Journal, and Fitness Management. Holding a B.S. in journalism and an M.S. in kinesiology, King was a contributing author to The Fitness Handbook, published by Stairmaster Sports/Medical Products. She can be contacted at julie.king1@comcast.net.

Health & Fitness Business is a publication of

Health & Fitness Business (HFB) is the leading health and fitness industry publication. Published monthly by the Health & Fitness Association (HFA) and distributed free to the industry, HFB offers analysis of the opportunities, challenges, issues, and news that impact the industry.

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