by admin | 19 Jul, 2025 | Andrew's Blog, Joyful Longevity
Perseverance is a powerful concept. All of us have used perseverance at least once in our lives to help us achieve something that we truly wanted deep in our hearts. Unfortunately, for most people, including myself, as much as we intellectually understand what perseverance means, what it requires, and what it can deliver in our lives, we don’t always let it do its work.
Perseverance works every single time, if we let it work. Perseverance requires no natural ability. Perseverance can never fail. Perseverance is available to every single person. Perseverance can help all of us create any outcome we would like. All of those statements are true. That being the case, why aren’t we all living the lives we are created for? Simple, we don’t let perseverance do its work. I need you to understand this idea very clearly; when you start in the process of creating any result you want, there are only two possible outcomes. You will either achieve it, or you will give up.
People believe that the two outcomes possible with any aspiration are success or failure. However, there is no failure if you persevere. There are lessons, modifications, and different approaches, but if you keep going, there is no failure, only the outcome you desire. The condition is that you allow perseverance to do its work. The definition of perseverance from a well-known online dictionary: continued effort to do or achieve something, even when this is difficult or takes a long time.
Perseverance is our servant, our employee, and our greatest ally. However, no servant, employee, or ally can help if you don’t let them work. In addition to that, all employees need certain things provided for them to work well; trust, training, purpose, and compensation. So, what does perseverance really need to work well? Simple; time, effort, perspective, and patience.
There is no way I would have ever played professional football if I hadn’t let perseverance do its work. It was 20 months between my first and second senior games of professional football. The only way I made it through all the rejection, heartbreak, doubt, fear, anger, frustration, and temptation to give up, was perseverance. I let it work, and it worked. It was that second game of professional sport which really started my career.
There is no way I would be the author of almost ten books today if I hadn’t let perseverance do its work. Over twenty years ago, I was working seven days per week in two businesses, and in almost $100,000 debt when I made a random decision to write a book. I believed it would be the ticket to help me live a life of meaning, joy, and abundance. I had no idea how to write a book, I had minimal time, and really didn’t know how long the process would take. Without letting perseverance do its work, I would not have survived the day-after-day struggle to find time, to believe I could write a book that would make any kind of difference in the world, or to find a publisher. Then after two years, with a publisher, I required more perseverance to see if it would sell and do what I needed to do to make it successful.
What perseverance delivered was beyond my imagination. Four years after starting this process, with no idea what I was doing, with just faith and allowing perseverance to do its work, I was able to retire from an 80-hour per week personal training career and get out of debt. All from the decision to write a book and allowing perseverance to do its work. Perseverance is the most powerful tool we all have, as long as we let it do its work.
It’s not all sunshine and roses, as I wish the same could be said for many other areas of my life where I didn’t let perseverance do its work. I gave up on playing the guitar far too soon when I was younger, and it’s something I regret today. I have lost many relationships because I didn’t allow perseverance to do its work in terms of building strong connections. Even today, as I am going through some challenges in my life, I am tempted to find a quick-fix and reaction-based answer, when the only way through is to let perseverance do its work.
I think I have made my point loud and clear. So, all I will ask you is, what area of your life do you know would be better, as you would like, if you just let perseverance do its work? I will leave you with that thought. To help, I would encourage you to listen to my podcasts from this week; When I stop fighting, with Daryl Dittmer, and The brain revolution, with Dominika Staniewicz. It works every time, and it will deliver everything you want, so, this week, why not just let perseverance do its work.
by admin | 5 Jul, 2025 | Andrew's Blog, Joyful Longevity
I think it’s fair to say we all want freedom in our lives. There are many things limiting and constraining us we would love to break free from. I know that is certainly true for me. Many of the things we are trying to gain freedom in will take time and work. However, ultimate freedom is readily available and a decision.
Where would you like to create freedom in your life? Would you like to be free financially so that you can do all the things you want to do? Do you want to be free from health challenges and limitations so that you can be the best version of yourself? Do you want to be free from conflict so that you can enjoy amazing relationships? Do you want to be free from stress and anxiety so you can focus on things that are important? I think it is fair to say we all want these things.
All of those things will require focus, hence why maybe you haven’t achieved all of them at this point in your life. However, there is one type of freedom, the most important type of freedom, that is ultimate freedom, and you can have it right now if you choose. So, what is it?
That’s a great question, and as always, I’m not going to answer it straight away, but see if you can work it out. I’ve already told this story at some stage; and it goes back to the time when COVID-19 first started to impact our lives. As a speaker, a large percentage of my income relied on me standing in front of people and talking to groups. At the start of 2020, I had many paid speaking gigs booked for the first half of the year. It represented speaking to many people and earning many tens of thousands of dollars in return. We all know what happened in March 2020 when the word started spreading about this global pandemic.
All of a sudden, panic set in all around the world. Places started shutting down, events were canceled, and consequently, every single one of my paid speaking gigs evaporated in front of my eyes, all within a couple of days. Did I feel free at that time? Not only did I not feel free, I felt imprisoned by uncertainty, by anxiety, by all the things I could no longer do. In that moment, fear rose in my body, anxiety hit me, and I slid down the wall and dissolved into a massive and earth-shattering tantrum. After about 15 minutes of stomping, crying, swearing, and all the other normal stuff that goes along with a tantrum, I stopped myself.
In that moment I knew there was only one person responsible for moving forward positively and productively, and that person was me. I decided to stop focusing on all the things I’d lost, all the things I couldn’t do, and the uncertainty of the future, and I responded by asking myself a question. The question was, there are things that, right now, I can’t do. So, what can I do? In a heartbeat, God went to work putting ideas in my mind about all the things I could do at that time. I knew there was a greater need for my message and skillset. I knew that, with technology, everything I was doing face-to-face, I could do online. I knew that I could move from a local audience to a global audience. In that moment, I felt ultimate freedom to do whatever I wanted to do. I felt empowered, excited, and free.
Within a few short weeks and months, I had replaced the speaking gigs I had lost, and was working with companies, schools, and groups, not just in Melbourne, but all over the world. 2020 and 2021 were the best two years I have ever had from a speaking and influencing perspective. This situation taught me about ultimate freedom. It taught me that circumstances are not my prison. It taught me that losing money was not a limiting factor. It taught me very clearly that ultimate freedom is not something I have to earn or work for, but something I already have within me. Have you guessed it yet?
Ultimate freedom is contained in one word. That word is responsibility. Really? That’s it? I can hear you asking. Yes, that is it. Let’s just look a little more closely at the word, because it is the amalgamation of two words that made this a little clearer for me. Those two words are Response Ability. In other words, your ability to respond, not react. Reacting happens when we look directly at the circumstance and think about how and why it is so bad. Responding is looking at how the situation can actually work for you. Can you see the massive difference? Reacting will imprison you in fear, lead to poor choices, and trap you in a dark place. Responding will liberate your mind, open up options for you to learn, grow, and improve and give you ultimate freedom to be the best version of yourself.
This message is very much reinforced in my podcasts this week with Wilk Wilkinson, called Ultimate Freedom, and Back pain be gone, with Ben O’Loghlin. The next time something happens in your life that looks on the surface, like a bad thing, ask yourself a very simple question. That question; how is this happening for me? The moment you ask that question, ultimate freedom is yours. It will unlock ideas, it will empower you, and it will leave you knowing that you can never be held hostage by any circumstance ever again. That truly is ultimate freedom.
by admin | 17 May, 2025 | Andrew's Blog, Joyful Longevity
I recently had a wonderful conversation on podcast with Jonah Primo called Your philosophy, and as the names suggests, was wonderfully philosophical. The conversation started with Jonah talking about a funeral he had to attend, and we very quickly dived into this philosophical and reflective conversation. We both agreed it is not morbid or depressing to talk about death, in fact, the more we’re aware of our certain demise, the more likely we are to focus on the life we have.
I surprised myself when I came out with the statement as we were discussing how many people can find talking about death a negative and depressing topic. They even worry about when they may die. So, I said, the question is not when will we die, but when are we going to live? The reality is that every day we live is one which gets closer to our last, and I’ve spent too much of my life drifting through, watching the days pass without really focusing on living every single moment. So, in this week’s blog, I want to encourage you to ask yourself the question, if it’s not happening now, when am I going to really start living?
So, what does that mean?
That depends on what your definition of truly living a joyful life is, and what that life looks like. It also relies on you honestly evaluating the time you are spending right now, and whether you would consider it actually living, or just existing. For me, I know when I’m just existing because I feel more anxiety, I experience more stress, and things annoy me more than they normally would. For me, that means I don’t have a positive purpose or focus, and so I allow situations and circumstances to affect my moods and behaviors.
I know when I’m really living, and it has nothing to do with what I’m actually doing, but everything to do with how I’m feeling. I was asked in a podcast recently, with Steve Hodgson, what my definition of success is these days. For much of my life, that definition would be reliant on the achievement of some external goal. Whether that be, selection in the senior team, publishing a book, money in the bank, lifting a certain weight or running under a certain time, a business level attained, or some other external accomplishment. That is no longer what I aspire to.
Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy all those things. I am proud of my sporting, writing, health, and business achievements. And, I am still aspiring to create more in my life, however, it is no longer how I define success. These days for me, my definition of success is a feeling. When I have that feeling, I know I’m truly living. So, what is that feeling? When my eyes open in the morning, and it’s very early by the way, I know I’m living when my initial feeling is excitement, gratitude, and anticipation of a wonderful day. To me, that means I have exciting, purposeful, joyful, and wonderful things I’m working on. Whether that’s business related, in my personal life, or connected with contributing to the community in some way.
If I wake up with anxiety, stress, uncertainty, confusion, or other associated feelings, then I know I’m just existing and it’s an immediate trigger for me to reflect, reevaluate where I’m at, refocus and get back into purposeful living. If I am honest, this ebbs and flows, however these days I am much more aware and can get back to living very quickly. My question now is for you. Do you feel like you are living or just existing? Please take the time to reflect on and answer this question honestly. How do you feel when you wake up? Excited, grateful, and purposeful, or stressed, anxious, and tired? If it is the former, then keep living, and keep doing what you are doing. If it is the latter, then my next question is; are you ready to change it? Are you ready to start really living? What does that look and feel like for you? What do you need to stop doing and what do you get to start doing? Please take the time to answer these questions. We get one shot at life, so why not make it a cracker!
If you feel you need help in this area, please listen to my podcast with Jonah, and my other podcast this week with Mark Firehammer, called Who you think you are. If you still need more help, please reach out to me. Death is inevitable, existing is temporary, and living is a choice. Please make the choice to live every moment with joy, gratitude, and meaning, starting right now.
by admin | 10 May, 2025 | Andrew's Blog, Joyful Longevity
There’s you, and then there’s the real you. What’s the difference? I dare say it’s that you don’t really know or believe in the truly amazing you who exists underneath the fears, insecurities, and doubts that may be currently ruling your life. My mission with this blog is to introduce or reintroduce you to the real you.
In my last blog called Beneath the surface, I talked about the fact that the things showing up in our lives are often the result of what is bubbling away beneath the surface. Do you know what I also believe is residing beneath the surface for most people? The real and authentic person they were created to be. The reality is that the quality of our lives and the outcomes we experience in life are based on the beliefs we have and the words we speak about ourselves. My question is, do these beliefs and words reflect the real and incredible you?
Last week, I was grateful for the opportunity to talk to two groups of incredible people. These were employees of a company that makes the big trailers that trucks pull around the country to deliver stuff where it is needed. This was a group of hard-working humans who put those trailers together. There were people who welded, painted, assembled, and performed many other vital trades. There were people who looked after the wonderful tradespeople and did many of the administrative roles. Every one of these people is critical in the process of putting those trailers on the back of trucks, so they can deliver essentials all around the country, to make lives better. As important and valuable as these people are, I dare say, they may not believe in their true worth. Hence, I titled my talk, The Real You.
The real you may be buried deep under layers of doubt, fear, trauma, and other people’s crappy opinions. The real you may be hiding for fear of mistakes, failures, or worries about other people’s crappy opinions. The real you is potentially far more amazing and capable than you may currently believe. The real you is kicking, screaming, and scratching to be uncovered so you can live the life that you are destined to live. My question to you right now is, if this message is appropriate for you, are you ready to set the real you free?
At the start of my talk last week, I said, there are two things I know about myself for sure. The first is that I am better than I think. The second is that everything I experience in my life is based on how I think. As I reflect back on all the outcomes I have experienced over the years, from the highs of playing professional sport, authoring eight books, success in business, great relationships, optimal wellbeing, to the lows of being sacked, losing money, getting divorced, conflict in my life, self-doubt, and fear, I know one thing for sure. It was my thinking that led to every one of these experiences, from the highest of highs, to the deepest of lows.
If it is true that I am capable of creating both incredible experiences and horrendous outcomes as a result of the thoughts I choose, then it means that the real me, who is often buried under the surface, can be uncovered and shine at any time I choose. All I need to do is direct my thoughts towards how incredible I am. And I am incredible. As are you. How do I know the real you and I are incredible? For one reason, and one reason only. Because we are here. It is our existence which is evidence of our worth. I often joke, as I was born in September, 9 months after New Years, that I was the outcome of drunken New Years Eve amour. That would seem to indicate I may have been an accident. I am no accident, nor are you. Your creation was planned, and you are meant to be here for one reason, and one reason only. To be proud of the real you and be unashamedly the best you can be.
The great artist Pablo Picasso said it this way; the meaning of life is to find your gift, and the purpose of life is to give it away. What that means is that we all have a gift. The real you has a gift, and when you give it away, you will bless lives every day of your life. You are not meant to hide. You are not meant to shrink in fear of what others may think. You are not meant to keep your gift to yourself. The real you is alive to shine, to use your individual gift, whatever that may be, and to give it away. That gift may be your smile. That gift may be your compassion. That gift may be your courage. It may be your artistic ability, your resourcefulness, your physical prowess, or your emotional intelligence. Whatever it is, it is the real you and you have the responsibility to live authentically and be you, the real you, for the rest of your life.
As always, the guest of my podcasts this week will help you in this area. Take less, do more is with Glen Van Peski, and Play a bigger game is with Tory Trewhitt. Both will help you explore and uncover the real you. Life is short, and you are needed. Please don’t spend one more second of your life hiding the real you.
by admin | 3 May, 2025 | Andrew's Blog, Joyful Longevity
In April 1912, the ‘unsinkable’ Titanic sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, leaving behind a devastating wake of tragedy. We all know how it sank. It struck an iceberg which tore a large hole in the hull of the boat. From the captain’s perspective, as the iceberg was approaching, it didn’t seem too much trouble based on what was above sea level. However, the devastation happened because of what was lurking beneath the surface.
I mentioned in last week’s blog my visit to the dentist. Well, are you ready for part two? My appointment was on a Friday, and I had another booking for the following Friday to come back and get my teeth cleaned, and to look at some options for the tooth that had a hole in it. Well, things escalated a little bit quicker than I had imagined. On Monday last week, as I went to take a bite out of a slice of orange, that particular tooth broke off. Yes, it came out of my head, out of my mouth, and I was looking at it in my hand with a stunned expression on my face.
After I realised this was not a fantasy or a dream – as I have dreamt about losing teeth – I called the dentist. I made an appointment for about an hour later, put my tooth in a bag, and headed off to the dentist to get it fixed. The dentist, a different one than had seen me the week before, took one look, and said, ‘it doesn’t look good’. After another X-ray, he explained that there was nothing he could do with this tooth. The root had a nerve issue and was, in his words, ‘eating itself’. The tooth that had broken off was not the problem, it became weakened and brittle because of what was happening beneath the surface.
Okay, okay, no more tooth stories! I promise. The point is, what is happening visibly, in many areas of life, which may be hard to understand, is always because of what is happening beneath the surface. We live in a society where we want fast results, easy options, and quick-fix solutions. You probably know that fast results rarely last, easy options are really not easy, and quick-fix solutions are no solutions at all. The simple answer is to look beneath the surface.
I’m not sure if you are like me, but, in my life, I have judged people and even been jealous of people. I have judged people because of their cranky moods, their poor behavior, and the choices they have made. At no time, in my past, did I try to understand what was happening beneath the surface in their lives. I know for myself, if I am ever cranky, and believe it or not, it happens, it is always because of something in my life that is wearing me down. Do you know what I’m saying? I mentioned I have also been jealous of people who have done things I haven’t, and I have even considered them lucky. Shame on me. The truth is that beneath the surface of their achievements was the right thinking, great habits, courage, and persistence.
My message is this, if you want to experience more joy, meaning, and abundance in your life, look and work beneath the surface. To get on with people and create deeper more meaningful relationships, ask questions and get beneath the surface to understand their behaviours. To create positive change in your life, dive deep and work on building the right foundations that lie beneath the surface. For me, those foundations are self-love, self-belief, compassion, empathy, faith, willingness to act even when I don’t feel like it, with a strong focus on what I want. The things that will show up in my life are always the result of what I invest time in to develop beneath the surface.
I have two amazing podcasts this week to help focus on what is beneath the surface. I speak with Bijoy John in a podcast called Sleep now, in which we discuss how sleep is one of the things beneath the surface that will impact every area of your life. Susan Snow and I have an incredible conversation in the podcast called One question. In it we discuss the power of asking the right questions to really get to the heart of the matter, often residing beneath the surface. I would encourage you to listen to both podcasts.
You may be wondering about the outcome of my missing tooth adventure. Then again, maybe not. I am going to tell you anyway. It is still a work in progress, and I am exploring replacement tooth options. For now, I have been blessed with a charming toothless grin and a reminder that everything in life is very much determined by what is going on beneath the surface.
by admin | 19 Apr, 2025 | Andrew's Blog, Joyful Longevity
Thank you for reading my blog. Well, at least this first part anyway. I hope you stay with me all the way through. The more I live and the more I learn, the more I realise I do not know. One thing I have learned, and I do know, is that having a great day has very little to do with the circumstances of that day, and far more to do with my attitude. That being the case, I want to help you make everyday a great day.
This idea started for me after I messaged a friend, and at the end of that message, I said, ‘I hope you are having a great day.’ The response came back, ‘define great!’ It was a response that got me thinking about a great day, and how I would define it. Interestingly, it is not how I would have defined in the past. In my younger years, a great day was one when everything went right, there were no hassles or challenges, and I got on with everyone. Clearly, I didn’t have a lot of great days based on that definition. In fact, many were crappy! Now, with my new definition, every single day is a great day.
How can that be? Surely it can’t be every day where there are no challenges or problems, when I get on with everyone, and where everything goes exactly as I would like. That would be… never! Lucky that is no longer my criteria for a great day. These days, a great day for me is one where I wake up, then get up, and then face the day with a belief that whatever happens and whoever I interact with, I will help someone, learn something, grow personally, or be blessed in some way. That is a great day every day, because I expect it to be and will find a way to make it great, no matter what. That doesn’t mean it is always easy or fun, it just means it is great.
The other day I woke up to my alarm at 4:52, to get up and start my day. I didn’t feel like getting up, in fact, I was very tempted to hit snooze, but I didn’t. I threw the covers back, I swung my sleepy body around, put my feet on the floor and stood up. I overcame the temptation to take the easy option. What a great start to the day. For the next two and a half hours, I affirmed, I prayed, and then went out to do my exercise for the day. As I was exercising, and yes it was uncomfortable, I was proud of myself, and, I got to watch the sun rise over the water and enjoy the start of a beautiful new day. Try to convince me that is not great!
My day continued, as it does, and was constantly great. I sent out my 20 daily LinkedIn connections, of which 80% go unanswered, but the 20% often lead to something great. I made many calls and sent multiple emails to companies to try and get speaking gigs, as I do every day. Most went unanswered, and some led to rejections. With each call and each email, I felt stronger and in even more control of my destiny, despite the lack of obvious results. Don’t tell me that is not great. Generally, each day, out of all the messages, calls, and emails I make, I will have at least one meaningful conversation that leads somewhere great!
On this particular day, I was uneasy about something. I had been struggling to get answers for a project I had been working to get on, for many months. It got to the point, after another unsatisfactory attempt to get answers, that all of a sudden I felt strong in myself. I decided my time and what I offer was far more valuable than the way I was being treated, so I sent a message that I was bowing out. It felt amazing. It was me respecting me. I was making a stand that I am worthy. It felt great. The rest of that day was filled with great meetings, challenging conversations, walks on the beach, and a closer relationship with God. I felt I had learned more, become stronger within myself, helped many people, initiated some new relationships, and felt a deep gratitude for my life. Trust me, it was a great day.
Well, every day is pretty much the same. They are all great days, because I decide they will be, and I approach them in a way that creates that reality. I want to encourage you to do the same. No matter what is happening, it can be great, depending on how you look at it, what you take from it, and what you do with it. To help in this area, my two podcasts this week are amazing. I speak with Gina Economopoulos in a podcast called Your next thought, and with Patrick Casey in a podcast called Feel it to heal it.
As you get to the end of this blog, again, I am grateful that you stuck with me. My question is, how will you ensure that today is a great day? It is up to you, not anyone else. It has everything to do with your perspective and very little to do with the circumstances you are facing. It is there waiting for you to choose great. So, find the lesson, receive the blessing, make someone smile, and have a great day.
