by admin | 8 Jan, 2021 | Andrew's Blog, Inspiration
There are a few certainties in life and one of them is that undesirable things will happen. Or are they undesirable? Hmmm, interesting question! Depending on where you live in the world, you are currently experiencing some level of COVID, which was supposed to be gone by 2021, wasn’t it? You may have experienced loss of a job, a relationship, a level of your health or something else that was important to you? That adversity you experienced or are currently experiencing can be an absolute gift if you choose it to be. So, my message this week is, don’t waste that adversity.
I consider myself an extremely blessed person. I grew up in a loving home and had every opportunity to develop myself and create success in my life. I was able to play professional football, become an author and now am incredibly grateful that I have found and am living my purpose. Sure, I have had some challenges throughout my life, but who hasn’t? What I have learned is that those challenges do not define me, but with the proper perspective, it’s my attitude towards them and the actions I take as a result of them which is what defines me.
I am continually inspired by people who have experienced far worse adversity in their lives than I have, yet have not wasted it. Instead, they have used it as a platform to find their purpose, create opportunities and help many people. In my podcast this week called, ‘2020 – The foundation of transformation’ I talk to two of these people. Stacey Copas, who at the age of 12 dived into a shallow pool, broke her neck, drowned and became a quadriplegic. I think you would consider that adversity! She is now an inspirational author, speaker and coach and is using the gift of her trauma as a platform to help many people. Deborah Stathis, at the age of 19 was involved in a devastating car accident which caused life altering spinal, facial and acquired brain injuries. She was told she would never function normally again, but if you interact with her today, you would never know that her face and brain had been ‘smashed in.’ She not only defied overwhelming odds against her, she has used the gift of her accident and trauma to become a globally acclaimed author, speaker coach who is impacting many lives.
Stacy and Deb experienced adversity far greater than most of us ever will, yet have not wasted it. You and I deal with adversity on a daily basis, at some level or another. It may be as simple as your shoelace breaking, getting a flat tyre or running out of milk, or it may be more significant like a health, relationship or financial crisis. The point is, whatever the adversity, don’t waste it. Author and entrepreneur, Robert Kiyosaki says, ‘Within every problem, lies an opportunity.’ The opportunity may be a lesson we need to learn. It may be a platform to grow and expand from. It may be a test to prove to you that you have what it takes to be the person you want to become. It is always an opportunity for you to believe in your inner strength.
I have experienced this to be true in my own life. Getting sacked as a professional footballer opened the door for me to explore a wellness industry career. Owning a failed café and losing close to $100,000 was the lesson and the moment I needed to decide to write my first book. Losing my mother to cancer, as devastating as an event as it was, moved me to write a book about her and use her life, courage and lessons to inspire people all around the world. So, I hope you can see, every adversity is a gift which, when unwrapped, will offer an incredible blessing in your life, and the life of others. The key is, you need to be looking for the opportunity, platform, lesson or test or you will waste this wonderful adversity that has been presented to you and will continue to be presented to you each and every day.
If you can reflect back on 2020 and see all the things that you may have considered as undesirable, can you see the opportunity, platform, lesson or test that came from them? If not, look harder or you will waste them. And, as 2021 unfolds, just know, without taking this as a negative statement, there will be things occur that may seem to be undesirable, BUT they will be wonderful blessings if you will stop, look, learn, explore, question and discover the opportunity, lesson or test that is there just for you. As you move forward from today, please don’t waste wonderful adversity.
by admin | 2 Jan, 2021 | Andrew's Blog, Mindset
2021 is finally here, but really, what’s changed except the date? I know many people have been saying, ‘I can’t wait until 2020 is over and 2021 rolls around.’ They’ve been talking as if, as soon as midnight strikes on December 31, 2020, everything will automatically and magically change for the better. Well, here we are in the first week of 2021 and the only thing that is going to change, if it hasn’t already, is your attitude about making this day – no matter the date or the circumstances – the one when you stop waiting and start winning.
Many people have described the year 2020 – as if the year has anything to do with it – as; ‘a dumpster fire,’ ‘crappy,’ ‘one to forget’ and many other expletive-laden and negative statements. Can I just say, the year had nothing to do with it? The fires had nothing to do with it, the riots had nothing to with it and COVID had nothing to do with it. We, ourselves, had everything to do with it! Yes, that’s right and as much as I know I am ruffling some feathers, I don’t want anyone to waste 2021 by thinking their success, happiness and wellbeing has anything to do with what’s happening around the world. Instead, it has everything to do with what’s happening between our ears!
I have experienced the same year as everyone, and it has been tough for me, like everyone. However, I have said it before and I will say it again, 2020 for me was the most transformational year I have had in a long time. Going into isolation was tough but what I needed to face my insecurities, then get to know and love myself better. Losing many speaking jobs and significant income was terrifying, but exactly what I needed to transform my business online with a global reach. More time at home being unable to go anywhere was lonely and frustrating at times, but saved me money, helped me focus on what’s most important and allowed me to create new things, like my podcast. I know my experience of 2020 was different to other people, but I do know it was a great year for me because I chose to win, not wait.
Please, don’t think in any way I am diminishing what people have faced or what they have had to suffer through and overcome. But then, that has nothing to do with a virus and everything to with living in a world where challenges happen. There’s no doubt, we are in a season, when fear, anxiety and uncertainty are rife, and it can be tough to navigate at times. In fact, there has been more than one time, over the last 12 months, when I have found myself sobbing and in a fetal position on the floor. I just want to encourage you not to think, just because it’s a new year, that things will magically get better. Let me tell you, things will get better the second you decide to win and not wait.
When I say, ‘win and not wait,’ I mean start today – yes, today – taking action to make your life the best it can be. Forget about what’s happening around the world, forget about the fact that it’s a new year and the pressure is on to make a new year’s resolution, and focus on what’s most important in your life. If it’s your health & wellbeing, which I hope it is, stop waiting for a vaccine, the second you take action, you win. If it’s your relationship(s), stop waiting for someone else to make the first move and act. When you do, you win! If it’s your business, stop waiting for a better economic time and get into action. As soon as you do, you’ll be a winner. Stop waiting for things to go back to normal and start now to create your new and improved normal. The second you do, you are winning.
You see, winning has nothing to do with holding a trophy, getting to the top of the mountain or achieving the goal. Winning happens the moment you take action and start moving in the direction of what you want, no matter how small and seemingly insignificant that movement may be. So, it’s with my greatest encouragement that you stop waiting and start moving today. What stops us all, including myself on a regular basis, is ourselves and our fears, anxieties and insecurities. So, I want to urge you to listen to my podcast this week with Morgan Beard, called ‘Behind the music.’ I guarantee it will help.
2021 can be an awesome year for you. Not because it’s a new year, not because it’s not 2020 and not because things will magically get better. It will be an incredible year the instant you decide to stop waiting, start choosing and start winning. You get to choose how this year will be, so, choose abundance, choose courage, choose action, choose love, choose gratitude, choose health, choose significance, choose legacy, choose fun, choose laughter, choose progress and choose different.
Most of all… choose YOU!
by admin | 25 Dec, 2020 | Andrew's Blog, Joyful Longevity
I’m going to make a bold statement right now. In my mind, the reason there are so many unhappy, unhealthy and unfulfilled people in the world is because they were asked the wrong question when they were teenagers, and they keep asking themselves the wrong question. Honestly, how many teenagers have any idea of what they want to do in life? There may be some, but most, like me, have no idea what they want to do. However, I bet they could describe with clarity how they want to live, if they were asked.
As a teenager, I thought I wanted to do one thing and one thing only, to be a famous footballer. My parents didn’t think that’s what I wanted or needed and would continually ask me, ‘Andrew, what do you want to do when you leave school?’ I would tell them, time and time again, ‘I want to be a footballer.’ They loved me and believed I needed an education and were very persistent until I finally relented. I said, ‘Okay, okay, I don’t really care what I do as long as it has something to do with sport.’ I chose to do a Physical Education degree without any concept of where it was leading, because it sounded like ‘sport’ to me.
Well, after my four years of tertiary education, I ended up a teacher.Yikes! That’s not what I wanted to do, and I lasted about four years! I then started asking myself the question, ‘so, what do I want to do now?’ I thought I might want to get into the fitness industry because I liked being fit and healthy, so off I went, and found myself working in a gym which then led me into a personal training career. When I started personal training, I thought I wanted to be a successful personal trainer. Again, I was wrong! I became a successful personal trainer and had no life, as I ended up working from 6am to 9pm as a part owner of a ’successful’ business for 15 years.
Then, as I had learned a lot about and become inspired by nutrition, I thought I wanted to own a café to sell healthy food and educate people. Again, I was horribly wrong. After two years of trying to combine a personal training career with a hospitality business, and working over 100 hours, seven days per week, I found myself with even less of a life and in almost $100,000 debt. At that point I was feeling disillusioned, discouraged and helpless. It was also at that point I finally realised after all these years, at that time I was in my late 30’s, I had been asking myself the wrong question. I had been incorrectly asking myself what I wanted to do, in every case it led me somewhere I didn’t want to be.
So, as I sat with my head-in-my-hands in the debt-ridden café, with no life and with no idea of how to get out of this situation, I asked myself a different question. I asked myself, ‘So Andrew, this is not what you want… how do you actually want to live?’ Immediately, I could see it with clarity. I didn’t have to think about it, research it or postulate over it. I just knew it, because it was in my heart and it was my destiny. I wanted to be making a difference in lives all around the world, I wanted to be financially free. I wanted to be optimally healthy and in a loving relationship. I wanted to be able to travel, speak and inspire. I wanted to be free to choose how I lived my life and spend my time.
By asking that question, my mind opened up to possibility. In fact, it was at that very moment I made what seemed to be the most illogical decision I could make, and I’ve made a few! I decided to write a book. I had no skills, experience, qualifications or time, so why would I make that decision? Because I could see it being the key that unlocks the door for me to be living a life I love. Well, here we are almost 20 years after that crazy decision, I am about to publish my eighth book and I am pretty much living the life of my dreams, the one I visualised when I asked myself that telling question.
This is a long introduction to a pretty simple concept that I hope you will embrace as you reflect on 2020 and launch into 2021. Have you ever asked yourself, how do you want to live? If you did ask yourself this question right now, would you be able to answer it as quickly and clearly as I did when I asked it of myself? If you were able to create clarity about the way you want to live, can you see whether what you are currently doing will lead you there, or not? If not, would it be worth exploring some alternative options, that may not initially seem logical or possible, to help you live a life you love? I truly hope you ask yourself the right question and that you take the action you need to get to be living the way you want to live.
If I have stimulated or agitated something in you as a result of this blog, I would encourage you to listen to my podcast with week with children’s author Adam Wallace, called, ‘Remember death, live forever.’ It’s a wonderful conversation with a man who is living a successful and passionate life and is all about understanding we are only alive for a finite period of time and that a life of passion and purpose is available for us all. We do, however, need to start living, now.
This is my last blog for 2020, a unique year indeed. For me this year, things that I have learned, things I have been forced to change and things that I’ve done have helped me move closer to the life I want to live. 2021 is a blank page for us all, anything is possible, and I wish for you that you make it your best year yet. All I suggest is, before you set any goals or make any news year resolutions, you ask yourself the question, ‘how do I want to live?’
by admin | 19 Dec, 2020 | Andrew's Blog, Mindset
There is a wonderful quote, I am unsure who to credit it to, that says; ‘Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift and that’s why we call it the present.’ I want to unpack it a little in this week’s blog, because I can see the answers to a glorious and happy life residing in those nineteen words, if we pay attention to them and take action. In fact, take a leap of faith.
I will come back to the leap of faith shortly, but let’s look at this quote to start with, because it gives power to the idea of a leap of faith. ‘Yesterday is history!’ What is the one thing we know for sure about history, any history? Well, the one thing I know for sure about history is that it is set, and cannot be changed. As much as I may like it to be. That being the case, why do we spend so much time – me included – thinking about it, dwelling on it, regretting it and beating ourselves up over it? Can I make one simple suggestion? Learn from it, forgive yourself (and/or others) if required and let it go, or you will never move forward in life.
‘Tomorrow is a mystery!’ We often try to predict, control and foresee the future, when it’s not possible. We may go to a clairvoyant, palm-reader or other so-called future predictor to tell us how our future will turn out. We may read our star signs and see what we can glean from that. Please hear me on this, our future cannot be predicted, controlled or manipulated, because there are too many elements, out of our control, that will impact it. Can we control the weather? Of course not. How will that potentially impact our plans for tomorrow? Can we control other people? We wish! How will that affect how our tomorrow will turn out? What I’m saying here is, as important as it is to have goals, dreams and clear purpose for your life, spending all your time in the future will make your head explode.
‘Today is a gift, that’s why we call it the present!’ Why is today a gift? I believe for several reasons, and I will just mention two. The first and most important is the gift of life. If you woke up this morning and are looking down on the grass, then you should celebrate. I have often spoken about the miracle of life, and when we think about the miniscule odds of our existence, we should rejoice in every moment we are alive. The second reason is the gift of choice we are given every moment of every day. What do you think will most impact your future and most glorify your past? It’s the choices we get to make in the present. If you can learn from your past and if you are clear on what you want in the future, then the choices you make in the present moment will most profoundly impact your life.
In this moment you don’t need to have all the answers. In this moment you don’t need to understand the process. In this moment, you don’t even need to know the path forward. All you need to do is have the have the courage and make the choice to take the first step… a leap of faith. It is fear in the moment that most stops people, as it has me. Fear from thinking too much about the failures of the past and how they will affect us moving forward and fear of how we can possibly create the future we desire. This fear paralyses most people, except those with faith.
I talk about faith all the time, because to me it’s the most powerful tool we have in our arsenal to live our best life. If the poor choices, mistakes and failures of yesterday are all history that we cannot change, how do we move forward successfully in life without the faith that things can change? If tomorrow is a mystery, and there is no we can accurately predict how things will go or what will challenge us, how do we negotiate that without faith? It is the leap of faith we take in the present moment, not knowing but trusting, that will get you to where you want to be.
I have spoken ad-nauseam about my journey. As I sit here writing this blog, I am living a life of joy, passion and purpose, that I love every moment of. How I got here only makes sense as I look back over the last 18 years to that one fleeting moment I made the illogical decision to write my first book. The leap of faith I took on that day, opened up the path, and each day in each moment the steps of faith I took led me to exactly where I didn’t even know I wanted to be. I am incredibly grateful.
In this week’s podcast called, ‘Just, the next step,’ I speak with Sean O’Leary, who calls himself the ‘Transformed Man.’ Sean started his journey at 135kg (300lbs), had kidney issues, was verging on diabetes and was experiencing pain in pretty much every part of his body. Within 12 weeks, he had dropped five clothes sizes and transformed into a purpose-driven man who is now lean, energised and healthy. At the lowest point, when he made the decision to transform his life, he had no idea how it would happen, and so he started with a leap of faith. He is very clear in explaining that his success did not come from motivation, ability or knowledge of the process, but from just taking the next step. Often, he didn’t know what that step would be, or where it would lead, but his desire to change his life and willingness to keep stepping out in faith helped him to be living his best life.
Faith is trusting in advance that which only makes sense in reverse, says author Phillip Yancey. So, by definition you are not in control. There is a force with you and around you that will lead you to the destination you are after, but you need to let go of the failures of the past and release the need to have all the answers for your future. Trust in God, believe in the universe and just know that if you take a leap of faith, the path will almost magically appear under your feet and lead you to the most amazing life you could ever possibly imagine. Start leaping with faith today.
by admin | 12 Dec, 2020 | Andrew's Blog, Joyful Longevity
I want to try and shift your paradigm a little this week, if it needs shifting, that is. We live in a society where comparison, public image and wanting acceptance seems to be built into our psyche. Don’t get me wrong, it is awesome to get attention, acknowledgement and recognition from other people for the great things we do. We actually need that. However, I want to encourage you to aim for attention, acknowledgement and recognition from the most important person in your world. Yes, that’s you.
I am one of those people who, for much of my life, couldn’t operate without the attention, validation and acceptance of other people. It was exhausting! When you are constantly chasing people to notice the things you do and achieve, and when you continually require their approval to feel happy, you are in a no-win situation. Thank goodness I have evolved, grown and changed and am now completely happy with myself and can self-validate myself for things I do when no one is watching. In fact, now I get more fulfilment from the things I do that nobody sees than the things I do that gets recognised by other people. Let me tell you that is an awesome place to be.
On Monday mornings, in my neighborhood, we have rubbish collection, so people put their bins out on a Sunday night. Just a few weeks ago, we had some serious wind on a Sunday night that caused some havoc. The next morning, as I was taking Joia for her morning walk at about 6:30am, I observed that many bins had been blown over by the winds from the night before. These fallen bins would not have been emptied because the drivers of the garbage trucks do not take the time to get out, stand each bin up, then use the robotic arm to empty them.
It was only a week or so early when my bin was blown over and not emptied, and it was really annoying because I didn’t haven’t enough room in it for the following weeks rubbish. So on this morning, as I walked Joia, I stopped, stood up bins and replaced rubbish that had fallen out of them. There were probably about 10-15 bins that I picked up and so the walk with Joia took about twice the time. Let me tell you, at that time of the day, no-one was watching, but I felt amazing. In fact, no-one even knew what had happened because when they went out to bring in their emptied bin, they had no idea that the wind had blown it over nor that I had a picked it up again.
Now, I know this does not sound like a very exciting story or big deal, but let me tell you, it is. In my younger years, I would never have done this if people weren’t watching to see what a good person I was. Now, the only person who matters in this equation and needs to see me as a valuable person, is me. The truth is this, the success, happiness, wellbeing and fulfillment you enjoy in your life has much more to do with what you do when no-one is watching than when people are. Honestly, if we wait for people to watch and acknowledge us doing what we need to do to be happy and fulfilled, we will be waiting a long long time! Can I suggest, if you haven’t already, start doing things for only one person’s eyes, yours. Oh, and Gods, if you believe.
I used to live in an untidy house because it was just me and no-one else would see it, now I clean & tidy regularly, for me. I used to train my body and be fit, lean & healthy to be admired by others, now I do it because I love and value myself. I used to crave validation and do things that would feed my fragile ego and now I do things that I believe to be right, whether others are watching, aware or not. I have never been happier, healthier or more fulfilled than I am right now. So, my question, as always, is, what about you? What are you doing to be seen and approved of?
Trust me now as I make some statements. Your health will improve by the things you do when no-one is watching. Your self-esteem will grow when you are able to see the value in yourself, irrespective if anyone is watching. Your financial position will prosper when you start to do little daily things that nobody else sees. Believe it or not, your relationship with a person will flourish more through the things you do when you’re not being observed by them, than when you are. The impact you will have on this world will be a massive ripple effect that starts with the little things you do when no-one is watching.
This week, my friend, try to eliminate the need for approval and validation of others. This week, try to get out of your head and into your heart, as discussed with Sarah Willoughby in this week’s podcast. This week, know in your heart that you are a great person. This week, know that the only person who needs to love, approve and validate you is you. This week, spend your time focusing on doing things that nobody will ever see, but will cause a ripple effect and impact many lives. So, my question is, what are you going to do this week when nobody is watching?
by admin | 5 Dec, 2020 | Andrew's Blog, Wellness
The idea of going to bed for a good night’s sleep for some people brings great joy, and for others it brings stress, anxiety and fear. If it brings you joy, and you get a quality 7-8 hours of sleep each night, then enjoy the wonderful rewards great sleep brings. If you are one of the people for whom sleep may seem elusive at times or on a regular basis, then this blog is for you. I want to help you reposition sleep, take the pressure off it and suggest that it is simply a reward for what you have done during your day.
I wanted to write a blog on sleep to follow up from my podcast this week with Dr Lillian Nejad, called, ‘Sleep, beautiful sleep,’ because I think it’s a critical part of living your best life. We all know the obvious horrible effects of little or no sleep, don’t we? It impacts our energy, our moods, our ability to focus, our relationships, our resilience, our wellbeing, our body’s ability to function and pretty much every important area of our life.
After some research, I found fifteen incredible benefits of getting enough quality sleep on a regular basis. They include; reducing stress, improving memory, lowering blood pressure, helping your body fight back, weight control, putting you in a better mood, reducing chance of diabetes, keeping your heart healthy, can be a painkiller, can make you smarter, helping fight germs, improving energy levels, improving athletic achievement, better concentration and improving gut health. Wow, I am sold on sleep.
Sometimes telling people the benefits of good sleep can have the reverse effect, because they are frustrated as they don’t feel like they will ever get to enjoy them. There is one person I know really well, and that person is me. In fact, I know me even better now after 2020 and many months of lockdown and isolation… an amazing blessing very heavily disguised. One thing about me is, I love my bed, and I sleep well. For me, when I get into bed, I feel safe, I feel calm, I feel relaxed and I feel ready for sleep. For me, going to bed and to sleep is my reward for the day I have just experienced, and the things I did during that day.
There are so many ideas about getting better sleep – and Dr Lillian goes into many of them in her podcast – from letting go of stress, to meditation, to reducing stimulants, to making sure the room environment is conducive, and many others. All are great, but I want to focus on just one idea, which is, I believe, sleep is the product and reward for doing the right things during the day. I will describe a typical day of mine, and that might explain what I am talking about. Please note, I am not telling you this stuff to try and impress you, rather to impress upon you what works for me, and I know will work for you also.
I get up between 5 and 5:15am each day, with a passion and purpose for the day ahead, and the first thing I do is exercise, whether I feel like it or not. I always feel amazing afterwards. From the time I finish training and up until about 10am I have; walked the dog, done my affirmations and goals, responded to emails, sent out connections and messages on Linked In, checked in with my mentor, done some writing on my next book, edited my next podcast, made phone calls and set up meetings. This is now my normal morning routine and I love it. The rest of the day is a little flexible, but includes some or all of; meetings (online or face-face), podcast interviews, presentations (online or face-face), walking my dog, meditation or a power-nap, eating yummy and healthy food and many other amazing things.
I get most of the productive and important stuff done by 4 or 5pm, and whilst I will often have evening meetings, I have had a day I am proud of and it’s still quite early. This means I can reward myself. A nice dinner, a bit of chill out time and then into my favourite place in the world… bed!
I am in bed early and 10pm is late for me. When I go to bed, I rejoice. I have done what needs to be done for the day, I have moved myself closer to fulfilling my purpose and I have made notes for what I didn’t finish but needs to get done the next day. It’s still early enough so that I can easily get my 7-8 hours of sleep and I smile to myself, as I snuggle in my wonderful bed and, feeling totally fulfilled (most days), drift off into restful and renewing sleep. It is my reward for what I have achieved that day. Bed is the prize for me and, if you struggle with sleep, I want to encourage you to look at bed and sleep the same way.
All you have to do is this; focus on your purpose, set your intention and make a list of what you want to get done during the day. Keep it manageable and achievable so it doesn’t overwhelm you. Then simply get to work completing tasks, ticking boxes and feeling great. Beware of the many distractions that may steal your attention and time away from these tasks and push completing them to later in the day or evening. Save the distractions until the important jobs are done and then enjoy them as a reward. Most of all, when you have done what needs to be done, and delegated your tasks for the next day, get in your bed and smile as the next 7-8 hours of blissful and rejuvenating sleep you are about to enjoy is a reward you have rightly earned.
