#128 Coming back from your darkest day with Andy Coley
Release Date: 08/01/2024
Another Door Stories
“Sometimes the doors closing are not just physical things. Sometimes it is about closing the way we do something, the way we think, so that we can step into a different space for ourselves.” Have you ever felt the weight of certainty pull you down, trapping you in a life that doesn’t truly fulfill you? In this episode I sit down with Suzanne Penny, a transition and career coach, who shares her own transformative journey of leaving behind certainty in favour of embracing the unknown. Suzanne shares key turning points in her life that could have easily anchored her in fear and...
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
"I thought, if dressing people and making people look good makes them happy, then I would love to do this." Have you ever felt the weight of questioning your career path and wondered if there might be something else out there that's truly meant for you? In this episode, we take you on a journey with Taiwo Meghoma, a lawyer-turned-fashion-stylist. From a young boy in Nigeria discovering his love for fashion by helping his mother with her outfits, to sitting front row at major fashion weeks alongside his idols, Taiwo's story is about boldly opening new doors even when the world might tell...
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
"When you have kindness in the culture, you build psychological safety. And from there you have high performing teams, better staff retention, creativity, resilience, like it really stacks up in terms of all the different benefits that you get by increasing levels of kindness and empathy in your business." Kindness can transform not just your personal well-being but also the landscape of work and leadership. In this episode, I reconnect with Graham Allcott, productivity expert, author, and now a passionate advocate for kindness in the workplace. We share the inspiration for his new book Kind,...
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
"The biggest thing was I wanted to be more responsible as a thought leader. And in a world where we have so much information, misinformation, disinformation, it was important that I went through a process of acquiring knowledge and creating new knowledge and it was the PhD." Ready to lead a curiosity rebellion? We have the inspiring Yemi Penn as our guest. Yemi is a trailblazer who has navigated and embraced change across continents, careers, and personal transformations. From her early beginnings in engineering to becoming a documentary creator and author, Yemi has followed her...
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
"We tell stories in times of transition because in good times, bad times, lateral movements, figurative movements, we need to make sense of the world. Stories help us help us process. This is what makes us human." Can six words help you process change, and tell your life story? On the podcast Larry Smith shares how a simple Twitter experiment 15 years ago turned into a global storytelling movement - the Six Word Memoir project. Our conversation is not just word count. Larry shares his closing door life moments, from divorce, to relocation, to career change....
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
“I grew up watching the Olympics and you see these athletes from around the world marching in the opening ceremonies. And then one day, you are setting foot in that stadium. 50,000 people screaming and you look to your right and you see more cameras than you can count. And in that moment that you are on TV around the world and some little kid is probably looking at you the way you looked at some other athlete." How do you find the courage to push forward when fear and uncertainty stand in your way? In this episode, I speak to Devon Harris, member of the legendary Jamaican bobsleigh team that...
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
“My new mission in life...is about helping women be seen, heard, and valued in their space, whether that's in work and beyond” In this episode, I talk with Aimee Bateman, an incredible entrepreneur and advocate for women in the workplace. Aimee shares her story of how experimenting helped her through a closing door after selling her business Careercake. She had spent 10 years building a successful company, then sold it, which was the plan all along. But after the sale, she faced a new challenge: What’s next? She was also adjusting to life as a new parent,...
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
"For me opening the door was the same door that had shut in my face previously. But going back there and thinking, well, what am I able to do? …I tried many things, but I realised it's music. So I sat down with a blank piece of paper and thought, I've got to make my way again." Imagine being at the height of music stardom in the 90s, performing on Top of the Pops, being helicoptered between gigs, and having fans waiting outside your house. Then suddenly, there is silence. In this episode Lee Murray shares what happens when the music stops. Lee was the drummer in the band Let Loose, which...
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
"It's okay when you fundamentally change your perspective, and it makes different anchors in your life to what you had up to a certain moment of a door closing. I think the door closing on me was about not wanting to be an employed person anymore and wrestling with it.” Ever felt the whisper of your dreams urging you to make a change but hesitated because of the safety net of a steady job? In this insightful episode, I sit down with Dr. Claire Handby as she shares her transition from a 25-year corporate career to embracing entrepreneurship. Of course, there is a lot to be said...
info_outlineAnother Door Stories
"I made the decision to jump off that entrepreneurial ledge, which was incredibly intimidating at the time… But, I was so compelled to see what was on the other side of fear, which was leaving full time, gainful, fantastic employment and chase a dream" In today's episode, we have Ant Duckworth, the co-founder of Dear Coco. I’ve been following Ant’s journey and the evolution of ‘Dear Coco’, his award winning coffee truck, since the dream started. We all have these tiny ideas, small dreams, but how many of us decide to take action and step into trying, and giving it a go. Ant...
info_outlineContent Warning: This episode mentions attempted suicide and despair.
“If you put me back 13 years ago when I was going to run my car into a tree I never ever would have believed that this life I have right now is possible. I would have called you absolutely fucking bonkers to ever thought that was possible." Andy Coley
In today's episode, we have Andy Coley, who shares his story of his “epic life fail” as Life took over, ‘wrong’ decisions, foggy thinking, where everything felt out of control in the pursuit of being in full control. Andy shares the moment he felt like there was only one way out of it, and the moment he realised there was a better way.
We talk about how our inner voice can beat ourselves up, create unwanted noise, the constant chatter and how clarity comes in amongst the confusion. Andy shares how he found a new path through coaching and neuro linguistic programming (NLP), but it wasn't without the ups and downs of navigating a transformative journey.
Andy shares how being in control is sometimes more about letting go, and knowing you can trust yourself, rather than keeping a tight grip that is surfacing your progress.
“Don’t let life happen to you, be in control, but not so tight it hinders”
Here are the highlights:
05:35 Struggled with suicidal thoughts, found hope and support.
07:55 Inner turmoil and self-doubt overcome with help.
11:40 Seeking help and support to overcome debt.
16:02 Struggling business turned around through coaching and NLP.
18:32 Discussing the importance of therapy and coaching for help.
25:10 Struggled at boot camp, but found support.
30:18 Extensive NLP training business, coaching and team development.
31:33 Focus on leadership and management in business.
34:51 Motivational speaker focuses on impact, not money.
40:07 Seek and embrace support in tough times.
48:11 Take control of your life, make changes.
Andy’s Another Door go-tos
The things that helped Andy navigate change.
Books: “NLP at Work”, by Sue Knight
Music: “Times Like These.” Foo Fighters
The one piece of advice:
“Get support and perspective. Find someone who's a good listener, not a good teller. Or journal, get it out of your head…just write it. Set your intentions for your future. Your unconscious mind needs some direction. What is it you'd love to have happen? What would you like it to be like in a year's time from where you are right now? Don’t be afraid to have bold goals for yourself. They are a signal to yourself that you mean it”.
About Andy Coley
Andy is an award-winning TEDx speaker (he won TEDx speaker of the year last year) and is also an executive coach and leadership development trainer who works with major plc businesses, the NHS and organisations such as Meta, The Cabinet Office and a lot within the computer games industry.
He's currently working on a leadership development book which is due to hit the shelves in October 2024.
Find out more: https://www.andycoley.com; https://www.gamestudiotraining.com
Connect with Andy:
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/andycoley/
About your host Eleanor Tweddell
Eleanor supports individuals, teams and organisations through change. Whether it’s 121 coaching or large scale organisational change through communications and training. Eleanor’s work centres around how we, as humans, work through change, embracing the messy bits, the role of playing, with the aim to see opportunity. “Too often we get stuck in the change happening to us, when just through that next door is an exciting next chapter.”
Eleanor is the founder of Another Door, and Get-Recommended.com and the author of Why losing your job could be the best thing that ever happened to you.
Connect with Eleanor:
Instagram:instagram/anotherdooruk
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/eleanor-tweddell/
Website: eleanortweddell.com
Produced by winteraudio.co.uk