Saturday, 31 January 2009

Testimonials

I found the course to be extremely useful; you have given me new insights and food for thought in each session. I have learned new techniques and concepts and realised I have had some limiting attitudes.
Alan Pickard - Thornbury, Bristol - Accountant


I have thoroughly enjoyed my life coaching with Andrew. I achieved my goals with the perfect dose of encouragement and reflection. Thank you I feel a much happier person as a result.
Becca Fishwick - Bagshot, Surrey - Nursery Owner


I have found Andrew to be a conscientious, encouraging and motivating person. I have now set myself goals and I am now on track in achieving them.
Kay Gorst - Denholme, West Yorkshire - Austerberry Mortgage Services

Friday, 30 January 2009

Life begins at forty or fifty?

When does life begin, for the sentient adult?


In recent months I have been in conversation with people who have reached or are about to reach the age of 40 or 50, here's what I've been telling them of my experience's.

They used to say that "Life begins at 40!", but due to how much longer people are living, I suggest that the saying should be revised to "Life begins at 50!" I would be the first to endorse this statement.

Although I really enjoyed my 40th birthday party, with my family and so many good friends there in attendance, technically I was only 39 on that Friday night, just over 11 years ago. :-)

It was on the Sunday after my parents had returned home to Bradford on a bleak and foggy November day, I felt like my life was over; that I was only here to aid my children as they grew up. However when I got to 50 I felt more alive than I ever had before! Don't despair, life is sweet at age 50 and beyond, I promise you!

What ever your age is today, you can decide to have a wonderful life from right now, this minute. You are the one that runs the thoughts in your head; you choose whether to feel happy or sad. You get to decide moment by moment how to feel. Maybe we should change the statement from "Life begins at forty!" not to "Life begins at 50!" but to "Life on your terms begins, when you decide to focus on living it your way!"

So when does life begin for the sentient adult, I suggest it’s the day you decide to focus on living it your way. In conclusion Ralph Waldo Emerson said:"Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you, that you're wrong. There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right. To map a course of action and follow it to an end requires courage."

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
Intnl Phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
Email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Thursday, 29 January 2009

The Process of Self Improvement

The Process of Self Improvement


How do you begin the process of self improvement?

There are four ways we can demonstrate to ourselves, the willingness to get the most out of our lives and to live our lives on our own terms. These are: Motivation, Self-Belief, Self-Discipline and the Willingness to challenge our own preconceived ideas. Today, I invite you to explore all four of them with me.

1) Motivation

Motivation is how you measure the willingness you have to bring change into your life and I believe it is the most important factor of all. Do you really want to change, are you ready to change? Are you really fed up with how things have been? Have you had enough of these thoughts and emotions: worry, struggle, insecurity, loneliness, feeling second best and thinking "if only"? I know that your motivation will be at a stratospheric level if you are really fed up of experiencing these emotions and if more importantly you are willing to do something big about it! :-)

2) Self-Belief

Self-Belief is the measurement to which you believe, deep down, that you are deserving and worthy of the things that you are intending to about bringing in your life. Without Self-Belief you will prevent yourself from getting these very things. Your self-belief doesn’t need to be perfect, but what's really important to begin with, is that you desire to increase your Self-Belief.

3) Self-Discipline

Self Discipline is a most vital ingredient, because when things get tough it will be this specific quality that will ensure that you keep moving forward. It's easy to be determined and to go all out for your dreams when things are going well; but when you commit yourself to change there is always a certain amount of uneasiness involved in the process.

In fact a certain amount of distress should be welcomed as it will prevent you from getting stuck within your comfort zone and help you to prove to yourself how tenacious you really are! There will always be days when you have setbacks or you don't feel like giving your all; at these times with your self-discipline in check, you will find the resources to keep going.

4) Willingness To Challenge Preconceived Ideas

To be willing to challenge preconceived ideas you need to be determined to think through everything you have held dear to you, especially the things that you have believed about yourself and the world around you.

When you decide to do this, simply by showing yourself and the world your determination, you will create new ways of thinking that allow you to experience a vast new range of possibilities within your life. As Einstein said, “The significant problems we have, cannot be solved at the same level of thinking with which we created them.”

Life Coaching on a one to one basis is in my view the best way to keep yourself accountable and to make definite progress towards your goals. This is because you put yourself into the process of self-improvement with someone who genuinely wants to see you achieve your dreams and has studied the ways to get you from where you are to where you want to be!

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
Intnl Phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
Email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Wednesday, 28 January 2009

Tell me what you want, what you really really want!”

Do you know what you want out of your life?”


If you know what you want, then a life coach can help you to get it! If you're not sure what it is that you want; then a life coach can help you discover what it is that will make you feel fulfilled!

We all have desires; but how can we stop procrastinating and get the determination, confidence and tenacity to achieve all our desires? The process is made so much easier when you have someone, alongside you to confidentially and without fear of being ridiculed, to bounce your ideas off. They may sometimes suggest new ideas into the mix to give you the clarity that you need to have on the way to getting your goals. This is what a Life Coach does!

Of course a Life Coach has many tools to help you to discover how to live the life of your dreams; but it is really in the ongoing interaction and rapport of your conversations with your coach, where the coach can prove their lasting benefit to your life.

I initially coached people with many different goals in mind and then I worked as a master coach alongside New Insights, helping them to develop new Life Coaches. Over a year ago now, I switched the main focus of my life coaching business to working with singer songwriters although I still coach members of the general public too.

Now it’s your turn to decide whether Life Coaching is for you, why not contact me today and arrange a free full thirty minutes FREE coaching session? You've got nothing to lose and clarity, direction and purpose for your life to gain!

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
Intnl Phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
Email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Tuesday, 27 January 2009

Inertia and Momentum

Have you got off the mark yet on the way to your goals?


To get where you want to go in your life you must take action! As we've heard many times before "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step!" Maybe today is the day for you to take that very first step in moving towards your long held ambition and goal?

That single step is all you need; it is what's known as "inertia." Now you are moving and if you take a second step, even if it's only a small one you will have something more than inertia, you'll have momentum! All that's necessary then is to keep the momentum going by committing yourself to moving towards your desired destination every day, until you arrive!

The steps we take sometimes have the opposite effect of what we intended them to have. When a plane takes off its crew and passengers have a certain destination in mind. Yet any pilot will tell you there are many course corrections to be made along the way, because of other flights in the air at the same time and the wind and the weather. So it is with our lives we know where we want to go, but if something we do has had a negative result we need to make a course correction.

I challenge you to take a single step in the direction of your dreams today and remember that I’m only an e-mail away. :-)

Andrew Smith
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
Intnl Phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Monday, 26 January 2009

Be Realistic!

“Is your sense of reality, both accurate and intelligent?”


Most people who say "Be realistic!" are living in fear!

Often because of past disappointments and their own perceived failures these people have become afraid of letting themselves down again. They have developed their limiting beliefs to protect themselves but it these same beliefs that cause them to hesitate and shy away from the risks they think exist and as a result prevent them from giving their all; consequently they get limited results. Their limiting beliefs become a self-fulfilling prophecy

Great leaders are rarely "realistic" by other people's standards. They are, however, accurate and intelligent. Mahatma Gandhi believed he could gain autonomy for India by peacefully and non-violently opposing Great Britain, something that had never been done before. He wasn't being realistic, but he certainly proved to be accurate.

Everyone who told Roger Bannister to be realistic, that no-one had ever run a mile in under four minutes and that no-one ever would, were proved by Roger to be unrealistic themselves on 6 May 1954 at Oxford when he completed the first sub four minute mile on the University’s Iffley Road Track.

Which so-called realistic beliefs should you shun? What exciting, new, unrealistic but entirely possible expectations are there, that can you should embrace? Please let me know if you'd like to explore the possibilities your life has yet to embrace! :-)

Andrew Smith
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
Intnl Phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Sunday, 25 January 2009

More Testimonials

I never expected the level of support I received from Andrew, nothing seemed a problem or effort for him; he made sure that our conversations were worthwhile and uplifting. My outlook is more positive now and the road ahead is clearer. Eva Godden - Kingston-Upon-Thames - Marketing Lecturer

Thank you Andrew for your enthusiasm, for sharing your wisdom and your masses of personal growth and self development knowledge. Andrew is keen to help committed people achieve their dreams.
Sylvia Smith - Hayes, Middlesex - NCH Project Manager

Andrew makes coaching so much fun and gets you to open up and see things in a completely different light. I would certainly recommend him to anyone who wants to get more from their life. Mark Edwards – Holford Somerset – Royal Marines

Saturday, 24 January 2009

Deidre Stoffberg's Testimonial about The Musicians Life Coach

Dear Andrew,

Keep doing what you're doing! You are a great coach! You have played a big part in my transformational journey to success. You have helped me to make changes quickly. My life changed 180 degrees as you promised it would.

Now I just let go and live my life to the fullest. I had a lot of breakthroughs and discovered the fastest way to achieve my goals. In two words coaching with you has been a road filled with transformation and fun. You are a true testimony that you can live your dreams.

Many thanks Didi

Friday, 23 January 2009

A person’s skills and passion always make a way for them !

When are you too old to succeed in your dream career?

How old is too old, to become successful within the career path of your choice? I personally don’t believe there are any age limits, to most careers that people consider themselves "too old" for. I have a slight suspicion that these same people used to think of themselves in terms of being "too young," to do other things at an earlier point in their lives. I think the reason why so few older people "make the grade" is because they’ve given up on the idea of being able to make a living in the way they always wanted to! :-)

In every biography or auto-biography I’ve read over the years and they are a particular passion of mine. The people whose stories I’ve read, have one thing in common - they never, ever, EVER give up on their dreams, until their dreams become their reality! I think of Colonel Sanders, whose KFC business was started by him after he retired. I think of Abraham Lincoln who had tried so many times over thirty years and failed to be elected to public office, before being elected President of the United States at the age of 60! I think of Winston Churchill who had many failures in his army and political life, before he had his "finest hour" in his 70’s!

In music, Tina Turner was 45 before she became a massive star, although she had a couple of hits "River Deep Mountain High" in the 60’s and "Nutbush City Limits" in the 70’s; it wasn’t until she believed in herself, as being a great entertainer that she became the one who "strutted her stuff" to world acclaim. Gordon Haskell had always been involved in music but it wasn’t until at age 55 that he had a massive hit with "How Wonderful You Are" at Christmas 2001 selling 400,000 copies and becoming the most requested song on radio ever! His album "Harry’s Bar" also sold in large quantities too here in the UK, in early 2002.

Are you still unconvinced that it is still worthwhile to take the plunge and make your passion into your income? All I’d say to you is that’s exactly what I did at the beginning of 2006 and I must say I often wonder what it would have been like had I made that decision much earlier. I’m living my dream and I can thoroughly recommend doing that to anyone!

The course I went through myself with my life coach Sharon, at the beginning of my Life Coach training is the one I now present to others, mainly by telephone or on Skype over the internet, which gives my clients the tools to help them achieve their dreams.

Too old? Only if you think you are!

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
Intnl Phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Thursday, 22 January 2009

The World is a Quantum Soup

How do you see the world?


Maybe you wonder what I listen to and read to keep me in a world view that can help people all the time? Well recently I was listening to Tony Robbins interviewing Deepak Chopra on one of Tony's "Power Talk" CD's.

I'll warn you this is a bit deep, but Deepak made this statement which I was so amazed by, I just had to write it down, it’s an answer he gave to one of Tony's questions, it's not part of a speech, so see what you make of it:

"We are thoughts that have learned how to create the physical machine. We are impulses of intelligence in a larger void of intelligence. We have learned how to create physical matter, by that I mean our minds and our bodies.

The world is a quantum soup, radically ambiguous, a ceaselessly flowing field of all possibilities of infinite choice. We are like King Midas - but where he could only turn things to gold, we can turn things into anything we like." Have I got you thinking?

The way I understand what Deepak Chopra is saying is as follows:

That the essence of our existence is not one of the physical form or something that can be measured in terms of three dimensions; but instead our life is our thoughts, our intelligence, our spirit, our personality.

And that the real you and the real me can like King Midas of old, change the things that are, into the things that we want them to become.

We can manipulate not only our own physical form by our thoughts, but also the way our world looks. This is the kind of work I help my clients with each day.

If that appeals to you, to know how to use your thought power, which maybe is lying dormant right now, to enable you to change things around you in your life? Why not accept the offer of a complimentary life coaching session? Do it now! Take action, those who do, are those who control their own lives!


Andrew Smith

Phone UK: 0800 085 8056
Phone Intnl: +44 (0)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Wednesday, 21 January 2009

How to become the Master of Your Own Destiny

Have you decided what the agenda for your life is?

Maybe I'm going to sound a bit sure of myself here, but I know you need a Life Coach. How am I so sure, well that’s because I believe that everyone including me needs a Life Coach! Every one of us needs someone to be on our side, totally supportive and desirous for us to get what we want out of our lives.

Best friends can fulfill such a role, but often they don't have the knowledge of how to help and they're too bothered with getting their own stuff sorted out, to be of real help.

Those old chestnut questions of who's right, who's wrong, the grey areas are all conjecture and irrelevant. By focusing your attention on you, what it is you want out of your life; what you want to achieve, what you want to be remembered for and your purpose in being here. You can then start to take control and work towards your own goals instead of working for someone else's, which you most surely are doing, if you don't have your own agenda for your life!

Like everybody else I get paid for the work I do and although we all like to think we make some kind of a contribution to society, by helping people to self actualise and to bring out their talents, I believe that the Life Coach earns every penny he or she gets!

For example did you know that Adolf Hitler wanted to be an artist? If only his tutor had encouraged him to paint, told him he was good at it instead of telling him he was hopeless at portraits or landscapes, we may be admiring the great contribution Hitler had made to the world of art, rather than having to remember the tragedy that was the Third Reich?

You might say that you're beyond help; some people tell me that they are! :-) I don't believe them, but if you believe you are beyond help, then I realize that for you it’s true! I also went through a very negative phase in my life. when I look back it I see it was because I lacked both variety and certainty in my life, didn't feel significant or loved, and I felt that I wasn't growing or making a contribution. When you know what the agenda for your life is you can start taking steps, however small to getting your needs fulfilled and leaving the sadness behind.

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
Intnl Phone: +44 (o)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Tuesday, 20 January 2009

How to Live the Life of Your Dreams Today

Is your life the way you'd like it to be?

Are you living every moment of every day with passion, determination and drive? Are you sure that you're on the right track to become the person you've always wanted to be?

My guess is that even if we feel that way most of the time, or even some of the time, we don't stay focused enough to remain "in the moment" with those thoughts. So here are a few suggestions that might help you to stay on course. Most of our problem in not being on top of things each day is down to us having unconscious negative beliefs about our capability of living life to the maximum. So how do we change this? We do it by managing our state of mind.

We can manage our state of mind easily by three easy to remember ways. By controlling our physiology, our language and our focus, let me explain:

1). Firstly, we can achieve this by changing our physiology, after all part of being human is to have fears and by changing the posture of our bodies we can change the way we feel. Stand the way you would stand if you were totally certain of your outcome. The way that you would stand if you were going to get all the things you want or would like. First I guess you'd be smiling, chin up, straight back and a twinkle in your eye. Am I right?

2). Secondly, we can also achieve that great state of mind by the language we use when we are talking to ourselves, or when we are thinking. What kind of words do you say to yourself? Do you turn yourself from a metaphoric prince into a frog? We should use incantations to change our state, not only saying the stuff we want to happen in our lives, that will change things for the better, but also to speak to ourselves in the certainty of knowing and feeling that this frog is turning into a prince!

3). Thirdly and finally, we can achieve the state of mind that will take you where you want to go is by keeping track of your focus and your beliefs about yourself. "Think highly of yourself because the world takes you at your own estimate!" So by using your physiology, your language or self talk and by choosing to focus on what's good in your life and having positive personal beliefs then you can become the passionate, determined and personally driven individual that you know you should be.

A Life Coach can help you achieve this kind of personality shift, and to possess the life that you've always wanted to have. Some say "A person is judged by the company they keep." Maybe with all the good will in the world, and all the kind thoughts that are focussed on you, some of your friends could be dragging you down? It's time to raise your standards, but don't forget to continue to love your friends and your family, wherever they may be within their own life's path.

Andrew Smith
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
Intnl Phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
url: http://andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Monday, 19 January 2009

That Awesome Person Called You!

That Awesome Person Called You!


Who is in awe of you?

In conversation with one of my clients, I was told about one of his business acquaintances that he said he was "in awe of," someone who my client had a very high opinion of; so I asked the client "Who is in awe of you?"

Often we see others as somehow further down the path than we are ourselves, they've got better knowledge, better connections, better abilities and they appear in comparison to us as super-human. We aspire to be like them.

The reason for this conclusion is because of our own perception not only of the world, but of our own place within it. We think we know all there is to know about ourselves and we're just ordinary, the skills we have are common place.

My client is a very successful small business owner, who built up his business from scratch, having to learn the tools of his trade as his business developed over the years. I'm sure that many of his clients see him as the expert in his area.

There is another question that I asked my client the next time I spoke to him; it’s a question I’d like to ask you too, "Are you in awe of yourself?" Psalm 139 v14 says that we are "Fearfully and wonderfully made!"

It's time to realize that you aren't insignificant; you too have knowledge, connections, talents and abilities. It's my belief we have all been sent into this life with a grand purpose, but sadly many people die with that potential unfulfilled. If you’re not sure, I’d love to help you to discover your purpose or maybe just how to get back on track, to the place where you know deep inside you're supposed to be in your life.


Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
Intnl Tel: +44 (0)114 251 4951
UK Tel: 0800 085 8056
Email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
Url: http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Friday, 16 January 2009

Lessons on Life from opening day of Wimbledon 2008

Does your life live up to the expectations you have of it?

Roger Federer was first out on the center court on the first day of Wimbledon 2008, defending his title. He went through to the second round in straight sets beating his friend and old doubles partner, the Slovakian, Dominik Hrbaty.

I watched as Roger showed his disappointment for not breaking serve to love. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the game of Tennis, what this means is that Roger obviously expects to win every single point, even when his opponent is serving! On the other side of the court Dominik hit the ball into the net in disappointment, when his serve was broken in the third set, seemingly consigning him to a 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 defeat.

At the time I watched this game unfold, it made me think, how life lives up to our expectations whether those expectations are excellent or poor. We are never beaten until we decide we are! I know Hrbaty was at the time of the game playing against the champion and that it was unlikely that he would beat Federer; but the game of tennis like the game of life is played one stroke a time, one point at a time and we owe it to ourselves to give ourselves the advantage of thinking about the possibility of things going our way, even if it’s against the tide.

If Hrbaty had denied Federer his 60th straight win on grass, I think Hrbaty would have been more surprised than anyone else! We all know that upsets occur in many sports, the results we expect don't always happen. If my observation is correct and Hrbaty had accepted that he was going to lose, after losing his serve in the third set, it serves (all puns intended) to illustrate that whatever we do in life, we should never give up!

If you want to win, commit yourself to the process of winning, give yourself heart and soul, know and be certain of your outcome, imagine your success and you will live a life of triumph!

Andrew Smith
Intnl Tel: +44 (0)114 251 4951
UK Phone: 0800 085 8056
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Thursday, 15 January 2009

Find your purpose and then you’ll find your passion!

What would you say is the purpose for your life?

I’m a people person, I care about everyone that I meet, what will become of them when my interactions with them are at an end? Will their lives be better for having met me, will I have touched them in some way for the good?

As a Life Coach I see part of who I am and what I do is to help people to find their purpose and their passion. So many seem to me to be living lives of quiet desperation; I've stood outside our local shopping mall watching people coming and going and thought to myself - where have the smiles gone?

I believe we all have talents and that we were all sent here with a purpose. A life coach is a person who can help you to find out what your purpose is, if you really haven't got a clue, then once you know what it is they can help you to work towards achieving your purpose.

When someone is on purpose in their lives, when what they do every day is what they love doing; then although someone looking in from the outside would say, you're just like me you've got a job. The one on purpose would say it's really not like work for me; it's what I love to do. This is how you can become passionate about your life and you can feel fulfilled every day.

This life of purpose, passion and fulfillment is available to everyone. What do you love to do, I believe that is what you were meant to be doing all along! Where do your talents lie, what are you good at? Why aren't you doing that very thing to earn your keep, what’s stopping you from giving up the drudgery and living your life to the full?

Let a Life Coach help keep you on track, by sharing the tools and strategies that we have to share, to make your life all you ever dreamed it to be. When you know your calling, you'll know ultimate fulfillment in your life!

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
Intl Tel: +44 (0)114 251 4951
UK Tel: 0800 085 8056
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Wednesday, 14 January 2009

How to Have Your Dreams Come True

How can I have the biggest of my dreams come true?

Well I guess I became qualified in the answering of this question last year, when on the 24th April 2007 on our Silver Wedding Anniversary Day, whilst visiting Hollywood and Santa Monica in California, Anne and I went down to The Boardwalk in Venice Beach and just after that, I paddled in the Pacific Ocean, something that previously I had only dreamed of doing!

You might think, well Andrew, that’s really nice for you, I’m very pleased for you that you, you had that experience, but what’s that got to do with me? What’s that got to do with anything that might be happening, in my life right now? The point that I’m making is it’s possible to do something that you previously thought you would never do. You might think that this isn’t such an amazing thing to do but you see I’d never been on an airplane before!

I hear you say “Where had you been Andrew, all your life?” The answer is: the UK!
I always used to say “Why do people go abroad when there are so many lovely places to visit in the UK?” So getting on the airplane that took Anne and myself to LA made the big deal of our Silver Wedding Anniversary itself, even bigger and that’s not to mention our further trips, on to Las Vegas and then the Grand Canyon. Just having paddled in the Pacific Ocean would have been a story worth telling to my Grandsons.

The detail of what happened as I walked along the shore line at Venice Beach is a funny story in itself and worth telling to you now. At the moment I was there paddling, I was asking Anne to “Take a photo of me!” because I realized how amazing this walk along the beach was. This wasn’t Morecambe, Whitby, Bridlington or Scarborough, this was “Cal I Forn I A!” and I’d just recently walked across a footbridge that had taken me across Highway 1, the main American Pacific Highway to the Santa Monica Pier, where I’d walked above the Pacific Ocean quite a long way from dry land, to the end of the Pier to be precise! 

Anyway, back in Venice Beach, I was being videoed, Anne shouted “Duck!” I said “What?!” She said “Duck, there’s a pelican flying towards you!” I’ve never seen a bird that big before, not outside of a zoo anyway! I just ducked at the right moment without seeing the bird and I’m sure if I hadn’t, it would have knocked me over or even knocked me out by hitting me in the head. It’s a good job I picked up the anxiousness and warning tone in Anne’s voice, I remember thinking to myself penguin, puffin, pelican, their all very much the same size aren’t they, but they’re not and I’ve got our Silver Anniversary video to prove it!

So I had this experience last year of going to the other side of the planet and the reason that happened was because of some goals that I’d set and because of the way that my life changed when I got my own Life Coach and changed my thinking to believing that anything is possible. What’s more hand on heart; I do believe that anything is possible in your life too! In my work as a Life Coach I have seen this transformation of thinking happen in many people’s lives and also I’ve been privileged to share the joy that the outcome of that change of thinking has had in my client’s lives.

I’d love to be the Life Coach that was the one that helped you to gain the tools, the strategies and the wisdom that will take you to, from where you are to where you want to be. So please, please, please, do yourself the favor of making sure that you’re getting the most that you possibly can get out of your life.

Andrew Smith
+44 (0)114 251 4951
andrew@gistli.co.uk
http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Tuesday, 13 January 2009

Achievement and Self Image

Why is it that we haven’t achieved the things that we would dearly have loved to have already achieved in our lives?

Well, this is a good question isn’t it? The psychologists tell us that our self image has completely developed by the age of six! So I ask you, “Would you let a six year old go and do your job?” What I mean by that is that as far as confidence in yourself is concerned, unless you’ve worked on it since; your self confidence was installed, if you’re speaking computer language, by the age of six. So if you have had some unpleasant experiences as a small child, if your Dad told you not to play near the electric supply, and told you “It’s very dangerous!” Then your lack of confidence in yourself, not being able to know what is harmful or safe for example, can be traced back to then.

One of the things that Life Coaches do is to work with people, on their lives and show them how to build up their confidence. One of the ways that we build your self confidence is by helping you to face your fears and then little by little bit by bit proving to you that yes, you really are as capable as everybody else! 

By having a Life Coach along with you for the ride, someone who can discuss what happened when things haven’t gone exactly to plan and at that time be supportive; then when things do go exactly to plan, to be there to celebrate with you, but either way a Life Coach can keep you on track by helping you to be neither over confidant or despairing. When you feel like giving up, the Life Coach is there saying, “No it’s not time to give up, it’s time to press on! It’s time to be challenged and to be inspired, and to feel yes that’s really where I want to go!”

For well over two years now, I have coached people from all over the world, from many different walks of life and with well over a thousand hours of coaching completed I am certain that I can be a catalyst for change in your life too! Having spent a thousand hours coaching people I’d have to be a fool to not understand the human condition by now, what’s more as you must realize, I am a human being myself!

You can actually become all that you want to be and Life Coaches are the people who are well equipped to help you to achieve that and there is no reason at all other than the reasons that you give yourself why you haven’t progressed further in your life, that is further in the direction that you intend to go in your life.

So the first Life Coaching session that I would take you through is totally free and it’s a goal setting session and in that session we discover together what it is that you really want to do and then we start working on getting you from where you are to where you want to be.

Don’t let the lack of self-confidence of that six year old rule in your life anymore, let the six year old grow up and let the six year old become a seven and an eight and a nine and a ten and an adult person that realizes day by day that you are capable of all that you dream of doing in your life.

You don’t have to cow tow to everyone around you and fit in. You can do what you want to do as long as you don’t hurt anyone in the process. Some people don’t mind hurting others, but that isn’t something I would coach you to do. But yes, you can grow in wisdom, you can grow in tenacity and determination, you can achieve and you can be inspired. I have been described by my clients as an inspirational coach and I know I can inspire you to move on in your life to be all that you want to be.

Andrew Smith
+44 (0)114 251 4951
andrew@gistli.co.uk
http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Monday, 12 January 2009

Where Did My Journey Into Self Development Begin?

Over twenty years ago I was passed a cassette tape and a book by a colleague of mine in the Life Assurance industry, in which I was working at the time. The cassette tape was of Earl Nightingale's radio broadcast "The Strangest Secret," recorded before I was born and the book was Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich," also in existence before I was born. Since that time I have listened to that cassette and many others like it many times, the book I now know to be a classic and my copy is beginning to fall apart with fare wear and tear.

I consider myself to be well educated in Personal Development now, but often the theory whilst inspirational and exciting, without the subsequent actions that these Self Development teachers encourage us to take, is like having a car but never taking it out for a drive! One man who did take the information "out for a drive" is Bob Proctor., when as a young man back in 1960 both Earl Nightingale and Napoleon Hill's work became known to him.

Bob was a fireman earning what was then a respectable $4,000 a year, but was himself $6,000 in debt and desperate to improve his situation in life. He not only read Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich" which was based on the research Hill had done interview 504 of the wealthiest people in the United States, but Bob started to implement the strategies that the book taught.

Within a year he had personal income of of $100,000 and within a short period of time, he secured work with Earl Nightingale who became his personal mentor. Bob is now 74 years of age a multi-millionaire who has gone on to mentor and teach many other people who are now millionaires or multi-millionaires themselves. Bob has an amazing way of communicating the information he has personally put into practice for almost fifty years.

When I'm 74, I'd love to have not only the same passion, the same ability to inspire and challenge people to create the life they long for, but also something that mesmerizes me when I see Bob the amazing twinkle in his eye!

Below please find a link to a video that Bob has recently recorded, which I believe could be the inspiration that turns the current economic downturn on it's head. When you've watched it please let me know what you think about it, email me at "andrew@gistli.co.uk" and I'll personally send you a pdf copy of Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich."



http://store.sixminutestosuccess.com/?aid=585307

You may need to copy and paste the link into your browser.

Friday, 9 January 2009

Why Does Anyone Need A Life Coach?

Why Does Anyone Need A Life Coach?

Well, I have a theory and maybe it’s true, maybe it’s not, I’ll let you decide. My theory is that eighty percent of the people in the western world really don’t enjoy their lives. What most of them are doing is going from one crisis to another; they go to their jobs each day, pay the bills and although they maybe get a holiday or two each year, they don’t feel fulfilled. They don’t experience a life that is on purpose; they know that their lives should be so much more than it really is.

However, if you’d asked those same people in their late teens or early twenties, what they wanted to do with their lives; whatever their answer would have been back then, it’s certainly not what they are doing in their lives right now! I also believe that it’s still not too late to have the life of your dreams and that anyone can be totally fulfilled and live a life of passion. What’s more, I believe that the Life Coach has the tools and the strategies to help people like you and me get to where we’ve always wanted to be.

So, why does anyone need a life coach? Well I think first of all, everybody’s got one! The person most people use as their Life Coach is either a family member, maybe it’s their parents, maybe it’s a brother or a sister, a dear Aunt or Uncle. It could be a friend, a very close friend or someone that they know at work, that seems to be there to advise them and to help them along their life’s way.

The problem is that those well meaning people are not trained to coach, they do it from their hearts, which is great, but they don’t really understand the processes involved. The tools and the strategies that I’ve learned and used not only with my clients but in my own life too, I know your life could be enhanced if you were to make use of them yourself. If you go to my website http:www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com you can read testimonials of people who have been helped, by these Life Coaching tools.

And the great news is, that there’s a free session, a one hour session that I’m willing to give to you, just to help you to see how you can benefit from having a Life Coach. Then at the end of that session you can make an informed decision as to whether you want to continue with the Life Coaching process in your life.

I want everyone reading or listening to this, to have the opportunity of this taster session and for you to find out whether Life Coaching will indeed do for you, what it says on the tin. That it will aid you enormously on your journey from where you are to where you really want to be in your life; to enable you to have a life of purpose, a life of joy, a life of fulfillment.

Andrew Smith

info@gistli.co.uk
+44 (0)114 251 4951
+44 (0)7931 582 485
http://www.gistli.co.uk/
http://uk.youtube.com/gistli
http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com/

Thursday, 8 January 2009

It’s Time to Start Believing In You!

“Who do you say that you are?” Who do you think you are? Do you believe that you are the sum total of all the good and bad things people have ever said about you? Or are you “the observer” of your life; “the observer” and not “the observed”? I wonder if you understand the difference between those two concepts “the observer” and “the observed;” please let me have the opportunity to explain.

During most of our lives what we tend to do, is to get out there into the world and live our lives. We do the things that we do, without really thinking about what we are doing, we’re on auto-pilot. It’s the one who lives their lives in that way, that I describe as “the observed.” Why do I do that, because the only ones considering the outcome of their actions, whilst they live in that way, are other people and then it’s only when those “other people” are showing an interest.

However, “the observer” is the one I describe as that little quietness within us, that is able to observe everything we say and do and able to make a considered opinion about the events of our lives and what are the best next set of actions for us to take. So I ask you, “Do you listen to “the observer” rather than the voices of those around you, who are making their own comments?” After all it’s your life, shouldn’t you be the one who has the main say in it?

Are we just “the observed” person inside the stage coach of our lives, being pulled along by the five horses of our senses? Are we being pulled along by the things we see, by what we hear, what we smell, what we taste and what we touch or; are we someone that “observes” all of that and in the quietness of our thoughts, decides which actions will help us or hinder our lives as we live from day to day?

Some people say, “I have an alcohol problem!” and I think “No, what you have is a horse problem!” You’re allowing your senses to dictate to you, where it is you’re going to go in your life. Maybe you think of your body sat inside the stage coach as being you, but really you are that silent inner witness that sits within your body;” the observer,” that is the real you!

So the question that I’m asking here is, “Will you allow that inner wisdom that you have, which each one of us has, to decide what you do with your life or are you going to continue to allow your body and your senses to take you in the direction that they seem to want you to go in and remain on auto pilot?”

Let me add one more thing that I have become aware of. It’s not only our senses that make us do what we do. Sometimes it’s the tribal mentality that causes us to act in a certain way; we do what we do because that is what our friends and family, our peer group or society expects of us. Are you going to be led by the tribe, or are you going to be someone who challenges the normal things that happen every day in your life and say “No let’s think about this differently?”

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
+44 (0)114 251 4951
andrew@gistli.co.uk
www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Wednesday, 7 January 2009

F.E.A.R. or False Evidence Appearing Real?

We all suffer from fear at one time or another in our lives. It comes to us in six different forms and you'll be lucky if you don't suffer at sometime from each type of fear. The most common form of fear is the fear of poverty, the second fear is the one of being criticized, the third is the fear of ill health, the fourth is the fear of lost love, the fifth is old age and finally death.

However fears are nothing more than an expression of our thinking at any given point in time. The great news is that we are capable of directing our thoughts down a different path which means that, we are able to take control of our minds! :)

What we focus on and think about does eventually become our reality, so it is extremely important that we are aware of our thinking and when it takes steps in the direction of fear, we need to change those thoughts. Each of us has the possibility of having complete control over our minds and the tools you need to do exactly that are available in shortened form in my 20 Tips to "Recession Proof Your Mind."

The first seven are available to you for FREE by sending an email to me at "andrew@gistli.co.uk" with the title "Recession Proof My Mind!" in the subject box.

Andrew Smith
+44 (0)114 251 4951
http://www.myspace.com/434406626

Tuesday, 6 January 2009

Is your glass half empty or half full?

The subject of the recession is a major topic, and usually the aim of the media seems to be to "big it up." Engendering fear in another person is something I dislike intently! People have enough problems to cope with each day without the media "laying it on thick" with their poetic use of the English language.

Sadness, fear and depression seem to roam the land at this point in a way that they should not be allowed to do! The government has been accused by the media recently of "talking up the economy" as if that were some kind of bad thing?

On the news today I heard that the shares in the clothing retailer Next, had been going up in value substantially, because (although they didn't have a Pre-Christmas Sale this year like many other retailers) their sales figures weren't as bad as they thought they'd be. They were expecting worse results! Why? because of course the media had been telling them to expect the worst!

The worst case scenario with the so called recession is that people will lose their livelihoods, with all that entails. I personally hope that this is not your experience, but if it is; then I can tell you that I have been unemployed twice myself. Looking back, with hindsight now on what happened to me, I can tell you that I didn't return to work until I had taken a certain number of actions to secure alternative employment.

I used to think that it was a matter of time before I'd get a new situation, but now I know it wasn't to do with days and weeks, it was to do with my actions and inactions. When you set your heart on a particular employment opportunity and it doesn't work out, the unemployed person gets down and depressed and gives up for a little while. Then realizes that "giving up" isn't helping them to find work, they start putting some effort in again (well at least that was my experience).

So if the worst comes to the worst, by staying positive, determined and having a "never give up" mentality, even unemployment can be a happy and expectant time in your life. Maybe you hated your job anyway or were ready for a change of situation. In which case you could say the recession has done you a great favour.

To make sure your glass is always half full and never half empty send me an email to "andrew@gistli.co.uk" with "Recession Proof My Mind" in the subject box and I will start to send you my "20 Mind Recession Proofing Tips."

Andrew Smith :)
phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
http://www.gistli.co.uk
http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Sunday, 4 January 2009

Tania Moran's Testimonial about The Musicians Life Coach

Your kindness, love, generosity and support are unlike anything I have witnessed before. You are something very special indeed and it's been wonderful for me to have your guidance over the past few months, with love from Australia, Tania.

Tania Moran
http://www.myspace.com/taniamoran

Saturday, 3 January 2009

Sunil Chopra’s Testimonial about The Musicians Life Coach

Andrew combines a passionate love of music with excellent coaching skills. He has the ability to help you put focus and direction into your music career and to help you achieve any of your goals. He does this firstly by identifying any problems that you may have and then helps you to devise effective marketing strategies to get your career on track.

So whether you're looking to channel, nurture or to be recognized for your creative energies and talent, Andrew is the man! He has some industry contacts and may be able to help you to open your music to new markets. He is also sensitive to the needs and requirements of artists and will ensure that these come first. Andrew's success is based on his great sense of love and compassion which makes him so approachable and so likable.

Sunil Chopra
sunilmuse@yahoo.com

Friday, 2 January 2009

What is your fantasy?

There are three types of goal or "New Year's Resolution" to aim for and the first two types are usually the one's that you fail to achieve but sadly they are the ones that most people adopt!

There are the goals that we know we can have, maybe it's a new TV? How come we know we can have a new TV? It's because we already have a TV. It's easy to believe we can have a replacement to anything we own, we've done it before, so we can do it again!

Then there are the goals we think we can have, like loosing weight! Other people have lost weight, we've seen their stories; so if we consider the problem and think about it, we should be able find or work out a strategy for loosing weight!

The problem with the know and think type goals is that both of them lack inspiration. Without inspiration our goals lose their desirability and very early on in our pursuit of these type of goals we give up with our attempt to have them.

If you want a goal that you see as a pure fantasy, you will have to use your imagination to go get it and you will find that this will be a most inspiring journey. The inspiration will carry you through till you have the goal! However, most people don't even consider this type of goal and why is that?

As children we believed that anything was possible, our parents encouraged us to use our imagination, as it often served them to get us out from under their feet. But when we got to school we were told by our teachers to stop looking out of the window and to concentrate on the lesson being taught and if we didn't we would be punished in some way for not paying attention. They stopped us from using our imagination and conditioned us to think about what they wanted us to think about, very much like the media attempts to do to us in our adult life.

Albert Einstein said "Imagination is more important than knowledge, it is the preview of life's coming attractions!" I suggest that you should escape your conditioning, instead start to imagine and fantasize and then your goals will become your reality!

Roger Bannister ran the first sub four minute mile, Edmund Hillary climbed Everest, Wilbur and Orville Wright built a flying machine! Everyone said these things were impossible ... but they weren't!

So what is it that you want? What is your fantasy? I suggest whatever it is, however unrealistic, you pursue it with all your might! You may want to consider having a Life Coach at your side throughout the journey to keep you on track, to believe in you, to share the tools and strategies that will help and to encourage you if you ever feel like giving up.

Napoleon Hill said "The imagination is the most marvelous, miraculous, inconceivably powerful force the world has ever known!" I suggest you use yours! :)

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk
http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com

Thursday, 1 January 2009

So here it is 2009!

Happy New Year!

I was watching TV earlier today and there was a documentary about a London secondary school (ages 11-18) who had been given the opportunity to perform "Hairspray the Musical" in a West London theater. It took them six weeks to prepare the show which was attended by proud parents and many hundreds of others.

The cast were amazed at their own abilities, the parents were in tears of joy. I haven't seen so many happy faces on TV all at the same time, ever before! The production was excellent considering who was presenting it and how long they had taken to prepare.

It made me think that this kind of presentation should be made compulsory to every secondary school. Not that they should perform in the West End, but in local theater's; the sense of accomplishment those taking part received and the joy and happiness it would bring to both the cast and the audience is exactly what we need throughout the world right now; in my humble opinion.

If you are a musician reading this, remember you have the ability to lift the human spirit by your performance. Your's is a high calling! The rest of us who make up the audience, should allow ourselves to get caught up in a live music event and allow ourselves to feel the joy and the happiness of the creative spirit at work!

If you see someone without a smile ... give them one of yours!

Make this a truly Happy New Year for yourself and everyone you meet!

Andrew Smith (aka The Musicians Life Coach)
phone: +44 (0)114 251 4951
email: andrew@gistli.co.uk &
andrewsmithlifecoach@yahoo.com
http://www.andrewsmithlifecoach.com
http://themusicianslifecoach.blogspot.com/