Andy Ramage Podcast

Days Left On Earth: 17512A life without problems would be horrifically dull.  Yet no one welcomes obstacles.But what if your challenges are specifically designed to make you stronger? I like how Thomas Merton describes it, “Souls are like athletes that need opponents worthy of them. If they are to be tried and extended and pushed to the full use of their powers.” The universe is testing you. Do you want what resides on the other side of the obstacle?HappinessSuccessJoyRelief Peace LoveConnection…If so, the barricade is not a reason to give up, it is a sign to push on.Or as Marcus Aurelius, arguably the last great Roman Emperor, penned in his private journal, known as the meditations:“The impediment to action advances action.What stands in the way becomes the way”Today meet your obstacles with a smile.Thank you, Ryan Holiday, ‘The Obstacle Is The Way’ for the inspiration.

Days Left On Earth: 17513 You can meditate all you like.Exercise like a heroEat like a saint But if you’re still drinking too much you’re missing an essential ingredient of performance that almost everyone overlooks.In summary - You can’t out mediate, out exercise or eat your way out of the hole a few drinks creates.These are the facts. Even a few drinks destroys the quality your sleep. All the science suggests that poor sleep destroys performance. We all been there on a Friday morning after a few on a Thursday. Hows performance on these days?And what about the day after?As you age it takes longer to recover.For years I was drinking and under performing. I just never questioned it. Then 8.5 years ago I stopped and it transformed ny buisness, career, income, health and happiness.I also discovered that going alcohol-free is a superpower in a business world thats awash with booze. So why are we not talking about tactical breaks from alcohol as a superpower performance tool?The truth is that its a cultural blindspot. Most everyone is boozing therefore its a level playing field.Or is it.And the world of business is rapidly catching onto the idea of tactical breaks.All the athletes, and elite business performers I work with have now stopped drinking.The elite athletes and business professionals I work with are taking more and more time away from the booze. They too have unlocked a secret alcohol-free super power. So if we are going to talk performance surely its time that we also speak about tactical breaks from the booze.

Days Left On Earth: 17514You can't keep up with the Joneses because you will notice more Joneses living on a better street with better stuff as soon as you catch them.So it would help if you worked longer and harder to keep up with a moving target.You'll permanently adapt to the bigger house, better car. But you will never get the first school assembly, nativity play or netball match, sunrise or adventure back.All the cars in the world can't mend a broken relationship that runs fallow because you're too busy trying to earn money to pay for everything to be happy.What is important to you?What brings your joy?Equally, I love those who strive to achieve. I am one of them. The secret is to ground yourself in the essential things and use this as your non-negotiable foundation of success. Family first, health, gratitude for what you have rather than chasing a material moving target.You can wave the Joneses goodbye from this place of power because you are taking life to a place where they're not. Your foundation is not external; it's internal. AndyPS I have noticed that external economic success often follows from this internal foundation of success!

Days left on earth: 17516Earning £38 per week as a football apprentice was the wealthiest I ever felt. Living at home with no bills, with everything taken care of by my lovely mum and dad, all I had to do was play football and afford the odd night out.Driving a beat-up Ford Fiesta that you could start with a house key, with no heating, so I had to wear ski gloves in winter - I felt like a million dollars.Then a few years later, I earned a million dollars and felt trapped and overwhelmed by living expenses. I know this is ridiculous. But it's so many people's stories. The numbers will differ, but the sensation of feeling trapped by a desire for more is universal. But there is a skilful way out that takes a ton of courage.You stop to “actually” smell the roses. This does not mean you stop trying to be successful or earn money. I enjoy both. But you stop trying to find happiness in what you don’t have.And start feeling grateful for what you do have right now.A hug with a loved oneThe cup of tea made with love.Cuddles with a pet.Laughs with friends.These moments create happiness but are too often missed trying to earn more money to be happy!So today, focus on one thing that brings you joy in your life.Here’s mine - A cup of coffee while I write these words.Check out my socials:linktr.ee/andyramage

Days Left On Earth: 17516 ' It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it.' - Seneca.As I read these words from one of my heroes, Seneca, the roman philosopher,  all I could think about was death. Even writing the word 'death' feels uncomfortable. To be clear, my thoughts were happy ones. I suddenly realised that no one has the right to a long life. Fait could take it away at any moment. There are no guarantees: Saints, heroes and villains all pass at some point. Just because you are a 'good' person does not mean you will live until a ripe old age passes serenely in your sleep. In this moment of reflection, I feel strong and confident that I am making the most of this beautiful life. Equally, I understand that this is easy to say as I write these words feeling fit as a fiddle. But what of fate? The drunk driver, cancer, heart disease or sickness. Present-day health has nothing to say about such events. Life is so fragile. It takes the slightest slip, and it's over. Please understand me. This is not meant to sound morbid, and it did not feel like my mind was wandering toward my demise. It was strangely liberating. To know if I left the building of life, I could do so safe in the knowledge I have lived it.What now? Do I start to walk across roads with my eyes closed? Why should I care about living well in the present if I am fearless of the future?This mind exercise produced a simple answer: I am more determined than ever to enjoy every second of this beautiful life. I will eat well and exercise to nourish my body with the elements required to thrive. It gave me the energy to extract every last drop from this beautiful life. I will look after my mind as though it were a precious gem that should never be lost. And I will never let a hangover rob me of another minute. It is time to lift my head and smile at the stranger, for I am not scared of life anymore. No one or nothing can take it away from me before it's time. I am ready, born ready. There is nothing to take, only extra to add. I will not sit around and wait for it to decide my ending. I will write my script from this day on. If my play last's for another 20 minutes or 70 years, I will enjoy every second as best I can.What will your story say?

Days left on earth: 17517“This space that has been granted to us rushes by so speedily and so swiftly that all save a very few find life at an end, just when they are getting ready to live.” Seneca The majority have it wrong. They are waiting under the illusion at some point in the future, everything will be perfect, and they can live happily ever after.But it rarely works out this way.So they wait until it’s too late and only start to live as they can see the end. The regrets of the dying are all around us.So here’s an idea. Start living now. Really living. Breathe life into your bones. Stop to smell the roses. Smile through adversity. Hug your loved ones like it's the last time. Connect with old friends, catch a sunrise, not tomorrow or at a later date - today.

Days Left On Earth: 17519We live like we're immortal under the assumption that there will be enough' time when we might not wake up tomorrow.The brutal reality is all around us, yet we often choose to ignore it until it's too late.A top regret of the dying, according to Bronnie Ware, is, "I wish I had not worked so hard."Ware's words are not pessimistic. They are joyous.Living under a false assumption of a guaranteed tomorrow means we miss the bliss in the present.These are not throw-away platitudes; our happiness lives in our ability to pause to smell the coffee.Here is a radical idea.What if every day was a lifetime? How would you live it?Would you hug your loved ones and breath the feeling into your bones?Perhaps you would savour a moment in nature or stop to smell the roses?A conversation with a loved one might take on a whole new dimension if it were your last.Or the small talk with a stranger might be enthused with loving energy that leaves a glow.If today is your lifetime, how will you live it?

Days left on earth: 17519In this episode, I tell you why 'Less But More' is a more efficient approach for those early mornings where you need to cram in as much as possible, but in reality, it's Quality > Quantity.By listening for just a few minutes, you will learn how to make your morning routines much more efficient and why doing less work will make your results higher quality.We spend so much time trying to optimise time, with the dream of finally getting on top of the to-do list, yearning to complete the bucket list. All the while, there is background anxiety of time slipping away.Here is a radical idea - could you do much less but better?Rather than cramming your day with ten things to do before breakfast, could you do one really well? With all your energy, commitment and presence?Let me know what you choose.

Visit my website www.andyramage.com for FREE workshops on how to Today I am 48, and if I live to the same age as the Queen, I am halfway.Put another way; I have 2496 weeks left Or 17520 days Or not.When I first thought about how few weeks I had left a few years ago, I freaked out. I had so much I wanted to do and not enough time.But I now feel the power of embracing the shortness of life.I might get as long as the Queen, or I might not.Today could be 17520 days until I depart this planet.Or it could be one day.I don’t know. None of us does,Yet I was guilty of years of assuming I had forever. Therefore I could put all my dreams and goals off into the distant future. You could hold a grudge or carry resentment because you would get over it in a few days.But when you accept the randomness of your time left. Every day becomes a gift.There is no point holding a grudge or allowing the news to piss you off all day. Or putting off important things into a future that is uncertain what you could do today.Forget the cliche.Why not live each day as if it were your last?How would you behave?Would you pause and hug your loved ones with all your mind & body?Would you feel grateful in your bones for the song of a bird?Would you smile more, love more, and enjoy more?So I plan to dedicate this podcast and blog to daily reflection.There might be 17520 episodes. Or not.Each day I will share something from my private journal that I have never really shared before.These reflections will be deep and more philosophical.I hope you enjoy and if you know anyone who might benefit, please share.Andy- Visit www.andyramage.com for FREE workshops and my newsletter.- You can train with me to become a coach go to www.aretewaycoach.com for details.- Download the FREE Dryy app, an alcohol-free online and offline community you will LOVE. 

Amanda is the CEO of the game-changing NoughtyAF - the first top-quality alcohol-free, organic, vegan, halal, low sugar sparkling. But thats not all; Amanda is an incredible businesswoman and now a fantastic ambassador for the whole alcohol-free industry. In this episode, Amanda shares her story of how she first found the courage to infiltrate the male-dominated industry of Champagne and is now leading the charge toward top-quality sparking and fine wines. With the global non-alcoholic market expected to reach an estimated $1.6 trillion by 2025, Amanda is one to watch!