In The Loop With Andy Andrews

On this week’s episode, Andy answers listener questions on transitioning out of a corporate job, gaining wisdom, and overcoming fears about things you can’t control. Listener Question #1: Which stories and biographies have had the greatest impact on you, and how do you read these stories in a way that allows you to gather wisdom from them? If you want to know what books have had a huge effect on Andy, look at what he has written. For example, the historical figures in The Traveler’s Gift were all people whose stories had an impact on Andy during the time he was writing the book. One of the things that is most important to gathering wisdom is to simply acknowledge that you are actively seeking it. You have to ask for wisdom to receive it. Remember, God was delighted when Solomon asked for wisdom. Listener Question #2: Is there one book in particular that would be the most helpful to someone who is trying to go from a corporate job to something different? What do you prescribe to someone who is stuck and wa

On this week’s episode, Andy explains why you must change your beliefs about yourself (and how to do so) if you want to achieve better results in your life. Opportunities are drawn to people in motion. One of the first things Suzanne did was to seek counsel.  She sought it from sources that she trusted instead of just asking everyone. She determined the steps that needed to be taken, and then she took those steps. When seeking counsel, it’s important not to ask everyone. You must seek wisdom from wise people. How do you determine who is wise? By examining the fruit on the tree. What kind of results is this person you’re thinking of asking for counsel getting? The purpose of analysis is to come to a conclusion, not to continue analyzing.  If you’re ever going to move beyond where you are, you must force yourself to think beyond what you already know. It’s important to determine a result and then form a process that will lead you to that result. It’s impossible to perform past what you believe. Our bel

On this week’s episode, Andy discusses why he feels that he has finally “arrived” in the field of professional coaching. Andy is now the official Mental Coach of…the Orange Beach Sharks. • This is his son’s 13-14-year-old baseball team. • He talks to the team before every practice and game. At the beginning of the season, he talked about umpires with the team. • The first thing they needed to know about umpires is that they’re kind of like TSA at the airport. You will not win an argument with them. • You can, however, tick them off. • Umpires are like brothers. If you tick them off, they won’t give you the benefit of the doubt on close calls. Here’s the plan he gave the team: • Other teams are going to go out on the field and say nothing to the umpires, unless they decide to complain. • Andy told them to never, ever argue a call or roll their eyes. • He told the team to talk to the umpires. Say hi and ask them how they’re doing. Ask them where they’re from. This lesson with the team is a lesson that appli

On this week’s episode, Andy tackles the listener question…is college necessary? Casey wants to become a speaker and asked if it’s possible to do so without going to college. You have to figure out what value you bring to other people. What can you bring to the table that will change someone’s life? You have to go beyond simple “You Can Do It” speaking. Encouragement is good, but it takes more than that to create lasting value. There is a huge resistance in corporate America to motivational speakers. If the audience thinks they’re about to see a “motivational” speaker, you’ll lose half of them before you say a word. Proof is better than motivation or encouragement. There was a time when if you did not have a degree, you would not be getting a job in certain fields. Obviously, that’s still the case in some areas, like medicine. Generally, it isn’t the case. Most people couldn’t care less if you have a piece of paper. All they want to know is: can you do this? And will they like being around you? It’s wh

On this week’s episode, Andy answers two listener questions about preparing for life transitions. Donna celebrated her 70th birthday shortly after hearing Andy speak about how to prepare for the next crisis in our lives. The next day, she went zip lining and got caught in the middle of one of the zip lines. Now in a crisis, she did not panic and calmly waited for the crew to come get her. Life can be lived like a second baseman. You don’t know what’s going to happen from one play to the next. But you do have some indications of what might happen. You do have to be prepared for whatever happens according to the circumstances. Before every pitch, you have to ask yourself, “If the ball comes to me, what am I going to do with it?” If you can think ahead a little bit, life becomes easier. You don’t make as many bad choices and mistakes. The same was true for Donna. She had already decided that God was in control. She knew how to respond when things went wrong. Another bit of listener feedback from a woman name

On this week’s episode, Andy talks about how to make your family your number one priority…and keep it that way. If you want to maintain a good balance between work and your life that enables you to spend more time with your family, you must start with priorities. If you say your family is your number one priority, you have to step back, observe your actions, and then determine if your actions match your words. It’s easy to “think past” certain aspects of your life that you think are certain and absolute. You may THINK your family is your number one priority, but have you really assessed whether that’s true or not? One thing that can mess your family up is if you don’t set expectations for how you will spend your time. You have to communicate your priorities and the exceptions to your priorities to your family. If you are having family time, let them know it is family time and that it’s the number one priority. If there are certain phone calls you know you may have to take, let your family know in advance

On this week’s episode, Andy talks about his family’s favorite show on TV, and why it could be a great thing for YOUR family to watch.  Duck Dynasty has become the Andrews family’s new favorite TV show. It’s like a modern-day version of The Waltons. They end every show with the entire family around the dinner table saying a prayer together. It’s a great show about family and business values. The people on the show offer great examples for mothers and fathers. They are also a great example of creating a business by coming up with a way to offer tremendous value to people. It’s not just another “reality” show. The episodes aren’t all about fighting and bad language. They show how families can sometimes disagree without being so disagreeable. The show reflects how large of a role faith plays in their lives. Questions for Listeners ·      What would you like to hear Andy discuss on future episodes? o   Phone: 1-800-726-ANDY o   E-Mail: InTheLoop@AndyAndrews.com o   Facebook.com/AndyAndrews o  Twitter.com/

On this week’s episode, Andy answers a listener question: What are some different, tangible ways that we can help others take action?   One of the most important things we can do to help others take action is to tell the truth that is the truth. ·      The truth stands alone, and the truth is the truth. ·      Yet someone can tell the truth while not telling the truth. ·      You must tell the truth that IS the truth.   You only know what you know, so you only do what you know to do. ·      To know something different requires an outside source: a person, a book, etc. ·      Most people think they are already taking action when they actually are not.   You lose perspective when you stop actively seeking growth. ·      You can’t go to the gym for three months and stay fit for the rest of your life. ·      If you read a book that changes your life, you can’t just stop after reading the book. ·      It’s hard and inconvenient to keep pushing yourself, but it’s essential to growth.   The ultimate answer is th

Andy uses a listener question to illustrate how to move your life to the next level by changing the way you think.   John, a listener who grew up with an alcoholic father and rough childhood but has turned things around and created a great life for his family, wrote in with a question. ·      He feels as though he could inspire people to reach their potential and succeed, but he doesn’t want his ability to provide for his family to suffer in order to chase after his dream of helping others. ·      How can he help others while also continuing to provide for his family?   John is ready to move to the next level. ·      You can look at people at different levels of life and deconstruct what steps they have taken to get there.   For John to be successful in moving to the next level, he needs to do these things: ·      He needs to get to the point where he’s duplicating his efforts and understands that he can teach other people how to do what he has done. ·      There is a type of thinking that has yielded c

On this episode, Andy tackles the question—how do you find and keep truly great friends?   There are three things you need to do in order to have great friendships: ·      You have to make an increasing effort to be a great friend. ·      God’s grace—they have to be able to forgive you when you mess up, and you have to be able to forgive them. ·      The biggest factor of all is the ability to narrow your focus and become intentional about what a friend actually is. That will enable you to seek and nurture that relationship. You have to know what a friend is in order to recognize a great one.   The people around you affect the person you become. ·      Would you rather be around someone who is constantly negative? ·      Or would you rather be around someone who is positive and keeps you moving forward with your life?   You have to be intentional with the way you budget the 24 hours you are given each day. ·      Are your friendships creating value in your life, and enabling you to create value for others? ·

Andy and AT bring special guest Julie Borlaug, granddaughter of Norman Borlaug (whom The Butterfly Effect and The Boy Who Changed the World is about), on the podcast to discuss the legacy of her grandfather’s life-changing work.   Norman Borlaug hybridized corn and wheat for arid climates, which ultimately saved the lives of over 2 billion people across the world from famine. ·      Andy reverse engineered Norman Borlaug’s life in multiple books to show that everything we do matters. ·      He absolutely changed the world. ·      Julie now works for the Borlaug Institute at Texas A&M, which continues the work Norman Borlaug started.   Andy came up with The Butterfly Effect story when the military contacted him about the problem of suicide among soldiers. ·      How do you prove to people that their life matters? ·      He was researching George Washington Carver when he discovered Norman Borlaug.   Julie had the opportunity to work directly with Norman during the last six years of his life. ·      Norman

Andy and AT share a message from a listener about an amazing moment the listener created in a restaurant by honoring a friendly waiter.   When you honor people and give them a “standing ovation,” amazing things happen. ·      Everyone involved will end up paying it forward. ·      It will change the way they interact with everyone for at least the rest of the way. ·      It will create an immeasurable ripple effect.   We’re very quick to tell someone when things aren’t done properly. ·      Why don’t we point out when things are done right? ·      We can change our culture by beginning to do things differently, and honoring those who get it right…instead of always complaining when something is wrong.   We’re either doing something or nothing. ·      Which one are you doing? ·      If you’re doing something, Andy wants to hear about it. ·      We’ve all got the guts to tell everyone how bad someone did, but who has the guts to tell someone what a different they made?   Were you encouraged or helped by this pod

Andy and AT discuss what we need to do to make days like Valentine’s Day special. Andy shares a funny story of what he recently did to make just an average night with his family a special occasion.   Is it important to make Valentine’s Day special, or is it just a dumb holiday? ·      Yes, it is a dumb holiday…and yes, we DO need to make it special. ·      At one point, Andy was just having his assistant order flowers to send his wife, Polly, for him. ·      Eventually, Polly told him that flowers he had his assistant order didn’t mean all that much.   So he started putting more intention into doing something that showed Polly he actually cared. ·      You don’t have to wait for Valentine’s Day or any kind of special day to surprise your spouse or your kids or anyone with something special. ·      Andy did this the other day by cooking a surprise dinner with an extremely unique menu for his family. ·      Look for ways to make ordinary days special days, no matter whether it’s Valentine’s Day or not.   If yo

A few weeks ago, Andy had the opportunity to speak in front of a large number of members of the U.S. Congress and their spouses. Before he spoke to them, he and A.T. discussed what the talk would be about.   What king of message should someone share when speaking to leaders, influencers, and decision-makers?   You should always go in with a humble attitude. Show gratefulness for their service and their influence.   All leaders face criticism, so you have to take that into account.   You may be thinking the leaders you are speaking to need to change some things, but that’s true with all leaders. You have to show a little grace if you’re hoping to engender change. If you go into a room of people and tell them they’re stupid and going in the wrong direction, the result you desire will not happen.   You have to remind them of the things they already know to be true.   You may not be that qualified to speak about the specific type of work they are doing, but you can illustrate principles to them that are tr

On today’s podcast, professional drummer Jeff Jones, formerly of the band Big Daddy Weave, joins Andy and A.T. to talk about transitioning your life and career. After reading The Traveler’s Gift and listening to the podcast, Jeff decided it was time to transition from being a drummer to becoming a speaker. He had been the drummer for Big Daddy Weave, touring all over the country and the world, for 13 years. He had been gone about 140 days per year for his family’s entire life. Jeff came up with the acronym WISE, which has become the crux of his message. It stands for What I Sacrifice Every Day. The acronym embodies the choices you make in order to achieve the results you want in your life. When he was a kid and decided he wanted to play drums for a living, he began making sacrifices every single day in order to achieve that dream. Andy’s Storms of Perfection series also inspired Jeff to create a custom pair of drumsticks for camouflage company Mossy Oak. The series inspired him to take action. It taught

On today’s podcast, Andy and A.T. discuss how to teach children to persevere through difficulties and struggles.   Listener question: How do you influence your boys in a positive way in regard to what they want to be when they grow up? It’s important to connect what someone wants to do with the things they have to do to get there. You want to encourage while also keeping in mind that their mind can easily change, especially when they are younger.   Whatever your children are trying to do or learn, you have to encourage them to stay in the hard places. You gain ground when you keep going through the hard places. Even adults tend to stop trying when things get hard. We remain comfortable only with the things that come easy.   We need to change the culture surrounding childhood education in our country. Cultures that have better results in education have better results because of the way they think. Our culture does not think there is honor in struggling, which causes us to avoid struggling through difficu

On today’s podcast, Andy and A.T. discuss the techniques that are necessary to mastering goal setting.   Andy’s tip for goal-setting is to be honest with yourself If Moses had spent a little more time up on the mountain, he would have come down with an 11th Commandment: Thou shalt not kid thyself. Don’t set yourself up for defeat by trying to do something crazy. As opposed to saying, “I’m never eating brownies for the rest of my life,” try to not eat brownies for a week. Accomplish your goals in small chunks and you will eventually accomplish something major.   Reward yourself when you accomplish small milestones Don’t overdo it, but give yourself a small reward. It’s important to keep your morale up.   Be able to measure your goal The bathroom scale is a great tool. Find a “bathroom scale” to measure any goal you set.   Instead of always focusing on the ultimate goal, focus on the process Become a master of the little things you have to accomplish along the way to the ultimate goal. Never lose sight

On today’s podcast, Andy discusses how the ability to work through confusion is what separates the great from the average.  God has created you with a will that is stronger than your emotions People often say “That’s just the way I am” and use it as a crutch for bad behavior But you can use your will to overcome your feelings and emotions You have to use your will to overcome the tendency to ignore your health If what you are currently doing is not getting the results you want, you need to: Begin thinking differently Go beyond just “thinking outside the box” Do not do what everyone else is doing, because not everyone is achieving the results you want Confusion always guards the answer Ordinary people have no problem getting through little bitty pieces of confusion Those who can work in the midst of great amounts of confusion can do great things Ask “Why?”

On today’s episode of In the Loop, Andy and A.T. discuss the epidemic of business, government, and community leaders being unfaithful in marriage and what we can do about it.   What are the sources of infidelity? ·      One is the fact that we live in a fallen world—the nature of man is a source of it ·      Our affections rule every part of our life, so we must guard them carefully ·      Even if you’ve been married for a long time, you still need to constantly guard yourself ·      You have to live an open life—a life in which you are honest with yourself ·      Never be convinced that this can’t happen to you   Andy recently talked to a group of politicians and their spouses about infidelity and dishonesty ·      He told them that all the infidelity and dishonesty among politicians had made the average voter sick of all of them, whether they had done anything yet or not ·      He told them not to let weak moments get in the way of all the work they put into getting elected and all the good things they wan

On today’s episode of In the Loop, a veteran writes in and tells an amazing story of losing and regaining hope in her life.   You have to be an honest person to overcome the loss of hope and control in your life. ·      Andy says if there had been an 11th Commandment, it would have been, “Thou shalt not kid thy self” ·      Being honest with ourselves is extremely important and allows us to understand so much more about our lives   Principles exist and are at work in our lives whether we know about them or not. ·      When we become aware of principles, we can harness them in our lives in ways that can allow us to accomplish great things ·      The truth is one of those principles   Hope itself is a thought process. ·      It is a specific way of thinking, and it is something that can be proven ·      Because of this, it can be chosen—you can choose to be hopeful ·      If you’re still here and you’re still breathing, then you have not yet accomplished what you were put here to do   Below our choices and de