Hi, I'm Andy. I am passionate about working with people and organisations to make changes and achieve success. We all have potential and I am passionate about seeking out my potential and helping others to seek out theirs.
I created Potential2Change after working for 25 years offering coaching, leadership development, people focussed change leadership and resilience to a range of large corporate and smaller non-profit organisations.
My experience comes from not only the work I do but also from competing as a GB triathlete in national and international competitions. In both of these arenas I have had successes and failures; both have offered valuable learning and lessons.
These lessons help to inform my coaching work and provide insights to share.
When facing a challenge which matters, my imposter kicks in challenging my self belief and creating self doubt. Over time I have learnt to quieten this voice and discovered ways of approaching performance that have set me up to deliver the best performance I am capable of at that time.
I believe we are often the one who stops ourselves from delivering the best performance we are capable of. With the right approach and plan we are able to access this potential. When we find our potential, the outcomes can be life changing.
I have extensive experience supporting people and organisations through change. I believe that change when seen from a persons perspective can be a lot less intimidating. With the right support (and challenge when needed) is fundamental to its success. For organisations this means involving and their people in process, allowing them a voice so they feel heard and valued. This creates a smoother change journey and a quicker adoption of the change
Feeling like you don't belong or fearing exposure as a fraud is a common experience, especially in the face of significant events.
These feelings of self-doubt can be overwhelming, heightening your anxiety and manifesting in various ways. They diminish your ability to focus and think clearly, reduce your performance potential, and may lead to missed opportunities.
Don't allow your doubts to hinder your progress. Let's work together achieve the success you desire for your upcoming challenge.
Change can be daunting for both those implementing it and especially for those affected by it.
Although humans are generally adaptable and often embrace change, organisational shifts are frequently met with challenges and resistance.
By collaborating with me to engage and support your team, we can navigate the bumps along the road to successfully adopting the change.
Challenges and change can frequently evoke feelings of anxiety, confinement, and frustration.
Participating in a variety of activities can shift our perspective on the situation, redefine our approach, and empower us to flourish and succeed.
Work with me to be able to thrive in the face of uncertainty.
Breaking Free from Limiting Narratives
The clock read 18:01 as I crossed the finish line of my 5k race. While I was thrilled about the personal best, a mere second away from breaking 18 minutes left a lingering sense of disappointment. That target, which seemed so attainable at the time, became for the next couple of years to get under 18 minutes.
Despite consistent training and dedication, I was unable to surpass my 18:01 PB. As I aged, the conversations with other athletes echoed a common belief: "As we get older, we naturally slow down." Accepting this narrative as my reality, I adjusted my expectations and focused on maintaining a decent level of performance. The sub-18 goal faded into the background, replaced by other aspirations.
Fast forward ten years, and I found myself back on the starting line of a 5k race. While my training had shifted towards longer distances, recent Parkrun times in the mid-18s reignited a glimmer of hope. As I began the race, my legs felt surprisingly strong, and the laps flew by. With a renewed sense of belief, I pushed myself to the limit. The final lap was gruelling, but a shout out from a friend and the promise of a season’s best time pushed me on. I could see the clock ticking down on the finish line. I crossed at 17:55, breaking my long-standing PB.
So, why share this? Firstly, I am proud of this achievement and overcoming the beliefs I had unconsciously adopted. Secondly and more importantly reflecting on it, I realised that I had adopted the narrative about aging and athletic performance. This had become my reality, limiting my progress and preventing me from reaching my full potential. My results provided the evidence to verify this truth.
It's a reminder that we should be cautious of the stories we tell ourselves, as they can significantly impact our goals and aspirations no matter what arena or context they are in. We should explore the evidence that challenges them. Seeing a possibility beyond them and the creating a plan to achieve. It will take hard work, focus and determination to overcome but the starting point is identifying and challenging our own narrative that is containing us.
What limiting beliefs might be holding you back from achieving your audacious goals? How have you challenged their truth?
As a coach I would love work with you on this. Please message me to discuss how we can work to reconstruct your stories and create a plan to success.
At the European Age Group Triathlon Championships in Vichy, I recorded a DNF: letters that no athlete really wants to see next to their results. I managed a whole 5 minutes of racing. I reached the start line with high self-belief, in great form and truly believing a significant result was possible. It wasn’t to be.
I failed to deliver the potential and the race that I knew I was capable of. I failed to record a result, or even reach the finish line.
When I wrote my race report friends and teammates were quick to point out I hadn’t failed, getting there was a success etc., and they were right. Thankfully no one raised a cheesy acronym for FAIL!
This did raise a couple of thoughts.
1. Fail or failed have become words to be avoided. We are conditioned to the mindset of “don’t talk about failing”. We seek to find alternative words that sting a little less, dress it up and downplay it or ignore the outcome when reviewing the event. But failing is inevitable: it is part of achieving any goal, in fact I would suggest it is essential. It not only provides insight into what needs to change but also teaches resilience, mindset and can provide powerful motivation. These can be key areas to explore with clients in my coaching as well as providing me with my own focus to develop.
2. At Vichy, the fact I failed to deliver the outcome I wanted - and whilst it was devastating and still feels raw - hasn’t thrown me off or damaged my belief as an athlete. I am proud of everything that happened before and during that weekend. The damage and negative only comes when judgement becomes attached to the outcome, when I believe I am a failure instead of I am an athlete who failed.
Previously I hadn’t considered failure as an outcome or what it really meant. The biggest shift for me and how I approached the event was that I had explored about what failure might look like and what I would be happy with. I approached using Chris Shambrook’s method of exploring both Success and Failure from the view of what would be acceptable and what would be unacceptable.
For me, Unacceptable Failure was not preparing and training effectively, not following my race plan for effort and nutrition. Acceptable Failure was being beaten by better/faster athletes or not finishing due to factors out of my control.
So, what happened? As Mike Tyson said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.” My punch in the face was water significantly colder than predicted and my body’s response to it. I have trained in open water and cold water and yet this time my body refused to the point I couldn’t get my breath. Despite two attempts to settle, the panic won, and I was hauled out of the water by the rescue boat. For me this outcome sits in Acceptable Failure: it was out of my control. Yes, there are some things I can learn and build on but, on the day, it was one hell of punch.
After years of experience coaching, it took a personal experience to remind me and to refocus my approach and perspective.
I work with a lot of people as a performance coach and change consultant, helping clients and companies consider what success and failure looks like and how to overcome barriers. This will lead to building a plan to mitigate the risks and build on the strengths. If they do go wrong, we talk about why, what caused this and what we’ve learned.
I’ve learned that rather than avoid failure we need to embrace it as part of the journey not see it as a negative to avoid, explore it before an event, whatever context that is and maybe define it objectively. If I hadn’t done this prior to Vichy, I believe the toll the DNF took on me would have been significantly larger.
Nobody wants their own moment like my Vichy, but preparing for it makes it much easier to deal with the blow, and to ensure we accept that failure does happen, and often provides an opportunity to grow. If you’re interested in hearing more about my work and how I might be able to help you, please get in contact.
On Saturday I completed my last long ride in preparation for my big goal of the year the European Championships Age Group Triathlon Championships in France. As usual this was a solo ride and whilst out in the beautiful Yorkshire Wolds, I was reflecting on this.
Most of my racing and training is done on my own due to the need to be specific with sessions both content and effort and fitting in around work. Triathlon by its nature is generally a solo sport so this is in someways a benefit. We may all wear the same kit on the GB Age Group team, but we don’t race for each other we race to get our best race and result. Yes, when we see each other on the course we cheer and encourage and celebrate each other’s achievements at the end.
However, we all create support groups around us, the make up of this will vary from athlete to athlete and activity to activity. Often the support groups won’t all meet and may even be unaware of each other, but each member is integral to my success.
Friends and family look out for me, offer positive messages and listen when things don’t go to plan and act as cheerleaders at different levels, some understand the experience as they also participate whereas others just offer their support. Beyond this are fellow athletes who whilst they are competitors on the day are encouraging before and after.
Then there is the “technical” support, massage, chiropractor, coach, mechanic, nutritionist. All vital and without them I couldn’t race as well as I do. I pay for each of these but consider them more than a service provider, rather a part of my support team.
My last thought as I concluded my ride is that I should share my gratitude to all the members of my support group, not just when they deliver but in general letting them know how ready I am, how they contributed and of course how I got on, and how they can help me continue my journey as an athlete.
Whilst this has been focussed on triathlon it is relevant to all aspects of life and career. Who is in your support groups? How and when do you thank them and involve them?
