Speaker 1 00:01
Growing.
Speaker 2 00:03
Growing.
Speaker 1 00:04
Growing Pains.
Speaker 2 00:05
Growing Pains.
Caroline Brunne: 00:05
Welcome to Growing Pains.
We all live in a world where our lives are online and we often are expected to show up in a way that is confident, extroverted, and appealing to other people. Be it showing up online to your community, speaking to people face to face, or the nerve wracking nature of job interviews, how you represent yourself can be the make or break of relationships moving forward.
Our guest today is a master at showing up and ensuring that you remember him after he leaves the room Andrew Morello is an awarded entrepreneur, investor, author, and the winner of the first Australian apprentice. Prior to becoming head of business development at the entourage, Australia’s largest training institution for entrepreneurs and business owners, Murillo spent 10 years alongside Mark brewers building out the yellow brick road Wealth Management branch network nationally. He has personally built an impressive portfolio and has also led numerous community projects across Australia and internationally, including as a founding board member of project Gen Zed, a social enterprise which runs entrepreneur and development programs for disadvantaged children.
In recent years. Morello has summited mount Kinabalu in Borneo and completed the Kokoda trail to raise money for seed Foundation which supports indigenous health programs in remote communities. Morello is an active member of Australia’s entrepreneurial and real estate communities, and engaging and charismatic speaker and a passionate person when it comes to sharing his success with other entrepreneurs, business owners, and investors to help them reach their full potential and not waste their precious life Andrew well and truly has the gift of the God. We had a amazing chat and I am really keen to share with you what he had to say about representing yourself and living the dream. I have the man with me, the man that is Andrew Morello. I am out of my mind excited to talk to you today. How are you Mr. Morello?
Andrew Morello: 02:29
Amazing, Caroline. Thank you so much for having me. It’s– At one stage, we’re spending a lot of time together so I’m having a bit of Caroline withdrawal symptoms. Yes, obviously COVID put a little dint in that but it’s wonderful to be here and thanks for having me on tonight.
Caroline: 02:46
We’re talking Growing Pains today. We’re talking what it’s like to be, whatever it is to be an adult and we’re going to share a little bit about you and our story– And your story and your journey with our listeners but to loosen us up not that you ever need loosening up but to get us in the mood of what it’s like to be an adult. I’m going to give you a few rapid fire questions.
Andrew: 03:11
Yes.
Caroline: 03:12
Do you consider yourself to be a fully grown adult?
Andrew: 03:15
No. I think it’s because like– I think that’s the trick. I think there’s a tricky life which is and I say this all the time to be awesome. Don’t grow up, It’s a trap. But there’s a real underpinning subconscious, emotional, and spiritual aspect of that. If you continually seeing yourself as young and growing and continually take the time to stay young, then you will stay young for life.
Caroline: 03:51
I love that. I think that’s a great idea. I think you’re doing that very well.
Andrew: 03:57
You’ve been on some of my adventure so you know.
Caroline: 03:59
I have. What is your most embarrassing adult failure?
Andrew: 04:07
Most embarrassing adult failure. I– as you know, I recently– Four months ago that I had a baby and I was telling the doctors and the nurses that the one thing my brother has over me is that he delivered my cousin at home. Like 17 years old, my brother John Morello. He got to believe in my cousin might eat the water bro baby can only like three or four minutes and yes, which was pretty amazing and he’s claimed to find and I said always wanted to do that and said the last minute doctors gone to me that I could deliver my own baby and I’m gone but I don’t have any gloves on them and don’t worry, you going to hold him in a minute and I jumped around there and I’m taking me out for the last second and I’ll pull him out and I literally freaked out. I have been to 30, 40 countries in my life. I’ve seen some real fun she in love and I was just like, what the fuck is going on right now and I froze and I took the baby away from me and then I was just standing there for two or three minutes and in these blank face and there’s probably a slight epic fail from my end and then the mother of my child was like, what’s wrong with you and I’ve got poor center on my hands. I’m freaking out this whole thing freaked me out and I thought I was going to be a lot more well adjusted and prepared for it than I was when it actually happened and if anyone can hear that he’s him crying in the background. Yes, we’re wearing we’re in lockdown again, ladies and gentlemen in Sydney otherwise I would have been at my call booth that you can’t see Caroline’s amazing group at my office. Correct.
Caroline: 05:54
To be fair, I would not– Most people would have frozen before when you first say, I’ll get that. That could be classed as a bit of an adult fail. I’ll give you props for just putting your hand up and saying hey, I’ll give this a go because– [Crosstalk 00:06:12].
Andrew: 06:13
The thing that caused the failure was that always telling you the story and then they decided at the last minute that I should do it. They hadn’t prepared me for so even this was actually going to be a few. I had my rings along Caroline. [Crosstalk 00:06:24] I have my jewelry on. I was like, OK, what about my jewelry. They’re like just getting in there [Inaudible 00:06:32] you and–
Caroline: 06:34
He has a story now.
Andrew: 06:36
He has a story and he’s lost the four months and he’s thriving. He’s killing it. Very happy.
Caroline: 06:43
Love it. Who is the more grown up adult that you rely on?
Andrew: 06:47
My brother. John Murillo, he’s probably the most grown up adult I know. There you go.
Caroline: 06:54
That’s so different as well.
Andrew: 06:57
Correct. We are very different but very the same. He’s a good lesson for people. We have the same core values, honesty, integrity, hard work, all of these things but we go about things differently. We go about life differently. We go about relationships differently. We go about the way we enjoy life and we both thoroughly enjoy life but my brother would– We both love travel– We– He loves doing really going to really nice places. I like roughing things out but we both love going to amazing, crazy places around the world. I go to Burning Man, he goes to a six star resort in Bali. That’s the– Yes, there we go.
Caroline: 07:41
If you were to choose an actor to play you in a movie today, who would you choose?
Andrew: 07:47
Ironically, Vince gossamer.
Caroline: 07:50
Love him.
Andrew: 07:52
I actually tell you if you Google my name, guys, you’ll see photos of him because he played a character named Dr. Andrew Morello in an ABC series in 2000 called Dr. Andrew Morello and his wife name was– His last name was Dr.– His last name in the movie was in the show, was called MDA, it was on the ABC. If you Google that guys, you’ll see Vince gossamer played a character named Andrew Morello and I’ve obviously since winning the apprentice and doing all bunch of other things done charity events with him and maybe even different launches and I swear to God, people have said, you two, when we’re together, when we’re on stage together, we’re doing. They go, you two look like and act like brothers. [Inaudible 00:08:38] Vince gossamer. Like would go, oh you’d lean out of the cafe all these I think is me.
Caroline: 08:48
[Crosstalk 00:06:50] If you had to choose someone to play you in your 60s, 70s, 80s, who would you choose?
Andrew: 08:55
Pacino [Sysco 00:08:57].
Caroline: 08:58
Of course.
Andrew: 08:58
Of course. It’s just me going through.
Caroline: 09:04
Well, I knew that rapid fire wouldn’t faze you. Most people get, oh, and usually–
Andrew: 09:12
I think the whole thing should be rapid fire. Well, let’s do more round.
Caroline: 09:15
No, however all too fast pace for me. I’m a bit more cooler than you.
Andrew: 09:19
You’re the calm, cool, and collected that’s why you are Caroline.
Caroline: 09:23
That is very much so. Our listeners will have a whole heap of different listeners but the ones that weigh up proactively making this podcast for entering these early stages of their adult life. It’s a real different space to step out of being 17 in high school and then somehow the world decided more in Australia specifically decided we were adults at 18 and off you go live your life as an adult. It’s a bit daunting and one of the things that I’ve always admired about you and I think that I believe that you– I truly believe we’re all one of a kind. This something about you that when– I’ve watched people meet you in person and they are well and truly still talking about you, thinking about you when you leave the room, has that always been the case? Have you always–
Andrew: 10:21
I’ve done some good things and particularly the same things.
Caroline: 10:25
I can’t expect everyone to say good thing.
Andrew: 10:29
It’s something I’ve done my deep work out with my spiritual coaches and mentors over the years there that you can’t be everybody’s cup of tea. I did used to think personally, I have a pretty good attrition rate though which is pretty good. Like it’s 95. That’s what I’ve worked it out and it ends up being about a 95. I got told if you can get the 80, 20, it’s good and I’m talking, I’m doing 95 which is pretty good. Yes.
Caroline Brunne: 10:58
Have you always been that guy– Have you always been the person that shows up, the kid that shows up and everyone’s like, who’s that kid? Or were you that kid that was like, oh God, who’s that kid?
Andrew: 11:12
Yes. Probably. It’s funny, because sometimes I’d see someone else and I go am I like that and people be like, yes, that’s you? And I’m like, Oh, shit. OK, is that what it’s like? But I’m not saying that in a demeaning or that arduous way. I’m more saying is like acknowledging the craziness that some people are and maybe putting myself in that category. I was very lucky Caroline and to the least things that are out the– You can do this, whether or not you had what I had or not. I was very lucky. I’m very supportive parents as in– There’s a classic story that I tell people and I’ll try and make it as quick as possible so we get through as much content as possible.
But seven years old at a place called La Mirage in Melbourne which is on the Hume Highway. It’s a place that holds 1000 people’s receptions. It’s New Year’s Eve. My butcher had told me– He normally told me rude jokes and my mom cracked the sheets at him and said, stop telling him naughty jokes because he tells other people, he memorizes it and tells other people and what happened was he told me a clean joke but I had no– I didn’t understand that at all. It was a political joke and for those who are listening in the core demographic year, 17, 18, 19 year olds or 16, whatever you might be, you’re not going to know what any of this means but it was a joke around Paul Keating and the recession we needed to have in 1991-92.
I didn’t understand it and if you’re going to be interested in politics, Google that recession we need to have for getting you can understand a little bit more but it was– Basically, the crux of it is that all Australians hated Paul Keating at the time because economically, we’re going through a bad situation but I didn’t understand it back then. Seven years old. 1000 people, new year’s eve, they through the floor show, they get through the food, they get through the wine, and the MC’s thinking the fireworks aren’t until midnight and it’s like 11 o’clock and he’s like we’re going to have a jokes competition. They don’t want to go in and I went up to my parents and I said, can I go and tell the joke and my mom’s like, yes, that’s a clean one but most– Think about it– Most European parents that have come on a boat from Italy would be quite– You’re going to embarrass our family, you’re going to– They wouldn’t don’t encourage you to get up in front of a thousand people, you’re going to make our family look silly, that European culture or ethnic culture. Don’t embarrass you family is a big thing.
Anyone who comes from an ethnic background will understand what I’m talking about but my parents are like, you go, so I run up there and the first guy who tells a joke, it was an Italian, that’s like an Italian social club and the first one was a guy who told jokes in Italian and it was a rude joke. You can imagine there was a lot of older Italians there, conservative they didn’t find it funny at all.
Second guy gets up, he tells a joke in Italian again and about only half the room probably spoke Italian. Then I got up and first the novelty of a seven year old right getting up [Crosstalk 00:14:17] but then I told them a good joke and everybody laughed and it’s still funny today if I tell the story, if I tell the joke.
If I put it is in making an Australian version– A modern day version of it, people get it and they find it hilarious. The moral of the story there was, you learn three things before you turn seven. You learn your barometer on love, fear, and hate. This isn’t me coming up with this. This is child psychologist, he says. There’s literature on this. You learn if you grow up in a loving household with loving parents and they don’t need to be married, they can be separated but it’s a loving environment and that’s your barometer for love you being at seven to 14. Know when you start to like girls or guys, or days now is the [Cross talk 00:15:13]. You know how to treat them and that’s your barometer of love.
The other thing is fear. If you grew up in a household where there’s a lot of anxiety and a lot of stress and a lot of, don’t do that and you’re going to hurt yourself and then you’re doing that between zero and seven, then that affects the child. The last one is, if you grew up in a household where there’s racism and it’s natural for people to say, oh those buddy this and those buddy that. That affects the child as well. The moral of the story is that at seven years old, I had a loving environment, I had no fear because my parents said, you’d go and get up in front of a thousand people and tell a joke and they were fine with me doing that and then last but not least, it was– There was no hate. My father employed Catholics, Jews, Muslims everywhere, and a very diverse childhood growing up.
Obviously, to the listeners, if they obviously haven’t had the fortune of growing up in a family where they– That was very much like that, then you need to be making a conscious decision, right? Especially if you’re the crucial age of 17, 18, 19, that precipice of going into the next feature of your life is that you need to make a conscious decision, do I then cut– I’m not necessarily saying don’t talk to your mom or dad but if they’re negative people or they have people that hold a lot of hate or they’ve got a lot of stored trauma from their childhood, you need to make a conscious decision to limit the amount of time and energy that you’re going to allow yourself to absorb them. Maybe you have dinner with them once a week rather than live with them. Maybe you don’t—I’m going and rent a room on roommates.com and go and surround yourself in a vault environment where at least there’s other people your age or fun or excited about life and you’re getting yourself out of that negative environment is really important. I’m not telling you not to talk to your parents but I’m telling you to get out of that negative environment.
The second thing you need to do is start surrounding yourself with other like minded people. There’s all those emotions here that if you don’t find other inspirational, motivated people that are prepared to go to the next journey with you, you do that naturally all ships rise and rising tide.
Caroline: 17:19
Yes.
Andrew: 17:19
In closing on that, would you like to know what the joke was Caroline?
Caroline: 17:24
Tell me.
Andrew: 17:24
I’ll do it but I’ll do it in a modern day version of it for the listeners, right. There is a guy drowning in the middle of Sydney Harbours and there was three boys, 15 year old boys on a teeny fishing in Sydney Harbour and there’s a guy drowning, they roll over to him, they save him and they realize it’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison, right and so they drag him into the boat and he says, boys thank you so much for saving me. I’ll grant you all one wish each. The first boy asked for a BMX bike and no worries, he goes down, I’ll get you a BMX bike. Next boy asked for a trip to Fiji for him and his family’s. He says, done organized. Third one goes, can I get a state funeral? That’s that finger is generally reserved for somebody who’s very famous and all that. He goes, why would you need a state funeral? He goes, oh. He goes, how old are you? He’s like l, I’m 15 years. He goes, what would you need to state funeral? He said, I need to state funeral because my dad’s going to kill me when he finds out I saved Scott Morrison. Still works today.
Caroline: 18:21
That’s such a good thought and it’s not that political, like I don’t know. If you’re in a room.
Andrew: 18:26
[Inaudible 00:18:26] In 1991, I was a boy, I didn’t know what the problem here– The problem is.
Caroline: 18:33
I would have thought that’s the best joke.
Andrew: 18:35
Anyway, that’s the moral of the story. In closing now, what I’ll say is, step outside your comfort zone. If you want to be somebody that can work a room, somebody that has the confidence to be able to have those discussions with people, then they need to be able to obviously, step like if it’s not something you’re doing naturally, force yourself to meet one new person every day. Go up and introduce yourself. If you’re waiting for a coffee, don’t just sit there on your phone like everybody else does. Go, how you going? If it’s a cold morning, it’s cold morning, isn’t it? Just break the ice. My male friends which you’ve witnessed plenty of times, Caroline. My male friends would argue that I’m the polar bear and girls always say to me, what’s the polar bear? I’m the guy who breaks the ice. Go and become that male or female and become that power. Be yourself.
Caroline: 19:21
Yes and I totally agree that like, even as I was saying, was this something that you always had and obviously you’ve explained now the environment that you were in and why that became, you with that kid and don’t get me wrong, a lot of this is personality, like I know your personality. I have a nine year old son who we call a mini Morello all the time. It’s a personality and I wish myself luck. Moving forward, it’s already challenging but I think environment has a big part of it but we can choose, we can definitely choose as we move forward and I think you’ve really expressed that well. I guess I’ve already tapped us into that whole conversation piece. When it comes to those one on one conversations, what do you think makes a memorable conversation?
Andrew: 20:17
Well, I’ve actually got a good framework for people that might struggle with conversation because I think we can see the end. If you somebody who’s good with conversation, you probably, this will not be redundant but it will give you a little bit of something to work around. I’ve got a formula called the Ford formula, right, which I’ve used for business many times over the years I’ve used but meeting girls over the years, I’m not going to lie, It’s been a very useful tool right across the board. It’s a great way to just meet people because often people go, what am I going to get break the ice or speak to someone about? I don’t know what to talk about. Right.
For it to become memorable. Well, that’s your choice, right. It depends memorability. Is that a word, memorability?
Caroline: 21:04
I don’t know.
Andrew: 21:05
Memorability of a conversation is only going to be found on two scenarios, how vulnerable either you or the other person are prepared to be. Right? If you share with me a particular story that’s from your childhood that is– That was either traumatic or was entertaining or, like I’ve told that story. Now, you will remember that story now for the rest of your life. You’ll remember that I totally joke when I was a kid. You might forget the place that I did it, you might forget even the joke but you’ll remember that that’s one thing Andrew Morello did at seven years old, right? That will stay with you now. It’s an interesting story that will stay with you more in your memory of me and so the formula goes forward. It’s like an acronym FORD and the F stands for family. The O stands for occupation. The R stands for recreation, and the D stands for dreams. Obviously, using that formula, it’s a really good structure. You don’t need to use it in that order. Maybe if you’re talking about a 17, 18, 19 year olds, the family is not as relevant but obviously I know if someone– The first thing I do now when I meet somebody is show on the photo as you experience or you got to see him in real life. But I show him a photo of my son like it’s the first thing I do, right? So like, if you want to with me over or if you want to get me talking, just ask me questions about my son and I’ll tell you all about it. Right and I’ll show you photos on him and Jim Maru and I’ll show you him doing swimming lessons with me and all. Family’s really important to people that are at juncture in their life.
Over occupation, what do you do? Or what do you want to do and if you want to make that interesting and memorable, maybe carving out a bit of a concept around occupation around, turning your job, your business or career into your lifestyle. With this new generation of people going from adolescence and teenagers into adulthood. If it’s not on the fun, now, they’ll go home. The average—
Caroline: 22:59
Oh, yes, totally and that’s mad. They don’t do that. I’m going to work in a job for 30 years thing like that doesn’t exist anymore. Right?
Andrew: 23:05
Which is there’s nothing wrong with that but I think it’s a matter of being like, if you want to build rapport with somebody, it’s like, what do you really want to be doing? I’m in a position to eat at five star restaurants and you’ll meet staff that they have been a waiter for 30 years and somebody will look at them and go, Oh my god, I can’t believe they’re waiting. Why? They enjoy their job. They’re world class at what they do. They make people feel special every day. They work at the top of their field, like being just as important as the guy that owns the joint if not more important, and then just as important as the doctor, the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker, and so forth. That’s obvious occupation.
Recreation. It’s the easiest one in Melbourne. If there’s no burning, listening is like what footy team do you go for? What area do you live in? What sports you play and then last but not least, if you wanted to be memorable, get him to share the dreams with you and also vice versa, share your dreams and then once you can peel the layers off to a point where you can share your dreams and goals with somebody, they will remember you for life. I can assure you that.
Caroline: 24:08
Yes, that’s so true and have that vulnerability piece at the very beginning is where you can. Don’t get me wrong, like it’s easy to talk about your job, in most cases, or maybe something to do with your family but the dreams pace is the winner. It’s– For me personally, like, I find that there’s definitely some easier conversations in the first three steps of FORD but that dreams piece and I feel that that’s a bit of a step in the process because if you’ve mentioned something about your son, and I’m like, oh, I’ve got boys too and breaks the ice a little bit and then we talk about work and we might have some commonalities, breaks the ice a little bit. We get to that point and then we create a space where you can then share something that’s a little bit more personal, a little bit more about you as an individual and that’s the dream pace. Great, beautiful. What a great tip. Tip number one. Love it. Tip number two, just start.
Andrew: 25:08
I’m not just a pretty face baby, you know that.
Caroline: 25:10
Yes. Well. You’re a pretty open book I think. I don’t think that– I hope you don’t disagree with me that you’re an open book. When it comes to, especially with what you just shared with us and the example of Ford, that space of vulnerability is really tricky. How maybe you aren’t the best person to give us an example of this. How do you find the balance between authenticity and privacy?
Andrew: 25:51
I’m probably not the best person right? [Cross talk 00:25:05]. I was on a plane to Bellaonade at the bar and to go do a ceremony with my Sharman and I got sat next to someone I had never met.
Caroline: 26:11
Just the fact that you just said, I was on the way to see my Sharman.
Andrew: 26:14
Yes.
Caroline: 26:14
People like what?
Andrew: 26:16
Yes and I was– I never met this guy in my life and we were both cry– Fully grown men crying on the plane together. Talking about our families, talking about my mom, I haven’t seen you since my mom passed my mom.
Caroline: 26:33
I haven’t seen you since COVID. I actually haven’t seen you in person since–
Andrew: 26:39
I came to the office.
Caroline: 26:39
September. No, since Cambodia. Since September 29th.
Andrew: 26:46
I came to the office once– To your office.
Caroline: 26:47
Yes, but I feel like that was aft. I think that was before–
Andrew: 26:51
Last October. We went to Cambodia October 2019 and then I came and saw you in between that and COVID which was.
Caroline: 27:01
Yes, but that’s not a long time. Anyway.
Andrew: 27:02
The moral of the story was, yes, we shared that much that we actually had a– Yes, we had a bit of a moment and we both were wearing masks. We could take the mouse over the tissues and yes, we are probably on probably a classic over sharing. What I find is if you are prepared to do that, and I’m not saying everybody needs to do this, you need to do what you’re comfortable with and I find that if you are prepared to do that, if you– There’s a saying I came up with if you’re prepared to show blood, people will bleed with you. That is trademarked so I trademark but it’s trademark pending that is an Andrew Morello quote, I said that if you because everyone’s like you wear your heart on your sleeve, right? They say that about me but I said the reason why I wear my heart on my sleeve on the best way to wear your heart on your sleeve is to talk about the things that are difficult, right? And you can do that in a short period of time. That is and the walls that you can bring down in a very short period, right?
But it needs to be– You generally need to show the vulnerability first and then people will come along on the journey with you. Right and it’s– And look, I’m a big believer that there’s nothing wrong with a single served friend. There’s a—
Caroline: 28:21
Yes, single serving friend. That’s right.
Andrew: 28:24
You’re going to be served from Fight Club. It’s nothing wrong. As you know, I’m generally pre COVID on 100 plus flights a year and in 10 countries but there’s plenty of random people I spend 14 hours sitting next to and I’m not the guy that’s going to put my earphones into my mind.[Cross talk 00:28:41].
Caroline: 28:41
And you happen to be seated next to Andrew Morello and you were planning to read a book on that flight. What’s going to happen? He’s going to know.
Andrew: 28:53
There’s going to be a lot of fun being had. There’s going to be lots of shenanigans going on with the staff as well as I always wrote then into some sort of adventure because tourism planes are bringing their cockpits on board economy and ended up in first class. I’ve had to fly planes for may have been an adventure as well. Were you want to play with me? [Cross talk 00:29:17]. We’ve been with you once Yes.
Caroline Brunne: 29:19
Yes, but I am the person that has a family of children who– You now have children, you’ll get it eventually. Once he gets a bit older, but here, I get onto a plan. There’s no one here. I’m going to go hide and I don’t sit next to you on a plane because I know I’m not going to get any rest.
Andrew: 29:38
That’s right. You did hide. You were like, [Inaudible 00:29:42]
Caroline: 29:44
Really?
Andrew: 29:44
Escaping my family and my children and my mini Morello. Yes.
Caroline: 29:52
You didn’t need a break. You said that, I need to sleep if we’re going to party when we get there.
Andrew: 28:54
I can always do that but then the other thing on that as well, he’s like I think it’s all part of that journey and that adventure, right and I am also respectful of other people. I do gauge it and see where it goes, but I do try and find a bit of fun. Life’s short like that. I do try and find a bit of fun in the interaction. Here we go, there’s another really good sign here, the meaning to life is the people we meet and what we create with them. Right. If the means that only get to meet you, create something for 14 hours, there’s people that– it’s been 20,000 Chinese exchange, they thought, let’s catch up on my goal. When we get back to Australia, well, Mike, you know, you can catch up with everyone. But in that period of time, for those 14 hours from Melbourne to LA. I gave someone a walk class experience and you said and I had an adventure, and they got to remember, and I’m sure they’re going to be at some barbecue guys, you’re not going to believe the gall of it. But I flew to LA last night, which is going to be great.
Caroline: 31:04
Exactly and I think you make a really good point there about reading the moment.
Andrew: 31:04
If you’re walking into an appointment with your dentist, might not be the right time to dive into something that might just not be the right space and it’s also about, like, if you’re comfortable with being vulnerable quickly. It’s also about making sure that you have the right space for your own vulnerability and safety. Be it good or bad. If you’re sharing something that is vulnerable to you and really private to you. It has to be in a space where you know that you’re safe, where the joy that you’re sharing is safe, and it’s going to be respected and enjoyed. Or the vulnerability of something more traumatic or more negative, is going to be held in a space that’s also safe for you. You got to read the room. But I agree, I think the quicker we can break down those walls and really connect with people, the more memorable those one on one conversations can be beautiful. You worked. You know, you’ve worked for yourself for a really long time. You’ve been hustling from seven? Yes, pretty much but for those, that there’s a lot of listeners out there, there’s a lot of people out there that they work for other people. I don’t work for other people but a lot of people do. When it comes to representing themselves be it job interviews, or like going in to have a conversation with your boss, or just wanting to put an idea on the table, all that stuff. That stuff makes people nervous. Doesn’t make you nervous, I’m getting a lot like I’m not really a nervous person. I’m pretty good at just getting in there but for those people who are a little bit anxious about those types of spaces, are there any physical things that you do? Like with the breath? Like do you ever have to kind of center yourself before you go and do big things?
I grew up with a and I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced what I do deliver these from stage now. But I grew up I grew up with a mantra that I used to say every morning, I used to I still I still often say it and there’s days that I do need to say and that is that you do need to remind yourself why you’re doing all this craziness and whether you’re going for a job and picking yourself up or whether you want to go and talk to that girl, that guy that you like or whether whatever it is, like, I think there’s an element of taking, you know, pride in who you are for, from the way the way you look like I’ve got it for those who can’t see or listening. I’ve got my head pile up in a, you know, man band today, which I think if might be coming off soon, actually.
As Coco Chanel says, a woman that’s about to cut off, or he’s about to change your life, and I think on the man is where the cutoff is, is for undisclosed reasons currently, but we’re working on new projects, I I watch the space, let’s just say so I’m going to be gone for a bit of a different look, have a look and feel bad, like, you know, like, you can still have long hair you can still be you know, you can’t see me on the podcast, but I’ve got my little visa from Cambodia, which I did last on the last night and it’s named me so Yes, which is fine. I want to err on the last pillar so they’re going to come up but I’ve got my you know, bangles and I’ve got Nick laces and as you said, I wear lots of jewelry that I wear. So like you can still be you and probably that’s the advice like, be you. Right? Thhere’s nothing more don’t try and I think where people look bad or where you come across as disingenuous or I’m thinking is when you’re trying to like you put on a suit, but you don’t wear a suit every day. So I will embarrass you maybe just wear like chinos and a nice shirt and tuck it in like that. If that’s more your feel, then wear that with your nice jeans guy like we’ll just wait and make sure you got clean shoes on him. You’ve come j that dialogue, you know, you know, don’t go and put on a suit to impress me. Because if you’re not a suit guy, you’re going to look and feel like an idiot in that suit and that’s an imposter syndrome that people talk about, right? So anyway, the mantra is, that gets me in the right frame of mind ease, and I’m happy for you to, you know, put this on a link or whatever. Email me, I’ll shoot it back to you as well. But for every second of every minute of every hour of every day,
I do my best to reach my full potential and not waste my precious life, living the dream. So I’d say it’s something that I’ve just a mantra I’ve always had, it was written up on the wall growing up, it was, you know, I got it from martial arts when I was a kid, you know, and it’s, it’s just something I’ve always believed in, and it works for me and, and I like that, that way, you’re not pitting yourself against anyone. Or if anyone’s into reading books, or listening to audio books, there is a really good book worth reading that I read at 79 in 1920, which was called the Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, and, and the author talks about these four toltec teachings from 1000s of years ago that if you can master, you will find that it’s the key to happiness, right? It’s a really easy book to short book. So if you’re not a be great in ours, but you can’t download it, there’s even a PDF like someone’s suppressed into a 10 page PDF, if you Google, just read that and show notes as well as the Four Agreements. I’m not going to read it literally 15 years ago, I’m perfectly but one of them is, is always do your best. So one of the arrangements, right? So you, if you’ve done your best, then it doesn’t matter if it’s not good enough for the person, they get the job, it doesn’t matter if it’s not good enough for that girl or that let go for all that boyfriend you’ve got doesn’t matter if it’s good enough for your parents, because it’s your best, right? But you’ve got to be honest with yourself and be genuine and authentic conversation with these is how I actually done my best, you know, like, easy something, I’ve actually done that, right? So like, and you can’t bullshit yourself. Like, if you’re lying to yourself, then you really Fox, like, you know, like, an honest conversation with you. I actually try my best in that interview, or did I prepare? Or did I go and get drunk the night before? You know, and like I thought odds, it’s a Thursday night. It’s just a first interview. I’ll go and drink up on a Thursday night with maids and then get over to I am and then you’re in there at nine o’clock and you’ll be like, if you’re going for an interview, you know, I’m not telling you to go to bed at nine o’clock. But I’m like, just buy a home that night or don’t drink. Don’t drink and you’ve got a clarity. So you are able to be more class when you get there.
Caroline: 37:50
Yes, just show up in your best self. Correct. You mentioned something just then that I’d really love you to explain what it means to you. You use the phrase Morello Ltd and I think a lot of people mistake that as limited. You know, it’s correct. So what is living the dream mean to you?
Andrew: 38:13
Well, I have a tattooed on my leg, which I got. After I started, I bought a small string Chiangmai a little literally tattooed on my on the right of my leg with bamboo, which in ties contagiously with them on fan and for me, it’s it’s more than a mantra, it’s a way of life. So and by getting a tattoo on my leg, I’m not advocating for everybody to go get to go out and get tattoos, I have a number of tattoos but by telling everyone they need to go get a lot of mine and I have one it’ll you don’t have one correct. So a lot of them are positive affirmations and so forth. But anyway, the the moral of the stories, the reason why I live in the dream on my leg was that if I’ve gone up every day, and I was showering and I was looking down in my leg, and I was drama lake and a scene live in Madrid, and I’m not living the dream that I’m lying to myself. So I then need to go and do whatever it takes that day to get back on track. You know, and like I’m not going to sit here and pretend like every day is sunshine and lollipops. He’s definitely not especially when your own your own business.
You’re dealing with dramas and people and stress and I’m sure when I switch my phone back on in, you know, half an hour’s time like drama that almost anything I saw, but then I look at it and go well you know what I am I am going to make sure by the end of the day that I do something that gets me back on track whether it’s spending time with my son or going take a walk across the road like I live directly across the road from rose by the water you go take a walk. I’m very lucky like I’m just after living he’s living in Sydney. I’ve just discovered the theories and I’m like wow, like every morning now I catch a boat like a boat. A ferry are the most famous harbour in the city in the world. To leave Italy, Italy catch a nine minute ferry into the city. Enjoy it. Meditate and I look out to the water and I just leave these No, my sheep man, I’m leaving the drain like, Yes, and especially like the sun’s just coming out beautifully, which is nice. But when the sun’s out, the sun shining, the birds are chirping, like, I always FaceTime my mates that are somewhere else in the world or, or in Melbourne.
This is what I’m doing right now. It’s 7 AM in the morning, and I’m on the water in the harbor, going Yes, I’m going to work but I’m living the dream man like these people that have to walk two hours, or catch a train two hours, each way to go to work each day. There’s people that are in Africa that need a walk, you know, 20 kilometers to school or take the lowest school in the middle of the desert like, and I get to go on a nine to 12 minute boat ride on the most famous harbor, the city bridge and the Opera House that people pay millions of dollars to try and or sportsmen their whole life trying to get to so on pretty much live in the dream suit. So you’ve got to find the trick to it is to find the beauty in the romance in that small thing that you might have to deal with dramas. Before you leave home, you might deal with dramas when you get to word for that brief incident, find the romance and the beauty and falling in love with that moment and if you can fall in love with that moment, three or four times a day, then everything else is fine. The conversation you had the little flute that you’d be the the person that you met the call the call the ad with your mom, the you know, my mom’s going out like, I don’t have the lecture I serene my mom when I was having a bad day and she got on track. I don’t have that luxury anymore and I never ran with my problems. But just by talking to was enough to rejuvenate me to do it. Right. So like so I now on I you know, I haven’t even a further appreciation for the romance of being able to call my mother and the chat number or the chats we’re able to.
Caroline: 41:53
Yes, well, thank you for explaining that because I like I’ve always kind of understood that you will and truly living the dream most of the time when I see you but I didn’t really know the story behind your tattoo and that methodology that you have. So
Andrew: 42:09
Yes, I’ve also got on the master of my fate, I’m the captain of my soul in Dutch, which I got with one of my best mates Stuart cork, who’s the ex global CEO of Zambrero the Mexican food Chinese now to see our flight and, you know, that’s that it’s in Dutch and we got it in the red light district in Amsterdam. We got
Caroline: 42:30
A whole series of stuff today, today story time with moorilla. These are these tattooed This is what eventually went on. So anyway, guys, so in wrapping up today, if you could go back and give a piece of advice to your 18 year old self about anything, you’ve done a lot of things wouldn’t be anything that you would say to your umbrella.
Andrew: 42:55
Oh, you know, he would probably be huh? Look, I I’m a big believer in in, I wouldn’t change anything, right. Like, I’ve been really, really happy with everything that’s happened, but like, from an advice point of view is, is probably just, you know, I was going to say enjoy yourself more, but I think I did. I was going to say maybe taken a bit slower. Right. So like, I was I was always going a million miles an hour like I Why am I going back to like some of those European trips I did and instead of like, you know, like, I would try and feed, you know, in three weeks or try and fit 10 countries. Right? And it’s like, I remember when I went to you know, I’ve been to Amsterdam multiple times where I remember when I first went to Amsterdam, when I went there to get fucked up because although that’s what you do, right? But then I’ve been to Amsterdam again, like, there’s the diamond factories, and I’ve been in a room now with with $450 million worth of diamonds on a table, you know, and have gone into the back, you know, you know, and I’ve gone to Anne Frank’s house, you know, from the Nazis. I’ve been to Auschwitz, you know, in Poland, you know, I think about my younger self didn’t do any of that. It was like, What CD cargo do? how fucked up Can I get? And how much partying can I do? Right? And I think I probably a whole plethora are things that like these countries I haven’t been back to, and there’s moments that I won’t get back. So I think just slow it down. You know, and just enjoy it. Enjoy the Hawaii. I don’t need that advice. I always did that. But I’d slow it down and step outside.
You know what you think is the main thing that you’re doing yet and that’s the best advice. Yes, travel, travel. Definitely. It’s quite ironic that right now to people that are 70 even more now, well correct. Exactly like when you do get a chance make sure you are really going to enjoy that and Probably the biggest advice I really give people is like, you know, travel lose, lose yourself in order to find yourself, especially for young people now, like, I just find every generation that we go a little bit further a little bit further and they, they just, they they’re so trapped and bogged down in the bullshit, that is bullshit. Like they hear that you know, what their friends are doing on Instagram is important and I’m not undermining that and I want to take that away from you and if you’re somebody who is an influencer, or somebody who’s got a million followers, or viewers on YouTube, great, like, you’ve got to a point where you can monetize it and build a life around it. But don’t take it too seriously.
If somebody didn’t like something or comment, or don’t take it too seriously, if somebody you know, is an assault on social media, like it’s not real, like, you know, like, you could you could delete those apps, and you’ll never have to see that ever again in your life. That’s, that’s an easy to use rod. But like, I’ve got social media and I use it actively. I’m sure there’s people that dialog, the sheet that I put on there, and there’s people that probably made comments and I just ignore it. I don’t delete it. There’s something that they say something mean, like, I don’t even delete it, but we’ll just delete it. You have the power to do my why. It’s like, that’s going to even more spectrum to show that it actually shoots me. What I really like to shoot Telly on is on living my dream. I’m on my own journey on the capital of mine fight. I’m not going to listen to what other people have to say. Well, that was my prop. Yes, Bull.
Caroline: 46:32
Thank you for today. I miss you. I could spend hours with you and hopefully we’ll do that sometime soon. Come out. Come to see me. Yes, you’re in lockdown. I’m not coming to Sydney.
Andrew: 46:50
We just try to Sydney in New South Wales, Sydney and Melbourne just tried to chat today.
Caroline: 46:56
Thank you for sharing your story or some of your stories with our, with our listeners. For our listeners, we will. We will have all of Morelos details in the show notes if you want to connect with him if you want to follow him if you want to keep up with his adventures, and some of the other books that he walking recommended and whatever else. We will chat to you again soon on the next episode of Growing Pains.
Well, that was a chat. As I’m sure you could tell, we’re alone. I have very good friends. We spent lots of time together and it was such a pleasure to chat to him. I haven’t had the pleasure of speaking to you for a while due to this COVID world that we’re in but he was well and truly one of the people I want you to get on the podcast simply because I know he well and truly lives and breathes what he speaks. He is living the dream. He’s looking for those opportunities and he’s super vulnerable and super open. Now, we don’t expect you to be the Morello of your world, maybe you are maybe not but some of those insights that he shared can well and truly be put in place. I hope that you enjoyed the chat. I hope that you got some takeaways that you can implement and I hope that you find a little bit of magic today as you look around your life in your world and find a way to live your version of living the dream.