My Journey

This is My Journey

In the following paragraphs I have charted key moments from my life.

These events have enabled me to be who I am, and the coach I am today.

These are personal details, and I have shared them candidly with you.

I ask my clients to share their stories honestly with me - it seems only fair that I do the same.

I invite you to read on...

Hello!

I am Peter S. Ridley.

I include the 'S.' in my company name, in honour of my uncle, who was killed by a hit-and-run-driver when he was 16 years old.

I wish I could have known him, but I never did.

My middle name (Steven) is the same as his, and including this initial into my business is my way to honour his memory.

This detail is indicative of my life today, and how I choose to lead it.

That's to say, it's about meaning.

It's about understanding what truly matters, and then having the courage to live accordingly.

The journey that led to today started when I was 7 years old. I was on holiday with my Mum, my Dad, and my brother.

All was good - it was a bright day, and I was out riding around on my bike. Suddenly the skies clouded over, and it started to rain.

I therefore took cover in the family caravan (a place of many happy childhood memories) until the shower passed.

It didn't take long, and I was soon back out and racing around on my bike again.

Then 'life' happened.

I rode around a bend too quickly, lost control, then flew off a steep grassy bank, and dived face-first into a Cotswold stone wall.

And so began a 15 year chapter of my life.

The crash resulted in emotional and physical scars. It resulted in mental demons that would take a decade and a half to exorcise.

These were turbulent years.

These were years when, (without realising it) I shied away from situations that could hurt me.

My school work became my refuge, and I worked and I worked and I worked.

I worked too hard.

In my pursuit of academic perfection (read: avoiding danger) I overdid it. As a result of my school-work / life balance (or lack of it), I contracted glandular fever.

The irony is that I contracted the virus just before sitting my GCSE exams. This meant that I didn't sit them - I wasn't well enough to.

I therefore left school with hardly any qualifications to speak of, as most of the exam boards awarded grades based solely on the actual exam results, with no consideration of my expected results.

So, I sought safety in academia during my school years, only to leave school with virtually nothing to show for it.

No UCAS points; no opportunity to attend university. The path I expected (and had been expected) to follow had disintegrated before me.

The recovery.

18 months after contracting glandular fever I began to recover.

I was weak - I had had precious little social interaction for far too long. I sorely lacked confidence.

I didn't have a (practical) way to continue my education. I didn't have a job.

My first priority therefore was simply to get back on my feet.

I started work in a retail store, just one day a week at first, then two, then three, then four, then five days a week.

I started to feel more confident. I was getting stronger. I engaged in more conversations. I became ever-more capable in my work. I was promoted, I was... well again.

I therefore set my mind to establishing my career, and knew it wasn't going to be in retail.

I (well, my Dad actually) found a vacancy for a role in a national building society, so I went for the job, and got it.

Here began my chapter in the financial services industry.

This environment was just what I needed; young, social and fun. I enjoyed the work too.

I valued my job, and was committed to it. I was successful, and, after 18 months at the company, felt ready for bigger things.

This came in the form of a job with a global blue-chip financial services company, which I secured (against expectations) in 2009.

The years with this firm proved priceless to both my personal, and professional development.

I relished the environment, was totally committed, and was successful. I was rewarded financially, and with trips to Miami and to Hong Kong.

These felt like amazing benefits, but this company also provided something much more important to me - the opportunity to address an injustice.

I left school without the qualifications I felt I deserved, but here I had the chance to put things right.

Over the course of the next 5.5 years, I sat and passed 11 exams, and completed 3 financial qualifications. 

This achievement was huge for me.

It meant I had satisfied my hunger for academic achievement, and this allowed me to turn my attention to a bigger, even more meaningful aspiration.

To an aspiration that was born during the bleakest chapter of my time at school - when I first contracted glandular fever.

It was a desire to explore the world; specifically the regions of Europe, Latin America, Australasia and Asia.

I was in absolutely no place to make this happen, yet I knew that I had to do it.

And I did.

10 years would pass before I was in the position to make it happen, but the desire never waned - it grew stronger as I came ever-closer to realising my dream.

But more on that in a moment...

Demons.

It was during this time that the demons I mentioned earlier left my mind.

I had been travelling through a dark tunnel for 15 years, and then, at the age of 22, there was light. Bright, beautiful, light.

This moment was a turning point.

For the first time in my life, I felt free. I felt in full command of my mind, and in that moment made a promise to myself.

I promised that I would live the fullest, happiest and most fulfilled life I possibly could.

I would invest the time and energy required to understand what was truly important to me.

I would articulate each aspiration clearly, and then set about achieving them. Every single one.

I understood, with new-found urgency, that there was no time to waste. I had dreams, and it was down to me to make them real.

And I did.

I have 27 aspirations that I wish to realise. I have, over the last 11 years, achieved 26.

Some were big, some were small. All were meaningful.

I am planning to realise my final aspiration within the next 18 months.

Brilliant Minds.

At this time I also began learning from brilliant teachers.

I started harnessing the years of introspection, deep reflection, self-knowledge and inner strength that I had cultivated throughout the preceding chapter.

I listened to Stephen R. Covey's book 'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People', and it changed the course of my life.

My fascination with, and devotion to self-development had begun.

A Decision to Make.

Back to 2014, and I was finally settled into a professional career; I was successful, qualified, and experienced.

I lived in a nice house, drove a nice car, was comfortable financially and was surrounded by nice stuff.

I was also, for the first time in my life, in a position where I could actually realise my dream.

So I had a decision to make; continue to be comfortable (but dissatisfied), or take a risk, and embark on what could be the greatest adventure of my life, and explore the world.

I took a risk.

I left my job, my professional qualification, and the financial services industry.

I ended my relationship, moved house and sold or donated most of my things.

I dared to follow my dream, and it proved to be the best decision I had ever made.

The Realisation of My Greatest Aspiration.

As I mentioned above, I have achieved all but one of my aspirations, however none of them compare to this one. Words can’t quite do justice to what it means to me.

My travel aspiration was realised in two sections; Europe first, then Latin America, Australasia and Asia second.

My first journey started in Belgium, from where I travelled through 14 European countries, with particularly standout moments in Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

My second journey started in Costa Rica, where I was based for five months. I then travelled up to Nicaragua, and down to Panama. From here, I sailed through the San Blas islands to Cartagena, Colombia.

From Cartagena I travelled overland through Colombia, to the Las Lajas Sanctuary, and into Ecuador. From Ecuador I travelled to Peru; Lima and Machu Picchu. Bolivia was next - La Paz and the world's largest salt flat in Uyuni. After Bolivia I travelled to Uruguay and Argentina; visiting Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Rosario and Iguazú Falls.

From Argentina I flew to New Zealand, exploring the North and South Islands. Australia was next, where I started in Sydney, then travelled up the east coast to Cairns. From here I travelled overland through the Outback, from Alice Springs to Adelaide (via Uluru) and on to Melbourne. I concluded my time down under in Perth, and then started the Asian chapter of my adventure, in Bali, Indonesia.

Bali led to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, then an overland journey up through Vietnam, starting in Ho Chi Minh City. Laos followed, and then Cambodia and Thailand.

A pinnacle of my life was next, by way of a trek through the Nepalese Himalaya, to the base camp of Mount Everest, and the summit of Kala Patthar.

Mine was a 526-day solo-adventure.

During this journey I experienced emotional heights that I never knew existed.

I saw beauty in people, and in places that took my breath away.

It was the full realisation of my greatest aspiration, and is a spring of joy that flows every day of my life.

A Beautiful Consequence...

Several years ago, I became interested in the work of Scott Dinsmore, and his 'Live Your Legend' movement.

He asked the question 'what is the work you can't not do?', and it really stuck with me.

I knew for certain what it wasn't, but didn't know what it was, or even where to look.

All I knew was that my decision to travel was heart-led, and that proved to be the best thing I'd ever done.

I therefore trusted that, once I was introduced to 'the work I couldn’t not do' I would know.

And I did.

A beautiful consequence of my travelling is that it introduced me to coaching.

Or perhaps more accurately, it put a name to the thing I had been doing personally for years.

My aspiration was to be someone that made a life-changing positive impact on the people I cared about.

With the realisation that I could do this professionally, through the medium of coaching, my search was over.

I had found the work I couldn't not do.

It all leads to Peter S. Ridley Coaching

By living a life true to myself (namely by sacrificing my established career, following my heart and travelling, and then building my coaching business) I have enjoyed (and continue to enjoy) feelings of contentment, satisfaction and peace that I previously never knew existed.

I am truly privileged (and immensely grateful) to have achieved and experienced what I have.

It now brings me joy to enable other people to have for themselves the feelings I write about above.

This is why I coach.

A Silver Lining

There's a silver lining to those 15 challenging years too.

Once I was finally free of them, I quickly developed a voracious hunger, to live an extraordinary life.

To make up for lost time, then never ease the pace.

To live a life overflowing with joy, with meaningful experiences, and to live a legacy that's uniquely mine.

This is a hunger that continues, undiminished, to this day.

An Extraordinary Life

To me, an extraordinary life means one of contribution. Serving people how only I can.

It means harnessing all of my life's experience in the service of my clients.

It means living around the world; connecting with people, learning and growing each and every day.

This is why I primarily coach online. It enables me to live my best life, and in turn, help you to live yours.

It would be my privilege to support you.

Thank you for reading.