My 'Why'​ for starting CampusLife

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Written By Andrew Ford

Written by Andrew Ford

I will never forget the moment when in year 12 at Ivanhoe Grammar School that my English teacher called me “dumb”. Not that it mattered too much as I had already given up on school by that time after constant reinforcement that I wasn’t smart and school wasn’t for me. I’m sure a few of you out there, at times, might have had something similar. Felt less than appreciated. Was told you couldn’t do something or felt like you were not enough.

A few years later… I was working on a building site scraping wallpaper off a rich person’s house in Kew, 8 hours a day, drinking every night and basically drifting through life when an intervention from my mum changed my life. She always wanted the best for me and saw me going off course so she sent me to a psychologist. I rocked up late and hungover, but this man didn’t judge. Over the next 6 hours he tested my intelligence, both IQ and EQ, plus my personality. 

This was in the times before the internet so he sent the tests off to America and a few weeks later I am sitting in front of him hearing, for the first time, that I was actually quite smart. That I have an IQ of 129, in the top 5% of the population. That my EQ was even higher and that my personality suited leadership. Shockingly he said I could be a CEO, a judge or a Doctor. 

I could hardly believe what I was hearing. But it stirred something in me, a belief in myself I had forgotten.

Looking back from my role as CEO of my own business, author of a book, with three business degrees and 10 years of teaching at University, I hardly recognise that dumb boy. But he is still there, I still feel a bit like that at times. It drives me to improve constantly.

That’s why I teach and coach. I don’t want anyone to feel dumb, not good enough or hindered to reach their full and true potential. I fully believe that EVERYONE has genius inside of them. It might not be in a scholastic manner like me. It could be in art, music, people, IT or any other niche area that makes the world go around. 

But unfortunately many are not supported or have a mum smart and caring enough to create an intervention to change a life. That’s why I am on a quest to change the world, by changing one life at a time. 

CampusLife is more than a social media app for students to find friends when arriving from overseas. More than an app to gain useful and fair paying employment. More than a way to learn about services in their local community.

It is all those things, but the essence is to help lift the belief of all students that they can be more. That they can reach their full potential with an intervention by us if they have no one else.

With 1.6 million students joining University each year, there is a $40 billion impact to our economy and all of the multicultural benefits of more smart and diverse people into our community. It’s a big challenge and a significant business opportunity.

Imagine if the youth of today, who will be the future leaders of our country and the people looking after us when we are old, reached their full potential. What challenges we could overcome, what a great country to live in, what a better world we could achieve. 

I feel blessed to have been given the challenges of my past so that I can stand in front of you today with an almost perfect set of experiences, skills, passion, contacts and team to make this vision a reality. I believe everyone has genius inside of them ready to be released if they just have some support to do so. CampusLife is that support. I just wish my mum was here to see it come to fruition. 

Thank you for listening, my name is Andrew Ford and I am the founder of CampusLife. 

Andrew Ford
Marketing expert Andrew Ford, the founder of Social Star, has discovered the secret of ‘Powerful Branding’. With a fire for unleashing people’s inner brand and developing business models to generate profit from an individual’s passions, Andrew leverages ground-breaking digital and social media marketing techniques to create digital strategies for clients to attract maximum opportunities. Having established a strong name for himself in the field, Andrew blends traditional business techniques with now-necessary tools for entrepreneurs to achieve scale, quality, and influence in their niche. Andrew’s comprehensive business background and qualifications consist of a Bachelor of Business (Marketing) (RMIT 2003), a Graduate Certificate in Management (MBA Executive Program, University of Sydney 2005), and a Masters of Entrepreneurship and Innovation (Swinburne University 2011). Continually on the cutting edge of his own education, Andrew has tested his marketing theories in forums such as the BCG Business Strategy Competition, which he won in 2005 against all Victorian MBA schools, and the Venture Cup Business Plan Competition (Swinburne University 2003), which he won in the Masters category. With experience working at Hewlett-Packard, Sensis (Telstra) and IBM, Andrew also has mentored dozens of junior staffs to help them achieve their professional goals. Meeting and influencing high-profile public figures helped Andrew to realise just how many professionals require more understanding and control of their public brands or appearance, and need help with the skills to use the many amazing free tools at their disposal to generate success. At Social Star, Andrew consults with clients to uncover their personal brand – both where it is today and where it can be tomorrow – and refine and define how that should be displayed in social media in order to attract their perfect target audience. Andrew mentors his clients to rapidly grow their business’ audiences, resulting in larger potential client bases and higher revenue. Applying formulas that integrate over twenty years of Andrew’s business experience and fifteen years of formal business education, Social Star specialises in building clarity and velocity for clients’ brands using the ‘Understand, Build and Leverage’ methodology. ‘Having a Personal Business enables people to have an authentic, congruent connection with their valued clients and partners, using their brand as the bridge,’ says Andrew. ‘I’m highly driven to work with the new breed of entrepreneurs and small business owners – people who have a passion for making the world a better place. Traditional business models are stepping aside as people follow their innermost dreams and my role is to see them operate within their values while creating wealth. Some people think you have to sacrifice what you love to be successful in your business, yet it is actually the opposite. Follow your passion and success will come.’ Lecturing at Swinburne University from 2009 to 2011 on brand dynamics and digital marketing, presenting at numerous conferences, and consulting to hundreds of clients, Andrew has seen his philosophy work that if you follow your unique path, based on your skills, experience, values and goals, you will automatically attract the opportunities you desire and achieve the success you deserve. Living his mantra, Andrew has created a successful business and attracts high-profile clients including musicians, athletes, authors, models, entrepreneurs, professionals and small business owners, helping them find their ‘why’ in their business and fulfilment in their lives. Business for Andrew is more than work, it’s personal. Running a personal business means that he is able to fulfil all of his values rather than separating his life from work. It supports his two boys while providing social opportunities, educational development, fitness opportunities, spiritual fulfilment and many valuable friendships. Social Star has now become the vehicle for Andrew to crystallise his mission in the world, to help people love what they do, supporting his ‘why’, that if more people loved what they did, the world would be a better place.
http://www.andrewford.com.au/
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