389: Burnout, Cancer and a Learning Legacy with Dr Edward Gifford

The TopCast: The Official Music Teachers' Podcast

Sometimes, life forces us to pause, reflect, and completely redefine our path. Dr. Edward Gifford’s story is a powerful testament to this truth. A former senior lecturer in music education, Dr. Gifford spent decades shaping future educators, developing innovative teaching methods, and inspiring students with his passion for music. But when burnout and a life-altering diagnosis struck, he was forced to pivot and reinvent his life. In this episode, Edward shares how he transitioned from academia to life coaching, how he fought back against stage four cancer, and the profound wisdom he's gained on balancing purpose, well-being, and the power of love over fear. Join us as we dive into the powerful lessons he's learned about living with purpose and finding peace amidst life’s greatest challenges.

• Edward shared about his background as a music teacher, using a mix of singing, movement, music games, and incorporating methods like Kodaly, Orff, and Suzuki.
• He emphasized whole-body learning and music immersion before introducing instruments.
• How he fostered deeper musical understanding by encouraging creativity through movement, instruments, and imaginative play.
• His backstory and connection with Bec Stewart, TopMusicPro’s community manager.
• How he faced burnout, which led him to step away from music teaching.
• His life coaching career, guiding people to discover their life purpose using techniques like asking meaningful questions.
• He shared about his life-altering diagnosis.
• The importance of breathwork, mindfulness, and meditation to maintain mental wellness.
• His perspective on life and how he views life as seasons.
• Edward encourages living with purpose daily, seeing it as the key to peace and fulfillment.
• He shared about his book, "Broken to Whole: How to Put Humpty Together Again”.

Links Mentioned

• Dr Edward Gifford's website
• Dr Edward Gifford's book: Broken to Whole: How to Put Humpty Together Again
• TopCast 388: Tim and Bec React to a Creative Piano Lesson from 1984!

Today's Guest

Prior to starting his life coaching business today’s guest was a senior lecturer in Music Education involved in undergraduate and post graduate teacher education within the University sector for some 20 years in WA, Tasmania and QLD. He’s also author of children’s music books - Read and Play the Singing Way.

In 1991, Edward completed his PhD in Music Education, also at the University of London. He took up his first tertiary education teaching post in Tasmania in 1982 and moved to Griffith University in 1987. In 1998, due to a significant life changing event which brought his academic career to a sudden end, Edward reinvented his career to become a coach, trainer, speaker and author. Much of this period was also taken up in business coaching for small business owners.

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