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PODCAST

Mind the Gap

You already know my voice. For twenty-five years, I"ve been telling you to mind the gap on trains across Ireland. This is the same instruction. The gap is just different now. Mind the Gap is a podcast about the space between what we think we"re doing and what we"re actually doing. Between intention and impact. Between the behaviour we display and the one we"d choose if we were paying attention. Each episode is a short reflection — drawn from psychology, philosophy, and the texture of everyday

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All Episodes

00:10:24

When Conversation Stops Being Shared- When bores bore...

Mind the Gap ·

2026/03/28

We’ve all met them.The person who can hold the floor without drawing breath. The one who doesn’t quite notice when someone else is trying to speak. The conversation that somehow becomes… one-sided. In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn takes a thoughtful and quietly humorous look at what it really means to be “a bore.” Taking inspiration from a line in Dancing Queen by ABBA, “I’m nothing special… in fact, I’m a bit of a bore,” this episode moves beyond the joke to explore something

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00:10:39

When did we stop looking?

Mind the Gap ·

2026/03/21

You walk into a café. The coffee is perfect. The service is efficient. And not once does anyone look at you.This episode starts with that small absence — and follows it somewhere unexpected. Through the emotional labour of public-facing work, the quiet logic of the screen, and the generational shift in what an interaction is even supposed to contain. Eye contact is not a nicety. It never was. And its disappearance says something about all of us — not just the people behind the counter. Mind

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00:08:26

You Know What You Should Do!

Mind the Gap ·

2026/03/14

Before offering advice, ask a quieter question“You know what you should do.” Five familiar words, usually offered with kindness, sometimes with genuine care. Yet when we hear them, something small inside us can quietly deflate. In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn reflects on the hidden tension inside unsolicited advice. When someone brings us a problem, are they really asking for a solution, or are they asking to be heard? Drawing on his experience as a coach and communicator,

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00:17:32

Contentment in a Burning World

Mind the Gap ·

2026/03/07

In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn explores a quiet but uncomfortable question.Is it acceptable to feel content while the world around us seems unsettled? With images of war, political unrest, and global tension constantly appearing in our news feeds, many people feel a subtle sense of guilt when moments of calm arise in their own lives. Does feeling steady mean we are disengaged? Or is contentment something else entirely? Drawing on the research of positive psychology pioneer

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00:14:50

The Smile That Isn’t Yours

Mind the Gap ·

2026/02/28

In 1954, Smile became an anthem of quiet endurance. The melody was written by Charlie Chaplin for the closing scene of Modern Times, with lyrics later added by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons. Recorded memorably by Nat King Cole, the song urges us to smile though the heart is breaking, to keep trying, to believe life is still worthwhile. But what does that really mean in professional life? In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn explores the concept of emotional labour, first

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00:10:14

When the System Decides You’re Old

Mind the Gap ·

2026/02/21

Mind the Age Gap | Retirement Age, Identity and the Psychology of AgeingWhat does retirement age really mean in modern life? In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn explores the idea of the “age gap” — the gap between chronological age and how we actually experience ourselves. The reflection begins with a moment in a bank: an older couple being gently coached through online banking. They were not confused. They looked displaced. That observation opens a wider discussion about ageing,

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00:12:08

Whatever the Mistake, It’s the Lie Afterwards That...

Mind the Gap ·

2026/02/14

This week, during a leadership course, a participant shared a line from her father that stopped the room:“Whatever the mistake, it’s the lie afterwards that hurts more.” In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael explores why that simple sentence holds up across high-trust professions and high-pressure environments. From medical errors in hospital settings to cockpit decision-making in aviation, from financial oversight to corporate governance, the issue is rarely the original human error

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00:09:16

Living with Fewer Filters

Mind the Gap ·

2026/02/07

Here’s the thing. Most of us spend our lives editing ourselves in real time. Softening opinions. Swallowing reactions. Running everything through an internal risk assessment before it ever reaches our mouth.And then, occasionally, we meet someone who doesn’t do that. This episode was sparked by conversations with people on the autism spectrum, and by watching The Assembly. What struck me wasn’t shock value or bluntness for its own sake. It was the relief. The calm. The honesty of hearing

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00:09:39

How We Heal in Ordinary Ways

Mind the Gap ·

2026/01/24

How do people really heal? Not through dramatic breakthroughs, but through small, ordinary moments.In this episode, Michael Comyn reflects on personal recovery from a recent experience of gossip and intrusion, and explores how humans heal through connection, routine, purpose, and everyday emotional intelligence. A gentle, optimistic reflection on resilience, wellbeing, and the quiet work of becoming a little quicker to mend.

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00:09:53

Stoicism Is Not a Weapon

Mind the Gap ·

2026/01/17

In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn returns to Stoic philosophy to address how Stoicism is being simplified and misused in some online spaces, particularly where grievance, emotional shutdown, and contempt are mistaken for strength.Drawing on the original teachings of Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, Seneca, and Musonius Rufus, Michael reclaims Stoicism as a philosophy of self-governance, responsibility, and shared humanity, not dominance or detachment. This episode is a clarification,

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00:09:48

Living in Permanent Alert Mode

Mind the Gap ·

2026/01/10

Why do so many people feel exhausted even when nothing obvious is wrong?In this opening episode of Season 4 of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn explores what it means to live in permanent alert mode, a state of constant urgency driven by 24-hour news cycles, notifications, and global uncertainty. This episode looks at how the human nervous system reacts to modern life, why being informed is not the same as being emotionally overloaded, and how chronic low-grade stress quietly shapes our thinking,

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00:00:38

Coming Soon Season 4

Mind the Gap ·

2026/01/02

Season Four moves beyond reaction and into reflection. It explores what sits beneath our emotions, how we make sense of experience, and why understanding our inner world matters in everyday life and leadership.No quick fixes. No noise. Just thoughtful conversations grounded in emotional intelligence and lived experience. Mind the Gap. Season Four begins soon.

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00:08:22

The Pause Between Years

Mind the Gap ·

2025/12/06

In this special December episode of Mind the Gap, Michael reflects on the emotional landscape of the holiday season. For many, December is joyful and full of celebration. For others, it carries sadness, memory, and the quiet ache of missing someone who was here last year but is not here this year. Both experiences deserve space.Through the simple ritual of putting up and taking down decorations, Michael explores the silence that appears in early January, a silence that offers honesty,

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00:09:17

The Emotional Recession

Mind the Gap ·

2025/11/29

In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael reflects on a small moment in a bank queue that reveals a much larger shift in how we connect. As more organisations encourage us to use apps and digital services instead of speaking to real people, something subtle is happening beneath the surface.Drawing on recent research from almost seventeen thousand young adults, a global dataset of twenty-eight thousand people across one hundred and sixty-six countries, and long-term trends in emotional

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00:09:11

The Stories Others Tell About Us

Mind the Gap ·

2025/11/22

In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael explores how the stories others place on us can quietly shape the direction of our lives. A simple comment, a casual label, or a reputation formed years ago can become a route we follow without ever stopping to question whether it was ours to begin with.Using the quiet landscape of Limerick Junction as a metaphor for moments of choice, Michael reflects on how emotional intelligence and Stoic thought can help us pause, reconsider our direction, and

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00:09:52

Hearing What Is Never Said

Mind the Gap ·

2025/11/15

In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael explores the hidden layers of communication that sit beneath the words we speak. Tone, timing, silence and posture often tell the true story long before language ever arrives. Drawing inspiration from the first chapter of his upcoming book Between the Lines, Michael invites us to notice the subtle signals that shape our conversations and influence our relationships. This episode asks an important question. Are we responding to the words someone uses

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00:10:42

Hanlon’s Razor: It’s Probably Not About You

Mind the Gap ·

2025/11/08

We’ve all done it — assumed the worst about someone else’s actions.The colleague who doesn’t reply, the driver who cuts across, the friend who forgets. It’s easy to think they meant to hurt or ignore us. But what if most of it isn’t personal at all? This week, Michael Comyn explores Hanlon’s Razor, the simple rule that reminds us not to attribute to malice what can be explained by misunderstanding, distraction, or human error. Drawing on Stoic wisdom, emotional intelligence, and his own

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00:10:20

The Barriers in the Tunnel: How Limiting Beliefs Hide...

Mind the Gap ·

2025/11/02

There is a moment on every journey when the light fades and the world outside disappears. The train slips into a tunnel, and for a few seconds, it feels as if everything has stopped. Yet even in the dark, the train keeps moving.In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn delves into the quiet power of limiting beliefs, those inner convictions that tell us what we cannot do or who we cannot be. Drawing on Stoic philosophy, modern psychology, and emotional intelligence, he examines how these

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00:11:09

The Faces We Wear

Mind the Gap ·

2025/10/25

In this episode of Mind the Gap, Michael Comyn continues the journey through his book The Next Station Is… — turning from the tickets we carry to the masks we wear.At any given moment, each of us plays a role: the Hero chasing the next challenge, the Caregiver holding everything together, the Ruler keeping control, or the Seeker searching for something just beyond reach. Drawing on Carl Jung’s concept of archetypes, Stoic philosophy, and emotional intelligence, Michael explores how these

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00:10:25

Season 3, Episode 1: “The Ticket We Carry”

Mind the Gap ·

2025/10/18

In the opening episode of Season 3, Michael Comyn introduces The Next Station Is… — a new season of Mind the Gap inspired by his latest book.Standing on a railway platform one winter morning, Michael reflects on how so many of us travel through life on tickets written long before we learn to choose our own destinations. Drawing on the work of psychiatrist Eric Berne and the Stoic wisdom of Epictetus, he explores the “life scripts” we inherit — the quiet rules and expectations that shape our

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