The Insight Out

“[Traveling with friends] - it’s just something I have to do more. Now that it’s happened, I have a greater sense of wanting to do it more, especially with a group you connect with.” - Urmeneta, 2025 In this episode of the Insight Out Podcast, we sit down with Miguel Urmeneta, the mastermind for making a trip to South Korea, "out of the group chat". For a bunch of us, it was our first ti...

"Take responsibility for your sh*t - don't blame everything on your parents, for everything that happens in your life." (Neves, 2025) Despite the perception of a vibrant yet perilous city, Carlos Neves, just recognises Brazil as his home.  Carlos shares captivating childhood stories that reveal the stark contrast between playful adventures and the comedic realities of life in a crim...

🔥 Creative burnout is a pressing issue for many, especially when trying to balance professional work with personal creative outlets. This episode emphasizes that reclaiming our narratives empowers us to demand what we truly deserve in both personal and professional spheres, fostering a sense of authenticity and fulfillment. "People misunderstand that being creative is something that is inher...

[HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY! Much love to y'all out there.]   💪🏼 Navigating the complexities of body image issues can be incredibly challenging, especially for teens. Comments like "You're getting fatter," or in Tagalog, "Tumataba ka ah," can significantly impact their self-esteem. In a vibrant city like Hong Kong, where the culture may lack the language t...

[WARNING! Grooming, Drug Abuse, Light Swearing]   ✈️ Imagine the added sting of receiving a break up email from an ex's professional account at the check-in counter, mere hours before embarking on a flight from Hong Kong to the UK to start a new life together. Enter, Joey Cia, an educator and founder of Pamana Classica , delves into some of the most harrowing break-up stories and the challeng...

🧧 Have you ever heard how we appreciate others' success only as much as we appreciate ours? This concept holds particular significance among second-generation Filipino immigrants residing in Hong Kong, who grapple with the ingrained sense of ' utang na loob ' towards their parents. Navigating the delicate balance between honoring their expectations of what a life with success shoul...

🥂 "New Year, New Me" has become an overused and overrated phrase, often leaving us less motivated to set our resolutions effectively. In fact, a 2025 Forbes study revealed that nearly half of the respondents abandoned their resolutions by February, and less than ten percent stuck with them throughout the year. "A lot of people are just appeasing an anxiety. I feel like it [too]. Li...

"But 'with great power, comes great responsibility' and once you recognise your privilege: what can you do with it? That's where the magic happens." (Vicera, 2024) 📚 Christine, co-founder of Be/longing HK works in academia and found her position in the social impact space of the city. Her professional work has supported her community activities by empowering them to tell...

🎭 "I have to remind myself you can cure it later on - it doesn't have to [be/look/feel] right, right now. " (Rivera, 2023) 🎨 🏋️ Felix Rivera lives a life surrounded by creativity and creative expression. As an Associate Music Director for [redacted], he shares about the importance of letting loose and the imperfect journey that is every artist/creative walks along. 🔎 Felix's...

"Since you have the freedom of doing other things, you don't have the freedom to look for yourself. You are subjected to do things that other people are doing." (Lang, 2023) Malcolm Lang highlights the experiences where he felt (little t) trauma* - and wounds created from the "grind" culture in Hong Kong, the shift away from traditions, and the crowds in social media.  We...

"The essence of travelling, the way I see it, is just going to a place that is unfamiliar .  I have not met anybody who has been to every corner of Hong Kong." (Grospe, 2022) Aljon Rae Grospe identifies as an introvert, and challenges himself to travel solo to Thailand for the summer of 2022.  We talk about how "being wild" or behaving in a way that's not usually yourself...

"It's not really a description of a specific flavour, but more of an experience; a memory." (Mel, 2021) Mel P is a Hong Kong based tea enthusiast whose early introductions to tea helped brew her current career and love for tea and tea culture. Volunteering and now working with Plantation Tea House by teakha has opened opportunity for her to connect with patrons and connect with the...

"Whatever job, business - or whatever I do - if I died tomorrow: would people remember me for my job or me as a person? If you take me out of my job, would others still see me as the individual that I am - it's about how you make people feel." (Yeung, 2021) Dan Yeung is a Hong Kong based personal trainer who founded DoughbyDesign, an Instagram doughnut shop that utilised their tools...

"Therapy is for everyone, and it comes in different forms - you don't have to spend for that. But you also have your friends, it's important to reflect why can't you share with your friends?" (Puentespina, 2021) Dea Puentespina is a Psychology Enthusiast . Being raised in a family of medical professionals, this study piqued her when she wanted to understand "why"...

"I like things simple. There's no going back [with technology, or trends]. But when it comes to clothes - you can stick to your roots and show which era you're from." (Caceres, 2021) Rustom Caceres is a Thrift Head. He had developed an appreciation for clothing and vintage fashion earlier in his life. This allowed him to stay ground against the endless voids of fashion trends t...

"When you're in a performance you don't really need to [always] feed off the audience reaction - you're doing for yourself." (Urbano, 2021) Jose Urbano is a Hong Kong based street dancer that currently competes and teaches funk to the youth of the city.  He describes the moments when he first entered a dance cypher, and the energy that you work with when dancing with anoth...

"It lets us take a step back, with how fast we want everything to be. It's also tapping into your creativity - it's not just writing." (Madrid, 2021) Ajel Madrid stans K-Pop music and through this, was able to find her way to penpal letter writing.  Despite being Gen Z: being born when the Internet and information boomed, still found the allure of this form of communication. St...

"Connecting to people and their mindsets, that enables you to tap into the scenes and moments that are more alien...You'll collect these things and eventually down the road, you have to play XYZ, but you'll have ABC - as close as you can to doing that." (Urmeneta, 2021) Miguel Urmeneta is a Hong Kong based Actor-Performer who fell into the rabbit hole of theatre for his initial...

"The first step is to call myself out. I will admit from the get-go: I am uncultured ... It's a balance of matching what I know  [about food] with what I don't know and how I can bring that together. " (Chavez, 2021) Bryan Chavez is a Hong Kong based English Teacher whom spends his leisure finding eatery gems around the city. Not only does he use his 'pun prowess' but...

"Would you rather get Ube Pandesal from the bakery, or the buns that your Lola has just made?" (Escueta, 2021) Definitions: Ube = Purple Yam that originates from the Philippines; earthy and starchy flavoured; Pandesal = Common Filipino bread using local flour, making the bread softer from it's inspiration, the French baguette; Lola = Tagalog term for 'Grandmother' Ainna Es...

"I like taking pictures of people - not in a creepy way. It's just  interesting to the human eye when they see faces." (Martin, 2021) Hans Martin found his footing in photography through the joy in family events, and needing a tangible product to mark these occasions. Though initially trained to be a pilot, he took off exploring the world of multimedia - self learning photography, v...

"Just write everything down - you vomit all the pain or anger out on the page, and you're like: Oh, THIS is why I'm mad." (Chun, 2021) Cherie Chun is a fashion student that finds solace in poetry and literature. With how emotionally stressful the nCOV19 has been, poetry has made us introspective and helped us process uncovered pains. Cherie and I talk about writers' inspir...

"No one in the gym cares about you. No one will care about what you're doing. Everyone goes there for the same mission: to be a better self and improve wherever you're coming from" (Tsoi, 2021) Alvin "TheBuffedChipmunk" Tsoi shares his fitness journey: the humiliating yet humbling beginning, the grinding present and his mindset for the future. This episode is not abou...

"You will never find two artists that can do the same thing. You can find somebody who tries to copy it, but it'll never be the same. You're paying for something only yours." (Wadhwani, 2021) Krishna Wadhwani explains her shift away from Digital Art to Traditional Art, and touch on the beauty behind nude art, before re-orienting back to her journey on becoming a tattoo artist....

"Drums are loud enough - you don't have to hit them loud." (Apellido, 2021). Shaun Apellido and I talk about how he was introduced to metal music and the rise of his band, Parallel Horizons (and Hybrid Stereo) not only within Hong Kong but foreign markets as well. Listen to how we mimic instrument sounds and touch into the spirituality of music. Shaun Apellido: https://www.instagram...