Win Happy Podcast

In this podcast with the incredible Nashville Songwriter Hall of Famer, Sharon Vaughn and Marketing guru Christopher Lochhead we chat about how a divided United States. is recovering from Trump since the 6th January insurrection, Category Pirates , the art of song writing and how Trump created " hit singles " to mobilise a lot of people to behave in a very dangerous and extreme way. Enjoy the show...

In part two of this podcast with Declan Murphy , songwriter and guitarist with THE 4 OF US . we hear about how a busking tour of France at the age of 15 with his older brothers changed his life. He continues with his list of the albums he thinks we all should have in our collection, he gives us some insights into the song writing process for the band and he shares how the band and working with his...

On international Women's Day 2021 , there is a particular theme that was calling women to action with a very proactive ask, " Choose to Challenge " which came with an explanation: A challenged world is an alert world and from challenge comes change - So let's all choose to challenge! With this " call to action " there were some other specific asks of women as outlined further in the IWD website: H...

Bryan Houston turned his back on a successful corporate career in Dublin to join his parents, Sean and Ursula in the family business, Houston Office Interiors and Office Supplies in Cork city, which is celebrating 100 years! We chat about his time in Dublin, his big decision, Covid, which is certainly an issue, offices in the future, the dynamics of working with the family, operating a business fr...

In an effort to lighten up the "repeat repeat" nature of this year I asked the super talented, music loving, Declan Murphy . part of the duo that is THE 4 OF US to recommend 12 albums that we just have to listen to. We had a big chat about his early days, the joy of vinyl, the excitement of discovering new music, swapping LPs with your school mates, his aims with his own band and of course his rec...

My son Brendan and his girlfriend Ayla are now free having completed their two week quarantine period in the 'Holiday Inn' in Auckland ! They talk about their last day in "captivity", the final part of that process and what it was like to enter a country where there is no Covid!! Besides the elation of meeting family, friends and freedom they discuss the attitude towards Covid, restrictions and if...

In this episode I chat with Alma Brosnan , our Social Media expert and our Head of Communications and former journalist, Ciara Jordan . We chat about recent social media trends and the consequences of these for consumer, community and business facing businesses and organisations, we chat about the consequences of censoring content and the unplugging of Donald Trump. We also chat about the unique r...

I'm sure we have all been away on holidays in a special place and you pass an auctioneers window and gaze at the houses for sale and think " what if "? While it's a nice dream, quickly after 60 seconds you rationalise and the dream is gone.  Ciara O'Toole , our very special friend and her husband gazed at that window and decided " lets do it "!! This is a chat with author of the book " Going Solo...

As part of our mini 'New Zealand' series I chat with my son Brendan Canty and his girlfriend, Ayla Amano on their very last day of quarantine in the Holiday Inn in Auckland. They describe the detailed routine, the testing, the food, the exercise, the room confinement, the transparency and the lengths that the government go to, ensuring that any trace of Covid is caught and does not enter the count...

It was great to get the chance to talk to my friend, Joe Kavanagh the Lord Mayor of Cork City, 100 years after the Burning of Cork. We chat about his life and career, the motivation that drives him to get things done in his community, the machinery of local and national politics, his perspective of our city, his role as Lord Mayor, and his opinion about a directly elected Mayor. Inevitably we chat...

Without music there would be no Joe Carey at The White Horse in Ballincollig, Cork. In no time at all The White Horse in Ballincollig, as well as being a great pub and restaurant, has carved out a huge reputation as a very special intimate music venue in Ireland - one of the very best. Joe , the owner turned his back on music many moons ago after an exhausting flirt with fame with his own band, Jo...

In this episode I catch up with my son Brendan Canty and his girlfriend, Ayla Amano from the Holiday Inn in Auckland on day 2 of their 14 day quarantine. They chat about the journey from Ireland, the testing regime along the way, how the hotel manage their unusual guests (or are they prisoners?) and how the Kiwis feel about these "extreme" measures. Brendan says he was surprised by that sense of o...

My son Brendan and his girlfriend Ayla, who comes from Auckland in New Zealand begin their journey to New Zealand complete with visas and Covid tests and face a two week quarantine period in a hotel when they get there. As we know New Zealand was one of those regimes that successfully took this approach to protecting their citizens. The prize for them after all of this endurance will be a two mont...

In this episode renowned economists, Jim Power and Chris Johns assess 2021 putting forward both a "realistic" negative and a positive outlook for the year. We discuss both sides of the coin including the likely effects of Brexit, Covid and the aftermath of the Trump chaos and arrive at a conclusion.. Is it a negative or a positive outlook? PS : And we also discuss some music! Enjoy the show! This...

Briona Gallagher has a crazy, bumpy and colourful story from start to finish, as she went from being the extremely quiet girl in Ennis to the weed smoking tattoo artist in California, to the writer who "found" herself in part with the help of a 71 year old housemate in Cork! Through her " How Not to be a Hater " website and book (to come soon), which has just launched, she hopes to help others thr...

For the last few years I have been doing this simple exercise at the start of the year to help me get focused around things that are important both personally and professionally. If you have a few moments you might try it, to get your year off on the right track and on that last working day of the year you might find yourself with great satisfaction saying... I had a great 2021 because... #WinHapp...

I couldn't let 2020 go without trying my very best to capture exactly what the hell happened this year! With very special guests Economist Jim Power , Marketing and podcast legend Christopher Lochhead, GAA legend and food producer Tommy Doyle , Singer songwriter Brendan Murphy of THE 4 OF US , new mother and new entrepreneur Nadine Hughes Campbell and Dr. Gerry Waldron , Assistant Director of Publ...

New Yorker, Sam Sokol , a journalist with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency , is living with his family in Beit Shemesh, which is in between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem in Israel . We chat about growing up in New York, mandatory service with the Israeli army and his work as a journalist for the JTA, Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel and the Israel Broadcasting Authority . We chat about his book " Putin's Hyb...

The Independent Scientific Advocacy Group (ISAG) are recommending a 7 point plan to the government, which they say will have Ireland mask free, enjoying life and " Back to Normal " for St. Patrick's Day , With the backdrop of a much sooner than expected third lockdown being imposed on the country I have Tomás Ryan of ISAG and Assistant Professor at the School of Biochemistry & Immunology, Trinity...

In this episode I chat with Noreen Roche from Epona Retreats . When Noreen explained to me that she was a ' transformational equine therapist ' and how horses have very special healing powers, I just had to hear much more. Noreen chats about her life and her career, the bumps along the way and how her path brought her to this special place in Rathcormac, Co. Cork , which she named " Epona ", She a...

In this episode I chat with Amy McKeogh the architect who founded the Design POP festival, which debuted in Cork in 2019 and unfortunately had to be cancelled last minute in 2020 due to Covid. She tells me it is DEFINITELY happening in 2021 and we chat about founding her own architectural firm, Fíor Studios so early into her career, her early decision to stay away from the very "commercial" side a...

On this episode Ray Henry (Chairperson) and Bernie Hackett (Vice-Chairperson) of the Irish Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapists (IACP) discuss their careers and their profession, the pressures of modern day society on people, changes down through the years and the role of the organisation. We also chat specifically about the extra pressure of Covid and that delicate balance between res...

In this episode I chat with Paul Kearns , journalist and urban planner about a recent article he wrote for the Irish Times about how poorly Dublin has fared out during Covid compared to other large cities such as Stockholm and Barcelona . As a former urban planner with Dublin City Council he chats about the role of planning in the development of the city, poverty and anti social behaviour, the aff...

As the world is a happier place with the US presidential election win by Joe Biden, I am joined by renowned economists Jim Power and Chris Johns to try to make sense of it all. Is there economic currency in "happiness", was this a fight between good and evil, why the record number of voters, did media try to finally control fake news, did the moment pick Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and what will w...

After a brief chat about Covid, the failure of democracies and the Irish lockdown with renowned economists Jim Power and Chris Johns we dive right into the small topic of the U.S. election in a few days time. Is it the most significant election ever or is this overstated, what effect will the result mean for Ireland, the UK, the world and of course the U.S and what will life be like after Trump or...