Let’s LISTEN! with Ciarán McBreen

In episode two, we sit down with Damien Vivek from Axia. Damien shares his deeply personal journey of transformation — moving from a place of negative habits, low self-worth, lack of belonging, and loss of identity, to becoming someone who now helps ignite the fire in others. Throughout the conversation, Damien speaks openly about the realities of change, personal growth, and the importance of bui...

In the opening episode of Season 7, we speak with Colin Lynam from The Indigo Group. Colin shares his inspiring journey from working as a cloakroom attendant in a hotel in Ireland to leading a successful team built around one simple philosophy: family first. Along the way, he demonstrates how his eagerness to learn, his ‘doggedness’, and his willingness to take calculated risks—supported every ste...

In this episode, we sit down with Amna ‘The calorie coach’, a remarkable personal trainer who specializes in empowering women to achieve their fitness goals. Amna’s journey, however, is far from ordinary. Behind her inspiring energy and dedication lies a powerful story of personal struggle. Amna opens up about her battle with mental health issues that once left her feeling paralyzed with fear and...

In this episode, we delve into the incredible journey of Caroline Leon, a mountaineer whose life was irrevocably changed by a traumatic accident. Against all odds, Caroline not only survived but discovered a renewed sense of purpose in the mountains. Join us as Caroline recounts the harrowing details of her accident and the profound impact it had on her outlook on life. From the depths of despair...

In this episode, we explore the intricate dynamics of managing working relationships, romantic relationships, and the complexities of business development. Our guest, Keith O’Malley-Farrell, shares his invaluable insights and personal experiences on maintaining the balance between professional and personal connections. He opens up about the challenges of building a business amidst the turmoil of a...

In this moving episode, we sit down with Ishani Cooney, a courageous mother who opens up about her challenging birth experience and the tough road of motherhood marked by anxiety and depression. Ishani shares her raw and honest story, revealing the emotional and mental hurdles she faced as she navigated the early days of motherhood. Despite the immense difficulties, she is now on a transformative...

Chris Bradwell - From struggle to support In this episode, Ciarán sits down with Chris Bradwell, the founder of British Dads Dubai. In an open and heartfelt conversation, they delve into the strains of mental health as Chris shares his personal battles with anxiety and depression. The discussion extends to adult ADHD, where Chris reflects on his behaviour in comparison to his ADHD-diagnosed son an...

In this first episode of Season 6, Ciarán and Andrew dive into the critical topic of workplace wellbeing and the key factors that influence performance at work. They also provide a sneak peek into what Season 6 has in store, with Ciarán sharing insights on the types of conversations and interviews listeners can look forward to. Additionally, Ciarán announces exciting new partnerships with the Coac...

For the final episode of Season Five, we speak with Mollie from ‘Irish with Mollie’ where she shares her mission to revive the Irish language to a global audience. In this fascinating episode filled with passion, patriotism and pride, Mollie expresses her desire to make learning the Irish language fun and accessible; especially to the Irish diaspora. In addition, we speak about the challenges we b...

In this episode, we speak to Sorcha Coyle, a Career and Money strategist for teachers. Sorcha shares with us her journey from teacher in Qatar to entrepreneur where she unites her teaching expertise, experience and coaching skills to support and guide others to maximise their skillset, where they can showcase their strengths. In addition, we discuss the pros and cons of working abroad and how life...

For the fourth episode of Season Five, we talk to Neville O’Donoghue. Neville is the founder of the social media pages Benchwarmers, Gaelic craic and Rugby smacks; all totalling over 1 million followers! This episode shows how resilience, determination and the capability to think outside the box can lead to success.  Neville describes how the traditional education system restricted his ability to...

Ine-Mari Bredekamp comes on the show to discuss ADHD from the perspective of a parent. ADHD stands for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. It's a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects both children and adults.  Ine Mari explains how her son's ADHD has created challenges in his life. She shares with us some specific examples of these challenges and explains what her personal formula is to...

In this episode, we are delighted to hear from Carla Julian, a kid's certified yoga instructor. Carla is the owner of Move on Yoga - an organisation that promotes wellness for children. Carla expresses her passion for creating an environment that is safe, free from technology and a place for young people to connect with their feelings and emotions. In her programmes, through the power of creativit...

On the first show of Season Five, we had the pleasure of hosting Brian Keane of Brian Keane Fitness. Brian gave us an insight into his journey, from a primary school teacher to a successful businessman. Brian’s positivity and energy could be felt as soon he turned on his camera; and combined with his knowledge of the fitness industry and business head, Brian has transformed the lives of many.   Th...

In Episode 5 of Season Four, Catherine O’Farrell brings to light her excruciating ordeal of being in a road accident. As Catherine cycled off into the Dubai sunset, a car hit her from behind and left her ‘literally’ hanging on for her life. With an amazing team of people at the helm, Catherine began to visualize her future positively and created a new pathway that didn't match what she was origina...

On today’s show Helen Farmer from Dubai Eye talks about the guilt of being a working mother.  She talks about how her life was transformed when she was engaged, married and pregnant within a year.  She was back at work within 45 days but as her first born turned one, the guilt started to creep in.  Helen goes on to explain how she tries to juggle being the full time host of ‘Afternoons with Helen...

On today's show, Alistair brings us back to his school days where he endured some ‘not so pleasant’ experiences. With teachers who treated Alistair like there was something wrong with him, the ‘misunderstood’ teenage Alistair Dale felt lost in a system that truly was lost! Alistair explains how his unfortunate past as a teenager has created a passion and motivation to help students today who are a...

Samira Cutts - Managing the mind.  Today Samira Cutts explains to us what the work of occupational therapists entails and how we can learn to ‘function’’ better through the use of occupational therapy.  With key ingredients of physical therapy, psychology, sociology and anthropology coming together, Samira musters up a range of strategies that can support the body and mind to work collaboratively...

Professional sport and its challenges  To kick start off season 4 we had the pleasure to talk to Sean O’Shea, Director of Football and Cognita Schools Middle East. Sean shares with us that life as a professional football coach isn't an easy role to fill, but his passion and desire to make it to the top gives Sean the drive to get up every day to lace his football boots and grab his whistle.  In th...

For episode 6 of session 3, we talk to life coach Linda Bonnar. Linda shares with us her challenges with regard to an eating disorder and how this had such a profound impact on her education, home life and relationships.  Through her own understanding of the disorder, the support of her family and the many hours of cognitive training and therapy, Linda tells us how she overcame such challenges and...

In this New Years’ Day special, Ciarán provides some top tips and tricks to help you achieve your goals for 2023.  We discuss: Setting SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-Bound) State Management – How to get you in the right physical and emotional state to achieve your goal How to set goals and take actions that make you happy From everybody at CMB Coaching, we hope you...

In episode 4, Sandy Stirling tells us about the challenges he has experienced with a troubled marriage and the heartache associated with life in a broken family. Sandy shares with us the lengths he went to help him overcome such challenges, and gives us a taste of the amazing work he is currently doing for MND (Motor Neurone Disease). As Sandy says, it could be a one-hour cycle or 24 hours on the...

Today we talk to James Greenen; the principal dancer from the world-renowned Irish dancing show ‘Riverdance’.  In this episode, James shares with us his Irish dancing journey and the bank of skills that helps him perform to a global audience year after year.  In addition, James takes us on the Riverdance tour and gives us a taste of the stresses and strains associated with it; both physically and...

In this short episode, we highlight men's mental health and discuss the reason why Jonathan and Ciaran grew moustaches for the month of November to promote Movember. Movember is an annual event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men's health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and men's suicide. Along with Jonathan and Ciarán, man...

For the first episode of season three, Ciarán talks to educator and Irish examiner journalist Jenny Horgan. Jenny shares her views and opinions on the irish education system where she expresses concerns about how the curriculum prepares young people for the demands of adult life. In addition, Jenny highlights challenges teachers face with regard to resources available to support them to deliver be...