PODCAST · education
The Lonely Chapter
by Sam Maclean
Step into The Lonely Chapter, the podcast where host Sam Maclean sits down with remarkable guests to explore the stories that shape us. Each week, discover inspiring conversations on personal growth, mental health, resilience, and self-improvement. Sam and his guests share real-life lessons, expert insights, and practical strategies for navigating life’s toughest moments. Whether you’re seeking motivation, deeper self-understanding, or tools for transformation, The Lonely Chapter offers candid discussions that illuminate the path to a more fulfilled, empowered you.
Episodes
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When You Grow Up Feeling Like the Problem | Corrie Mustafa | #122
What does it take to believe in yourself when you’ve grown up feeling like the problem? For Corrie Mustafa, a small sense of purpose began in the 24-hour gym opposite his temporary accommodation. Boxing brought routine, friendship and people who wanted him to do well. In this episode of The…
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What We Get Wrong About Men’s Mental Health | Martin Seager | #121
Being told to talk isn’t the same as being heard. In this conversation, consultant clinical psychologist Martin Seager returns to The Lonely Chapter for episode 121. We explore masculinity, emotional wellbeing and the difference between encouraging someone to talk and helping them feel…
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What 17 Years on Live Radio Truly Taught Me | Iain Dale | #120
Some truths are hardest to tell the people we love. LBC presenter Iain Dale hears them on live radio. In this conversation with Sam on The Lonely Chapter, he reflects on the trust that leads callers to share things they have never told their partners, friends or families. We begin with Constance…
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The Pain Behind “I’m Fine” | Suicide Awareness Compilation | #119
Someone can look as though they’re coping while carrying pain other people don’t see. For Suicide Awareness Month, I’ve brought together moments from seven previous episodes of The Lonely Chapter about struggling privately, feeling heard, and what helped people through. Dr Susie Bennett begins by...
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You Can Do Everything Right and Still Lose | Solo Episode | #118
Sometimes you can do everything right and still lose. You can prepare properly and still fail. Treat someone well and still be left. Work hard for an opportunity and receive no answer. So how do you live well when effort cannot guarantee the outcome? In this solo episode, Sam explores Stoicism as…
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TOPGUN Instructor: What It Really Takes to Lead Under Pressure | Dave Berke | #117
What does it really take to lead when you don’t know the right answer, and the consequences of getting it wrong are real? Dave Berke is a retired US Marine Corps fighter pilot, former TOPGUN instructor and ground combat leader who served in Ramadi alongside Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. Today, he...
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Belonging in an Age of Isolation: From Attention to Action | Christian d’Ippolito | #116
Why can someone appear to be doing fine, stay busy and remain constantly connected—yet still feel that they belong nowhere? Christian d’Ippolito is the founder of The Spartan Project and former leader of Steel Warriors, an anti-knife-crime charity that transforms confiscated knives into outdoor...
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The Grief Nobody Sees: Finding Joy After Loss | Rosie Moss | #115
She looks happy. The grief is still there. Rosie Moss has built a beautiful life, raised three children she adores and created a career she loves. She is also still grieving the husband she lost eight and a half years ago. Both things are true. In this episode, Rosie explains the hidden duality…
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How Successful Founders Can Still Burn Out | Adam Williams | #114
The business was working. Adam was running on empty. A year after leaving his dream job to become a founder, Adam Williams had built a thriving podcast studio... But behind the success were relentless hours, no proper break and a business that still depended on him giving everything. In Episode...
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The Loneliness of Being the Man Everyone Relies On | Jasper Calcara | #113
Being the strong one made Jasper almost invisible. For nearly 30 years, Jasper Calcara built a successful structural engineering firm and became the person others trusted to handle any amount of pressure. But the more capable he appeared, the easier it became for everyone, including Jasper, to...
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Why Confidence Is Not the Same as Certainty | Solo Episode | #112
Sometimes real confidence is being secure enough to admit that you might be wrong. In this solo episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam Maclean reflects on three ideas that have repeatedly surfaced in the conversations since Episode 100: Why confidence and certainty are not the same. Why complex human...
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Why Peace Was Harder to Survive Than War | Liz McConaghy | #111
War gave Liz purpose. Peace nearly took her life. Liz McConaghy spent 17 years flying on the RAF Chinook Fleet, completing deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and serving on the Medical Emergency Response Team. Surrounded by people, purpose and teamwork, she learned to function in some of the…
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Why Strong Men Don’t Always Ask for Help | Jason Kubiak | #110
He looked fine, but he was falling apart. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter Podcast, Sam speaks with Jason Kubiak, a firefighter, former professional MMA fighter, father and co-founder of Unified Against Violence CIC. Jason opens up about the period of his life where everything started to...
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5 Questions to Help You Make Sense of Life | Solo Episode | #109
Most of us are looking for answers, but maybe what we need is better questions. In this solo episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam Maclean reflects on the questions that have kept appearing across more than 100 honest conversations about identity, difficulty, purpose, personal growth and what it…
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The Weight of Leading the London Fire Brigade | Jonathan Smith | #108
What does real responsibility feel like? In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, I sit down with Jonathan Smith, the London Fire Commissioner, to talk about what it really means to lead the London Fire Brigade. Jonathan leads the largest fire and rescue service in England and Wales, but this...
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Why Men Hide Their Pain Until They Break | Dr Susie Bennett | #107
Some men look fine. They’re not. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, I’m joined again by Dr Susie Bennett, a researcher whose work focuses on male suicide, men’s mental health, emotional suppression and the hidden pain many men carry. We explore why some men appear completely fine on the…
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5 Lessons Firefighting Taught Me About Life | Solo Episode | #106
Firefighting teaches you what pressure reveals. In this solo episode of The Lonely Chapter, I reflect on 5 lessons firefighting taught me about life - and how those lessons connect to confidence, pressure, identity, mental health, emotional intelligence, and the conversations I’ve had on the...
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When High Performance Leads to Burnout | Brandon Day | #105
What do you do when your dream life starts to feel like a nightmare? In this chapter, we sit down with Brandon Day to explore the "dark places" that high performance often hides. From winning National Championships and being featured in Sports Illustrated to waking up on a deflated air mattress…
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What Suffering Reveals About the Life You’re Avoiding | Chris from CFTE | #104
Sometimes the pain we avoid is trying to teach us. Chris from Conversations for the End joins Sam for a conversation about grief, suffering, addiction, Carl Jung, and what happens when the things we avoid begin to find their way back to us. After losing his brother in a car accident at fourteen,...
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Are Men Being Mis-Sold TRT? | Dr Rob Stevens | #103
Not every tired man needs testosterone. The conversation around low testosterone has exploded. Online clinics, adverts, influencers and high-profile men are all talking about testosterone replacement therapy as if it could be the missing piece for men who feel tired, flat, foggy or disconnected....
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What I’m Still Figuring Out About Success | Solo Episode | #102
Two years into The Lonely Chapter, I don’t feel like I’ve figured life out, but I do think I’m asking better questions. In this solo episode, I reflect on what success really means when you’re building something that matters, how to grow without losing yourself, and why numbers are only one part…
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What the FBI Taught Him About Human Nature | Eric Robinson | #101
Some jobs change the way you see people. Eric Robinson spent 24 years as an FBI special agent, including 15 years in SWAT. Before joining the FBI, he spent years in Christian ministry - which gives this conversation a very different depth from the usual law enforcement interview. In this episode,...
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Why I Started The Lonely Chapter | Interviewed by Molly | #100
One hundred conversations changed me. For the 100th episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is interviewed by his partner Molly about why he started the podcast, what the name really means, and what he has learned from one hundred conversations about identity, growth, mental health, resilience and...
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She Quit Teaching After Burnout and Built a Life That Fits | Lily Kerbey | #99
Sometimes the stable life is the wrong one. Lily Kerbey is a singer and performer who built a career in a very different way to the one she first imagined. Only a few years ago, Lily was working as a high school music teacher and was completely burnt out. She was mentally and physically unwell,...
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What Strength Really Looks Like After Trauma | James Elliott | #98
What does real strength actually look like? In this episode, I sit down with psychotherapist and resilience coach James Elliott for a conversation about resilience, trauma, identity, emotional control, and the lessons he took from his time in the military. James brings both lived experience and...
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How Grief Forces You to Rebuild What Matters | John Merriman | #97
Some losses change the shape of everything. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam sits down with John Merriman, founder of Crown Lane Studio in South London, for a conversation about grief, faith, purpose, community and rebuilding after life-changing events. John speaks about the river...
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Why Boys Are Being Pulled Into the Manosphere | George TheTinMen | #96
Boys are not falling into this by accident. Following the recent Louis Theroux documentary on the manosphere, Sam sits down again with George from The Tin Men to talk about why so many boys and young men are being drawn towards harmful messages online, and what often gets missed underneath that...
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5 Leadership Lessons That Changed How I See People | Solo Episode | #95
Leadership is not just about being in charge. Leadership is often associated with titles, authority or seniority. But the best leaders I’ve spoken to on The Lonely Chapter see it differently. After nearly 100 conversations, certain patterns about leadership keep appearing. In this solo episode…
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Being Hard On Yourself Is Not Discipline | Solo Episode | #94
One small mistake can become a whole story. This week’s episode comes from a small mistake: I missed releasing an episode. What surprised me wasn’t the mistake itself, but how quickly my internal voice turned against me. Within hours, I had gone from missing an upload to questioning whether I was...
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When Success Doesn’t Feel Like Yours: Burnout and Self-Trust | Dr Wendy O’Connor | #93
Success can still leave you disconnected. What if the life you’ve worked so hard to build doesn’t actually feel like yours? In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam sits down with Dr Wendy O’Connor, a Stanford-trained psychologist and positive psychology expert, to explore burnout, self-trust,...
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You Can’t Lead Others If You Can’t Lead Yourself | Mary Howe | #92
Leadership starts long before anyone follows you. Most of us are taught how to lead others. Very few of us are taught how to lead ourselves. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam sits down with Mary Howe, former US Air Force AC-130 crew member and nurse, to explore self-leadership…
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Why You Feel Lonely in a Crowded City | Nini Fritz | #91
Being surrounded is not the same as belonging. Loneliness is becoming one of the defining challenges of modern life. Even in crowded cities and hyper-connected digital spaces, many people quietly feel isolated, unseen and disconnected. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is joined by Nini...
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4 Lessons About Confidence, Regret and Changing Your Life | Solo Episode | #90
Some patterns only appear after enough stories. After sitting down with nearly 90 people over the last two years, certain themes keep repeating. In this solo episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam reflects on four observations that sit beneath many of the stories shared on the podcast, not as advice,...
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What Happens When You Grow Up Without a Rite of Passage | Chris Barton | #89
Growing up is harder without a threshold. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is joined by Chris Barton to explore what happens when societies lose meaningful rites of passage, and why growing up without initiation can leave so many people feeling unprepared for adulthood. Chris is part of…
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How to Stop Outsourcing Responsibility | Dakota Meyer | #88
Nobody is coming to save you. In this grounded and challenging conversation, Sam is joined by Dakota Meyer, U.S. Marine veteran and Medal of Honor recipient, to explore a simple but confronting truth: nobody is coming to save you. Dakota explains why personal responsibility sits at the centre of…
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Why Confident Speaking Starts With Feeling Safe | Myles Usher-Doyle | #87
Your voice changes when you feel safe. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is joined by Myles Usher-Doyle, speech coach and founder of Speak-Well Coaching, who has coached top-tier communicators including Chris Williamson, host of Modern Wisdom. We talk about what sits underneath confident...
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Why Tinnitus Gets Worse With Stress | Dr Gladys Sanda | #86
The sound is only part of the struggle. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is joined by Dr Gladys Sanda, a tinnitus specialist who has spent over a decade supporting people living with tinnitus, and who also lives with it herself. We talk about the emotional and psychological impact...
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Best of 2025: Life, Loss, Identity & Mental Health | #85
Some conversations stay with you. This episode is a reflective close to the year: a curated collection of moments from conversations across 2025 that stayed with me. It is not a ranking of guests or episodes, and it is not about what was “best”. Instead, these are moments where something honest…
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10 Questions About Identity, Purpose and How You Live | Solo Episode | #84
The right question can stay with you. In this solo episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam revisits 10 questions left by podcast guests across the year, each one designed to spark reflection, conversation and a deeper look at how we live. These questions move through identity, vulnerability, purpose,...
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What Spina Bifida Taught Him About Independence | Zack Sikora | #83
Independence is built one challenge at a time. Zack Sikora was born with Spina Bifida, but his story is not defined by limitation. It is defined by independence, discipline, humour and doing hard things. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam sits down with Zack to explore the reality of...
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How Great Coaches Build Confidence Without Lowering Standards | Mark Robinson | #82
Confidence grows when people feel safe enough to fail. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is joined by football coach Mark Robinson, former Chelsea U21 Head Coach and the man who built AFC Wimbledon’s academy from scratch, to explore leadership, confidence, player development and the role...
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Why Men Struggle to Talk About Their Health | Solo Episode | #81
Silence is costing men more than we admit. In this solo episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam reflects on co-hosting an International Men’s Day event at London Fire Brigade headquarters and the honest conversations it opened around men’s mental health, suicide, loneliness, identity and physical...
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How Art Helps Us Express What Words Can’t | Polina Davi | #80
Most people aren’t calm, they’re emotionally numb. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam sits down with sacred artist and creative guide Polina Davi to explore how art and creativity can support emotional healing, self-discovery and personal transformation. We talk about why so many people...
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Inside the Mind of a World Record Endurance Athlete | Sean Conway | #79
Some challenges matter because you might fail. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam sits down with world-record endurance athlete Sean Conway to explore the mindset, philosophy and inner drive behind a life built around adventure. Sean explains why he chooses challenges with what he…
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How Doing Hard Things Builds Real Resilience | Solo Episode | #78
Hard things have a way of bringing life into focus. In this short solo episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam reflects on two days scrambling in Snowdonia and what the experience taught him about resilience, attention and deliberately choosing difficult experiences. From crossing the exposed ridge of...
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How to Date With Purpose | Stephanie Nicoletti | #77
Swiping is easy. Real connection asks more of you. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is joined by life coach Stephanie Nicoletti for a conversation about dating with purpose, building meaningful relationships and becoming clearer about what you actually want from a partner. Stephanie...
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The Hidden Psychology Behind Great Leadership | Sebastien Page | #76
Great leaders know when to stop talking. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is joined by Sebastien Page, author of The Psychology of Leadership, to explore the human behaviour behind effective leadership. Sebastien explains why listening can be more powerful than speaking, how ideas from...
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How Language Shapes Your Identity and Reality | Kyle Smith | #75
What if changing one word could change your life? In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam is joined by clarity consultant Kyle Smith to explore how language, self-talk and personal stories shape the way we understand ourselves. Kyle explains the difference between conflict and architect...
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5 Ideas About Identity, Pain and Success | Solo Episode | #74
Some ideas change the questions you ask yourself. In this solo episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam explores five ideas from psychology, philosophy and everyday life that have changed how he thinks about difficulty, emotion, identity and success. These ideas include why situations that are “not…
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From Anger to Art: Finding Purpose Through Dance | Shaun Dillon | #73
Dance gave his anger somewhere to go. In this episode of The Lonely Chapter, Sam sits down with contemporary dancer and choreographer Shaun Dillon to explore how creativity can transform anger, vulnerability and difficult emotions into something meaningful. Shaun shares how dance became an outlet...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Step into The Lonely Chapter, the podcast where host Sam Maclean sits down with remarkable guests to explore the stories that shape us. Each week, discover inspiring conversations on personal growth, mental health, resilience, and self-improvement. Sam and his guests share real-life lessons, expert insights, and practical strategies for navigating life’s toughest moments. Whether you’re seeking motivation, deeper self-understanding, or tools for transformation, The Lonely Chapter offers candid discussions that illuminate the path to a more fulfilled, empowered you.
HOSTED BY
Sam Maclean
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Lonely Chapter have?
The Lonely Chapter currently has 60 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Lonely Chapter about?
Step into The Lonely Chapter, the podcast where host Sam Maclean sits down with remarkable guests to explore the stories that shape us. Each week, discover inspiring conversations on personal growth, mental health, resilience, and self-improvement. Sam and his guests share real-life lessons, expert...
How often does The Lonely Chapter release new episodes?
The Lonely Chapter has 60 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to The Lonely Chapter?
You can listen to The Lonely Chapter on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Lonely Chapter?
The Lonely Chapter is created and hosted by Sam Maclean.
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