Mags Treanor
Mags Treanor

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The 4 Biggest Lies We’ve Been Told About Ageing

I’ve always been fascinated by the strange things we decide are valuable. Take antiques. The older they are, the more we seem to admire them. An eighteenth-century dining table is a treasure. A vintage bottle of Bordeaux can sell for thousands. A Stradivarius violin is almost beyond value. Even old cars become classics. Apparently, if...

Coffeehousing: The Space Between the Rules

Mags Treanor Coffeehousing is one of those wonderful Scrabble words that sounds as though it ought to involve cappuccinos, biscuits and perhaps a pleasant chat about vowel management. It doesn’t. Apparently it’s psychological warfare. Or maybe it isn’t. That’s the problem. It’s amazing what my brain decides to obsess over. There are wars going on....

Late Admission

When I told people I was starting an MSc in Psychology at sixty, they said things like ‘go you’, but deep down most of them thought I’d lost the plot. The awkward part was that I rather suspected they might be right. I already had the qualifications I needed to build the career I’d loved....

The Relevance Myth

The other day someone mentioned a friend who had recently retired. Then they paused. “Well… semi-retired,” they said. “He doesn’t really like calling himself retired.” I understood immediately. Not because I know the man. I don’t. But because I recognised what he was trying to protect. His relevance. I found myself inventing this man. In...

Why Taking Action is All That Matters

Do you spend most of your free time reading and gathering information? Are you a podcast, article, book reading, video watching junkie who gathers a lot of amazing information, new ideas and perspectives, but find that it never seems to make any meaningful progress in your life? You might be trying to take your life...

Everyone Leaves the Bad Manager—But No One Thinks It’s Them

We’ve all heard it said: “People don’t leave bad jobs—they leave bad managers.” And we’ve all nodded in agreement, because it’s often true. But here’s something I’ve rarely heard: “I left because I was the problem.” “I was the bad manager.” We talk a lot about toxic leadership, poor communication, and difficult bosses—but we almost...

The Mild Panic of Letting Go

When I was a child, about nine or ten, growing up in Ireland, I remember this little card knocking about with a prayer on it. It sat on the mantelpiece, half-hidden behind a line of photos and old souvenirs — the kind of clutter every Irish house had. The card was worn and crumpled, like...

AI Has Seen Through Us, and It’s Not Impressed

Let’s be honest: it’s not the robots we should be afraid of. It’s the moment they realise we haven’t a clue what we’re doing. Are you sick of all those AI-polished reports that sound impressive but say nothing. Slide decks that could sell anything to anyone, except the actual idea. Emails so over-edited they’ve lost...

9 Productive Responses to Criticism

Criticism is often the most honest mirror reflecting our professional performance. Yet, it’s not always the easiest to digest. The dynamic nature of every day life demands that we view criticism not as an obstacle, but as an invaluable asset. Here’s how to turn critique into your competitive advantage: Reframe the Feedback: Criticism is currency for...