The Gentle Rebel Podcast
The Gentle Rebel Podcast with Andy Mort explores the intersection of high sensitivity, creativity, and contemporary culture. Through conversations, creative prompts, and reflections, we examine how highly sensitive people (HSPs) navigate and reshape the world within, around, and between us in sustainable ways. I invite you to poke and prod the assumptions, pressures, and expectations we’ve accepted—to rewrite the stories of who we are, and to explore what’s possible when we embrace high sensitivity as both a personal trait and an essential thread in our collective survival (and potential).
Episodes
May 2, 2025 • 27 mins
What do you think of when you hear the words A Still Life?
A bowl of fruit? A serene person, undisturbed by the world's noise. Stagnation and stuckness. The quiet, hope-filled whisper that reminds you that no matter how it feels or where you are right now, you still have life within you. Another chapter waiting to be written.
We've been reading Josie George’s memoir, A Still Life, in The Haven book club. After Josie joined us...
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April 18, 2025 • 29 mins
This post elaborates on the sensitivity research section of The HSP Owner's Guide.
Differential susceptibility is a key concept in high-sensitivity research. In simple terms, it means that the more sensitive you are, the more your environment impacts you. As a highly sensitive person (HSP), you might notice that some people thrive in situations where you feel discombobulated. Conversely, when conditions feel right, you may e...
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April 14, 2025 • 6 mins
May the road rise to meet you.
My note from a slow coach this week reflects on Baltic endorphins, some internal torment due to a decision made by my past self that my present self didn't appreciate, and a poem contemplating whether adventure is always just around the corner. It's an excerpt from a journal entry a couple of weeks ago when I was in Finland.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_VzkTNi53E
I’m still feeling ...
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April 4, 2025 • 39 mins
In a world obsessed with productivity, competition, and the "hero’s journey," Natsu Miyashita’s The Forest of Wool and Steel shines a quietly revolutionary light on something altogether different.
This book is a balm for those who’ve felt out of step with society’s narrow definitions of success or crave a deeper, slower, more meaningful way of living.
In this episode of The Gentle Rebel Podcast, I explore what I took as its...
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March 16, 2025 • 8 mins
When you receive help, do you perceive it as a transactional burden or as a gift?
How do you support the people, ideas, and art you admire? Do you feel disappointed when they go against your views, or do you willingly allow them the freedom to grow and evolve into whatever they might become, despite potential disagreements?
https://youtu.be/Ueyw7nSI6jc
Last year, during a Haven Phrase Maze exploration around the prom...
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March 14, 2025 • 22 mins
People may fear giving credit because they worry it will diminish their status. But research shows the opposite is true: sharing credit actually boosts respect and trust. This paradox lies at the heart of status insecurity, a psychological trap that drives maladaptive behaviors and undermines relationships, careers, and personal wellbeing.
In this episode of The Gentle Rebel Podcast, we explore the vicious cycle of status insecu...
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March 2, 2025 • 13 mins
I know I’m not the only one disturbed by the scenes of Donald Trump and J.D. Vance publicly dressing down Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.
I was saddened and sickened by the bullying behaviour of those entrusted to know and be a whole lot better than that. The lack of empathy, the attempts to humiliate and intimidate, and the smirking childish arrogance was embarrassing to witness. Especially from indiv...
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February 26, 2025
We just finished reading Wintering by Katherine May in the book club, and it has prompted me to reflect on the parallels between the book's themes and the foundational values underlying The Return to Serenity Island.
https://youtu.be/NoGFVIuAPJk
Katherine May describes Wintering as “a season in the cold. It is a fallow period in life when you're cut off from the world, feeling rejected, sidelined, blocked from progres...
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February 23, 2025
In our February Book Club, we met to discuss ‘Wintering: The power of rest and retreat in difficult times‘ by Katherine May. Here are my notes on the book.
Book Notes
Katherine May describes “Wintering” as “a season in the cold. It is a fallow period in life when you're cut off from the world, feeling rejected, sidelined, blocked from progress, or cast into the role of an outsider.” Through a sudden crisis, the loss of...
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February 21, 2025 • 18 mins
Have you ever been told to come out of your shell? It’s a phrase many of us have heard, especially if we’re introverted, sensitive, or reflective by nature. But what if this idea misunderstands the role of a shell? What if, instead of seeing it as a limitation, we saw it as a space of protection, growth, and creativity?
In this week's episode of The Gentle Rebel Podcast, we will explore the idea of shells—not as barriers to brea...
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February 14, 2025 • 38 mins
We’ve all heard the phrase, “the end justifies the means.” But in this episode of The Gentle Rebel Podcast, I want to turn it inside out and explore this idea from another angle. What if, for some people, focusing solely on the outcome as the ultimate goal can lead to a dissatisfying and alienating approach to life?
This question struck me as I emerged from a week-long rabbit hole. In the previous episode, I talked about u...
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February 11, 2025 • 45 mins
In this episode of The Gentle Rebel Podcast, I share a video essay about influencer culture, asking where self-help guru Mel Robbins really discovered the idea for her latest book, The Let Them Theory.
Note, as this situation has evolved, I have added more videos to document it. They are available here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQ_xip3l1io&
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryQBcUuN8pk&
I fell into this rab...
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January 18, 2025
Persistence has power—it can contribute to a better world, but it can also do the opposite, extracting value and coercing people without consent.
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January 16, 2025 • 60 mins
Active hope is not "blind hope" or wishful thinking. It's about taking action rather than sitting back and saying, "I hope everything works out OK," or waiting for the technological fix we want to believe is coming.
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January 15, 2025
Numbers can topple buildings and spark change but can also reduce individuals to statistical fodder and data on a spreadsheet.
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January 13, 2025
Without it, we gain nothing. Pain is love, creativity, compassion, and care. Without it, we gain nothing; we simply exist.
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January 11, 2025 • 12 mins
Discomfort can be a sign of, and a catalyst for change, a question that pokes and prods, tickling and shaking us awake, even when we would much rather still be asleep.
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January 9, 2025 • 9 mins
Many people perpetually power through on the fumes of our strength and resolve. It’s no wonder we are burning out.
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January 7, 2025
What does it mean to stay strong and carry on? What sort of strength do we need to maintain? Where does it come from? What does it look like?
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December 26, 2024 • 35 mins
Are you an armchair creative? You are great at learning, preparing, and researching a field, yet something often stops you from taking action.
In this episode of The Gentle Rebel Podcast, we consider some things that stop us from acting and explore how to get out of the armchair in 2025.
Armchair Certainty
"What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?” is a common question in coaching. While intended to free us fro...
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