In this extremely special episode, Hugh reads the opening chapter from his second book, ‘Let Go’ to his younger sister (and Josh’s older sister) Georgia van Cuylenburg - a heartfelt letter from him to her. What follows is an incredibly powerful conversation between the two of them that, for the first time, addresses unspoken feelings and issues that have existed for years. We’ve been fortunate to have witnessed many beautiful examples of vulnerability on thi...
Dec 22, 2021•57 min•Season 3Ep. 27
A Part 1 wouldn't be complete without a Part 2. So here it is... wrapping up the wrap up! After Hugh kicked things off with a beautiful bang in Part 1, Part 2 sees Josh and Ryan follow suit and reflect on 2 moments from the podcast that meant a lot to them in 2021 - powerful moments from Martin Heppell and Ben Crowe. Once again, thank you for your ears. We love you. Now go tell someone special that you love them. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Dec 16, 2021•29 min•Season 3Ep. 26
We had to split our "End of Year Wrap" into 2 parts because of what came up in this ep. Without wanting to spoil it, it's yet another example of what can happen when we start the conversation and show a lil vulnerability to the ones we love. There will obviously be a Part 2, and then a few more very VERY special episodes to round out the year. Thank you for listening to us. We love you and appreciate you a LOT. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Dec 08, 2021•32 min•Season 3Ep. 25
Whether it’s TV, film, stand-up comedy, radio, books, podcasts... or... Straughanie, Peter “Pete” Helliar has been making us laugh for over 20 years and has found a lot of success doing it. But like anyone, Pete’s life has at times been imperfect. In this episode of The Vulnerabilitea House, Pete speaks with Hugh, Ryan and Josh about one of the most difficult times in his life when one of his close friends and colleagues, Richard Marsland, took his own life. Hugh then sha...
Nov 22, 2021•51 min•Season 3Ep. 24
Surprise! We have something special for you. Okay fine... it MAY be merchandise. Fine, you twisted our arm... it IS merchandise. But GOOD merchandise! PUN merchandise!!! Have a listen and go to thevulnerabiliteabag.com . BUT BE QUICK! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Nov 14, 2021•25 min•Season 3Ep. 23
You may have an image of what a “meditation teacher” sounds like. Whatever you’re thinking of, we’re pretty sure you’re not thinking of Jeff Warren. Jeff Warren is not your traditional meditation “guru”. He’s just... well, a guy. A Canadian guy! And alongside his own challenges with ADD and Bipolar diagnoses (among other things), he’s found a life and successful career in mindfulness and meditation. And if you’re like us, you’ll w...
Nov 08, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Season 3Ep. 22
We’ve been big fans of the Dyl & Friends podcast for a long time now. We love everything about the former AFL footballer and host of the Dyl & Friends podcast, Dylan Buckley. To that end, we are very excited to release this episode of our podcast as a Dyl & Friends and The Imperfects collaboration. As you will hear, Dylan is authentic and open. He embraces his imperfections and as such this chat is a true mix of both shows. Dylan starts off interviewing us about how The Im...
Nov 01, 2021•1 hr 16 min•Season 3Ep. 21
Today we welcome Dr Yves Rees into The Vulnerabilitea House. One morning, in a hotel room in Canada, aged 30, Yves had a life changing epiphany. With this came a range of emotions - happiness, confusion, pain, joy...and almost everything in between. As well as being a renowned history professor at La Trobe University, Yves is transgender. In today’s episode of The Imperfects, Ryan, Josh and Hugh are educated and enlightened by the insightful and vulnerable Dr Yve...
Oct 25, 2021•58 min•Season 3Ep. 20
On this week's episode of the podcast we talk to Australian comedian Becky Lucas. Becky has written a book - Acknowledgements, and as you will hear Hugh is BIT of a fan. We cover a-lot in this ep, from bitchy English exchange students, Becky’s parents' divorce, 'dick-lit’, the stresses of lock down; and somehow we manage to squeeze in a discussion of 90s NBL basketball under the ‘auspice’ of a special birthday surprise. Afterwards we discuss the role of laughter and...
Oct 12, 2021•1 hr 22 min•Season 3Ep. 19
There is no one else in the world quite like our guest this week. For years people kept telling Hugh he needed to bring on a new presenter to meet the demand from schools and workplaces around the country. He said he would only ever do it if he found someone extraordinary. In 2015, Hugh found that extraordinary person - Martin Heppell. In today’s episode, Ryan, Hugh and Josh are both moved and inspired as Martin steps into the Vulnerabilitea and shares a heart breaking story from his...
Sep 28, 2021•46 min•Season 3Ep. 18
Ready to learn? Us too. In The Academy of Imperfection this week, imperfect students Hugh, Ryan and Josh speak with American psychologist, leadership coach and specialist in the area of male relationships, Daniel Ellenberg. Daniel shares some very insightful stuff on how men relate to other men - why they do what they do, and why they DON’T do what they don’t do! But by the end of the episode, what was supposed to be a casual “lecture” turns into a men’s workshop of...
Sep 14, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Season 3Ep. 17
Two episodes in a week, what is going on? Well, it's another Vulnerabilitea House that's what. This week it's Josh's turn. Lockdown rules meant this teahouse was spread across three tea houses but it doesn't detract from the quality of the tea, and the vulnerableness. Josh discusses an issue he's had for a long, long time and Hugh takes some time to delve a little deeper into the concept of vulnerability. What is it? Why is it important? How do we best practise it? Being vulnerable can be scary,...
Aug 30, 2021•44 min•Season 3Ep. 16
In the beginning, it was novel. A change of pace. A good excuse to bake our own bread and believe that “we’ll always bake our own bread from now on because it’s so nice to wake up to the smell of fresh bread in the morning!” But come on... seriously... we’re not baking bread anymore are we? This whole COVID thing has become a proper bummer. Like, next-level maximum bummer. So, because we’ve all been feeling the pinch recently, Hugh assembled Ryan and Josh for ...
Aug 24, 2021•43 min•Season 3Ep. 14
Travis Boak is one of the best footballers in the country. At age 33, he is showing no signs of slowing down, in fact many believe he is just getting better. His brilliance on the ground is a direct result of the hard work he puts into his game. What many don’t know however, is that he works just as hard on his mental and emotional health. Due to the tragic passing of his father, Travis has, for way too long, carried the baggage and trauma of this tragedy. Join Travis for this heartfelt co...
Aug 16, 2021•1 hr 19 min•Season 3Ep. 13
Thirsty? How about a nice cup of Vulnerabilitea from The Vulnerabilitea House? Join Hugh and Josh as they listen to co-host Ryan Shelton pick a card at random and get vulnerable. Ryan shares some recent discoveries he’s had with his psychologist in regards to how certain aspects of his childhood prepared him... or DIDN’T prepare him for adulthood. N.B. There’s also a quick digression into the nostalgic world of 90s NBL Basketball. Don’t worry, it’s quick. Also, whil...
Aug 01, 2021•32 min•Season 3Ep. 12
Go get your pens and notebooks everyone! In this edition of The Academy of Imperfection, students Hugh, Ryan, Josh sit down with famed paediatrician, Dr Billy Garvey of The Royal Children’s Hospital. Currently, Billy regretfully has a two and a half year waiting list to see him in person, but is keen to reach as many of you as possible NOW. And with all the talk on our podcast about parenting recently, we felt this was a very necessary episode. Billy may not look like one of Australia&rsqu...
Jul 19, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Season 3Ep. 11
Our very own Hugh van Cuylenburg is back in the hotseat for a second round in the Vulnerabilitea House! And guys... wowee. Potentially inspired by the most recent Vulnerabilitea House episode with Missy Higgins, Hugh opens up about how much he is actually struggling right now. In fact, he’s probably as raw and honest and vulnerable as he’s ever been on The Imperfects. The Vulnerabilitea House (and the whole podcast tbh) is all about encouraging vulnerability by sharing our own strugg...
Jul 04, 2021•33 min•Season 3Ep. 10
At the beginning of 2018, Christian O'Connell was the host of the number one breakfast radio show in England, he averaged over 2 million listeners a day, he'd won basically every award possible in the radio industry, he was seemingly on top of his world. Unbeknownst to almost everyone in his life though, he could barely make it on the air. At the age of 45, Christian had started suffering debilitating panic attacks. And they were becoming an almost daily occurrence. In this episode of The Imperf...
Jun 20, 2021•1 hr 23 min•Season 3Ep. 9
Prepare yourself for a very different episode of The Vulnerabilitea House (for a few reasons): We welcome our first guest... MISSY HIGGINS IS BACK ON THE POD! We all live in Melbourne and it was COVID lockdown at the time of recording so we were on Zoom. The whole thing almost didn’t happen at all... and you’ll hear why. For those new to The Vulnerabilitea House, here’s how it works. We get together, we sip tea, someone picks a card from the deck of vulnerability-invoking quest...
Jun 07, 2021•31 min•Season 3Ep. 8
Welcome back to The Academy of Imperfection - a conversational lecture series that features guest lecturers talking with students Hugh, Ryan, Josh and you about different areas of imperfection. Today, designer, author and teacher, James Victore talks about CREATIVITY. Before writing his brilliant 2019 book ‘Feck Perfuction: Dangerous Ideas on the Business of Creativity’, James created commerical work for Moet & Chandon, Time magazine and Yohji Yamamoto and has had his work exhibi...
May 23, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 3Ep. 7
We’re back in The Vulnerabilitea House! This time it’s Josh van Cuylenburg. The proven question-ASKER, becomes a first-time question-ANSWERER as he sips some Vunerabilitea and shares an honest and raw story from his past that not even his brother Hugh knew about - all in the name of vulnerability and connection. Pour yourself a cup of tea everyone... it’s great to see you again. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
May 09, 2021•18 min•Season 3Ep. 6
This week on the podcast we return to The Vulnerabilitea House, and this time its Ryan Shelton's turn. The Vulnerabilitea House, is a new style of episode from The Imperfects, where we share something honest and a little bit vulnerable, all over a nice cup of tea. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Apr 11, 2021•18 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Welcome to the very first episode of The Academy of Imperfection! Presented by The Imperfects, this new series of conversational lectures will feature experts talking about different areas of imperfection with students Hugh, Ryan, Josh and you. The inaugural guest lecturer is someone we are extremely excited about. Ben Crowe. Along with Brene Brown, Ben has easily been the most mentioned person on The Imperfects over the last few years. Since working at NIKE for decades, Ben has worked closely w...
Mar 28, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 3Ep. 3
The most hyped pun in podcasting, well, sort of... This is a new style of episode from The Imperfects, something a bit shorter than normal, which we’ll scatter between the longer eps. As you’ll see from the title of these episodes (pun revealed in the ep!), they’re designed to encourage vulnerability. First up. it's Hugh's turn to be vulnerable, if all goes well, we'll try and get some more imperfect people sharing something honest and a little bit vulnerable, all shared ...
Mar 14, 2021•21 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Best known for his role as ‘Jimmy’ on TV show, Offspring, actor Rick Davies doesn’t remember a time in his life without Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Despite that, this is the first time Rick is speaking publicy about it. Rick selflessly shares a number of uncomfortable (and slightly embarrassing) stories from his life with OCD, and afterwards Hugh chats with Ryan and Josh about some resources for anyone who has OCD or knows someone who does. See omnystudio.com/listener ...
Mar 01, 2021•2 hr 48 min•Season 3Ep. 1
In preparation for what they “promise” will be the biggest year yet for The Imperfects, Hugh, Ryan and Josh catch up for a short warm-up episode. Yes, there’ll of course NEW episodes in Season 3, but also there’ll be new TYPES of episodes, including one that involves an extremely overhyped pun. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Feb 22, 2021•5 min
Steph Claire Smith is one of Australia's most successful models. She rose to fame as the Instagram 'it girl' and has managed to transform this fame into a highly accomplished international modelling career; and with the help of best friend Laura, a fast growing health & fitness brand, Keep It Cleaner . If anyone's life looks perfect, it's Steph's. However, as she bravely details in this fascinating chat with Hugh, we shouldn't always believe what we see on Instagram. Following the chat, Ryan...
Nov 25, 2020•2 hr 46 min•Season 2Ep. 6
In 2019 Will McMahon and Woody Whitelaw (of Will & Woody fame) released the video, "Best Mates Sit Down For A Heart To Heart About Depression". If you haven't seen it, you really must. It's a fantastic example of the power of vulnerability. Will McMahon has enjoyed a phenomenal career in radio, currently co-hosting the drive slot on the KISS network. He's at the top of his game, yet Will has achieved all this whilst enduring the undulations of living with a mental illness. Following the chat...
Oct 22, 2020•2 hr 30 min•Season 2Ep. 5
On this week’s episode, Hugh chats with Australian BMX racer, world champion, multi-Olympian, Sam Willoughby. In 2016, Sam experienced a life-changing neck injury which left him with tetraplegia. At 29 Sam has lived a remarkable life and is an incredible person who tells his life story with candour and honesty. Following the chat, Ryan and Hugh discuss Sam's journey whilst exploring some of the life lessons we can learn from this incredible person. If this episode has triggered anything fo...
Sep 28, 2020•2 hr 43 min•Season 2Ep. 4
This week we talk to the wonderful Australian comedian, actor and improviser Steen Raskopoulos. Over the past 8 years Steen Raskopoulos has enjoyed a remarkable career with acclaimed stand up shows, starring roles on tv shows, working with his comedic idols, copious awards...the works. In this episode Steen talks candidly of the mental health struggles going on behind the scenes during this meteoric rise. Following this, Ryan and Hugh discuss some of the valuable lessons we can learn from Steen'...
Sep 13, 2020•1 hr 28 min•Season 2Ep. 3
