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Survival Mode for Mental Health: a list of things you can do to help your mental health during the lockdown

By EK Wills Everyone touts the importance and need to focus on our mental health, yet precious little seems to be done about it. From diet and meditation to Employee Assist Programs, these patchwork approaches all target aspects of our mental health that are like Band-Aid strips on wounds already created. What if we actually took an holistic approach and looked at prevention? This week there was a landmark decision in WA around domestic violence. The government there has reco

By EK Wills 4 Dads In perfect timing for Father’s Day, an article in the SMH inspired me to expand on the theory that father’s have their own language. If you haven’t heard already, Men Are From Mars and Women Are From Venus. What this refers to is John Gray’s premise that the fundamental issues in relationships stem from psychological differences between the sexes. Even decades after this book was first a best seller, it is still valid. If you take this a step further, it st

By EK Wills I am sitting in a vineyard bach (villa) in New Zealand after having gone out for dinner and can look forward to a swim in the pool after breakfast. But it is tainted. The day before, the family sat on the beach talking about meal plans: not because we were budgeting (although we do that too) but because my teen was stressed about her weight. Her distress centres around confidence or lack thereof. She tells me that if her weight were better then she would feel more

By EK Wills money tree I grew up in the excess of the 80’s when everyone expected to become a millionaire. My father was one, so why shouldn’t I? Except the 80’s didn’t last and he wasn’t the Rich Dad that taught you how to do it sensibly and slowly because that was boring. He was a risk taker and a good one. The 80’s were his gold fields and he knew how to reap the rewards. He didn’t need a savings plan but he knew that you needed regular income to service your debt in order

by EK Wills When your heart skips a beat for a prospective partner, all you care about is your feelings for each other. You probably think a little further to what it would be like to have a baby together and even what sort of parent they would make. But do you both share common goals for the future? Are you both prepared to make sacrifices to achieve those goals? And what are those goals? How many children do you want to have? Do you want to raise your family in the city?

by EK Wills Do you lavish each other with praise and gifts? Or are you restrained, aiming to teach about saving for the future? And how does this affect the next generation? Do they grow up with the same values as the parents: a learned habit that is handed on to the next generation? Does that affect your amount of monetary success? Our family had a modern split so step-parents were involved in complicating the level of family influence. The result was polar opposite approa