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23 August 2025
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The role of family and community as foundations of a healthy society have been allowed to weaken. This has brought about Australia's spiritual decline and a thirst for dopamine that explains our high debt levels.
Fascinating initial studies suggest that while we age continuously in years, our bodies age, not at a uniform rate, but in spurts at around ages 44 and 60.
Recently, I spent time in hospital for pneumonia. Health issues can clarify what really matters, and one thing became clear to me: 99% of what we think is important is either irrelevant or doesn’t need our immediate attention.
We are often quoted life expectancy at birth but what matters most is how long we should live as we grow older. It is surprising how short this can be for people born last century, so make the most of it.
Money can bolster our joy in real ways. However, if we relentlessly chase wealth at the expense of other facets of well-being, history and science both teach us that it will lead to a hollowing out of life.
Life has radically shifted with my brain cancer, and I don’t know if it will ever be the same again. After decades of writing and a dozen years with Firstlinks, I still want to contribute, but exactly how and when I do that is unclear.
Did you know the happiest group of retirees is women who get divorced between 60-65 years of age? Or that the best investment a man might make is in a classic car? Find out more about the science behind a happy retirement.
The biggest structural stories in healthcare will involve cell and gene therapies, and genomics. Companies that supply those developing vaccines and other therapies are where the best investment opportunities lie.
Even when the virus is finally contained, the business landscape will look very different. A critical issue is the ability of consumers to find product substitutes. Many people like what they find.
Food and beverage producers are under pressure to reduce the harmful impact of their products, and investors can encourage the trend by investing in companies or funds that recognise society's needs.
Increasing longevity poses many challenges, including staying financially secure over a long retirement period. Retirees and governments must stay on top of healthcare costs.
Aged care measures announced in the Budget go only part of the way to improving the system. With a waiting list for Home Care packages exceeding 100,000, we need more effective change.
Each generation believes its economic challenges were uniquely tough - but what does the data say? A closer look reveals a more nuanced, complex story behind the generational hardship debate.
The Labor government is talking up tax reform to lift Australia’s ailing economic growth. Before any changes are made, it’s important to know who pays tax, who owns assets, and how much people have in their super for retirement.
This goes through the different options including shares, property and business ownership and declares a winner, as well as outlining the mindset needed to earn enough to never have to work again.
Everyone has a theory as to why housing in Australia is so expensive. There are a lot of different factors at play, from skewed migration patterns to banking trends and housing's status as a national obsession.
China's steel production, equivalent to building one Sydney Harbour Bridge every 10 minutes, has driven Australia's economic growth. With China's slowdown, what does this mean for Australia's economy and investments?
The creator of the 4% rule for retirement withdrawals, Bill Bengen, has written a new book outlining fresh strategies to outlive your money, including holding fewer stocks in early retirement before increasing allocations.