Home — The Father Hood

Top articles

Fatherhood Can Steal Your Identity: Here’s How To Get It Back

The photo showed a man on a surfboard. Leaning into the face of the wave with determined intent, he slices through the water with an avalanche of white water crashing in his wake. While I don’t surf myself, I found this picture strangely inspiring. It was less about the surfer’s athletic poise than

Reworking The Workplace

The Father Hood was formed to offer support, advice and inspiration to modern dads. And after interviewing countless academics, educators and dads, we realised the biggest thing stopping dads from being more hands-on is the workplace

The Truth About Parental Leave & How It Can Make You A Better Man

A sleep-deprived dad pushing his newborn baby in a pram may not immediately look like he’s channelling his inner Che Guevara. But appearances can prove deceptive. Parental leave for men is a quiet act of social revolution with radical implications for your family, workplace and, indeed, for gender e

How To Dad: "Balancing Work And Family Is A Juggling Act That You Can't Win"

Jordan Watson become a viral sensation as “How To Dad”. In this interview taken from Man Enough, Movember’s new TV series that explores the changing face of masculinity, Jordan explains how he accidentally became the public face of NZ fatherhood and a magnet for struggling dads. I had a mate who wa

PODCAST: Why Self-Doubt Is Part and Parcel Of Being A Stay-at-home Dad

According to the U.S Census, only six men in the whole of America defined themselves as stay-at-home dads back in 1970. By 2014, that number had grown to 2 million. That’s evidence of a radical social change that you’d expect to only have snowballed in the intervening years. But despite more men bec

Steve Biddulph: The Rise of The Hands-on Dad Is "A Revolution of The Deepest Kind"

When it comes to fatherly know-how, Steve Biddulph is a Jedi master. The retired psychologist is one of the world’s leading parent educators and his books, including The Secret of Happy Children, Raising Boys, and 10 Things Girls Need Most are in four million homes and 31 languages. Here, Steve shar

Inspiration For The New Dad Generation

Back in the day, a father’s role was limited to being the breadwinner and disciplinarian. Luckily, times have changed. Our book celebrates the growing tribe of hands-on dads who are discovering that fatherhood has been the making of them as men.

Video

Grown Up Dad Documentary

When A Father Discovers He’s Dying, This Is His Most Common Regret

“I’ve had to break the bad news to men who’ve got lung cancer,” says Professor Bruce Robinson, one of Australia’s leading cancer researchers. “I’ve had to do it hundreds of times. Sometimes I have to tell men, who are sitting there with their partner, that their cancer is incurable. That they’ve onl

Parenthood Hammers Your Immune System. Here’s How To Fight Back

“Parenting is one of the most severe environmental challenges anyone willingly puts themselves through,” says Dr Adrian Liston. “It makes sense that it radically rewires the immune system.” Dr Liston, a researcher at the Belgian research institute VIB and KU Leuven, has found that having kids takes

How We Got Trapped By The Myth of The Breadwinner

Every family needs a breadwinner. Providing financial stability for your kids is one of the most important things you can do to ensure they grow up in a stable environment. And because the cost of living is so freaking high, that can be an incredibly stressful responsibility. In 2013, the cost of r

Feeling The Pressure? How To Become Stress Teflon

Fatherhood raises the stakes. You’ve suddenly got more financial responsibility and less time than ever before. Your sleep is invariably compromised and your relationship liable to shape-shift into some weird and unsettling new form. Fatherhood, in other words, can prove bloody stressful. But that’

Train Your Brain To Be More Optimistic (You Need To For The Sake Of Your Kids)

COVID-19. Climate change. Your moribund sex life. The shrinking size of Cadbury’s family-size chocolate blocks… There are plenty of reasons to feel downbeat about the state of the planet. But such negativity is often inflamed when you’re the sleep-deprived father of a toddler who’s currently screami

“Fatherhood Can Be Your Opportunity To Redefine Who You Are”: Tom Docking

“The way I used to think of shock was like that zap you got if you licked a nine-volt battery. Then I found out we were pregnant. That redefined what shock was for me…” This was Tom Docking’s initial reaction to discovering he was about to become a dad. He’d just embarked on a round-the-world trip w

Oh Baby! The Stark Truth About New Dads And Postnatal Depression

A newborn baby is often referred to as “a bundle of joy”. But the cliché of goofy-grinned euphoria during the early stages of fatherhood doesn’t ring true for a confronting number of men. A study of 28,000 participants found that 10 per cent of men experience some form of post-natal depression. The

Family Values: Paul Roos And His Son Discuss Their Relationship And The Changing Nature Of Manhood

Paul Roos is an AFL legend. After a hugely successful playing career, he became a coach and guided the Sydney Swans to the 2005 Premiership, their first title in 72 seasons. Dylan (24) is one of Paul’s two sons. But what’s it like being brought up by the 2008 Australian Father of the Year? Dylan:

Life As A Gay Dad: With Ashley Scott

“It takes a village to raise a family and if you don’t feel accepted by that village, it’s a lonely place” – Ashley Scott In this episode of The Father Hood podcast the team talks to Ashley Scott about his personal experience with being a gay dad and his interaction with other LG

Relationships After Kids: With Aaron Williams - The Father Hood Podcast Episode 9

This episode, the team talks to Aaron Williams about the challenges that arise within relationships when we become parents. Aaron Williams is the CEO and co-founder of Mindstar, a leading workplace wellbeing provider that works with some of the biggest companies across Australia on how to manage th

Transcending The Gender Narrative

Transcending The Gender Narrative: An 8 part documentary series investigating how to transcend our current gender narrative. Through interviews with women in typically male dominated industries or roles, the series looks at how to move past previously existing gender stereotypes. If we are truly goi

The War On Sandwiches: Become A Lunchbox Legend

For men of certain age, the idea of packed lunches is, let’s face it, faintly depressing. Back at school, limp sandwiches were inescapable – namely cheese, Vegemite or peanut butter and jam. Irrespective of the filling the sandwich always emerged look crumpled and sweaty, unable to shake off that li

DadlifeHamish McLachlan: What I Know About Fatherhood

KidsWhat the Horse Whisperer Taught Me About Raising Boys

WorkplaceThis Is The Cure For Dad Guilt – Interview With Dr Vijay Roach

Kids“I Drink More Mid Strengths Now” - Young Henrys’ Oscar McMahon

Dadlife"My Anxiety Really Started At The Time Of My First Son’s Birth" - One Dad Shares His Story Of Post-natal Depression

DadlifeThese TED Talks Will Change The Way You Dad

RelationshipsPhotographer Harold David On Life As a Gay Dad: "I've Not Had One Person Say Anything Negative To Me. Not one."

KidsState of Independence: Three Ways to Bring Up Resilient Kids

DadlifeThe Indefensible Position: Why Alcohol-Free Beer (Sometimes) Makes Sense

Dadlife“Lately I’m making an effort to just put my phone away” – Chris Hemsworth on the modern challenges of fatherhood

DadlifeThe No.1 Tactic For Long-distance Dads

KidsThe New Rules On Naming Your Children