Last week Vanessa approached my team at MBA and asked who of us would like to write the next blog post for our website. Without having any knowledge of what a blog actually was, I put my hand up and proceeded to work out what on earth this ‘blog’ thing was that Vanessa spoke of.
To get an idea as to what I should write about, I read some of the prior posts written by fellow colleagues. As soon as I read Mossy’s (Nathan Moss) blog I knew exactly what I wanted to write about.
DINK’s. What are DINK’s you ask? In this beautiful, acronym addicted country of ours DINK’s are represented by a couple who both earn income from full-time work and have no children (Double Income, No Kids).
I myself am one who represents this group of people as my long-term girlfriend and I both work full-time and have no children, nor do we have any desire to have children anytime soon. We form part of the single most targeted demographic group when it comes to mass marketing campaigns undertaken by large conglomerates. This is because DINK’s (allegedly) have the most disposable income out of any demographic group which makes up the Australian population.
Coming from my perspective the idea of having children simply does not make sense. I mean seriously, after reading Mossy’s post why on earth would you ever want to put yourself through that pain and torment? The interesting thing is that as I creep towards the age of 30, more and more of my friends are becoming new parents. As Elle (my girlfriend) and I plan our next overseas trip I wonder what all the fuss is about with kids. When I speak to the friends of mine who have taken the plunge into parenthood, they tell me that it’s all worth it and that they would never change a thing about their lives. Are they for real or is that the sleep deprivation talking? I see firsthand what a struggle it is for them to try and organise a simple dinner out with friends. Constantly trying to rely on babysitters and family, just to get out of the house and spend quality time as a couple. This is something a DINK doesn’t even have to think about.
Maybe it’s materialistic of me but whenever I think about the sacrifices which need to be made once you have a young child I just don’t think the juice is worth the squeeze. Overseas trips, sporting activities, fast cars, expensive toys, dining, movies, concerts and simply care free living...... All gone, or at least severely limited once you have children. Not only does all of your disposable income get eaten away by the obligations associated with this new way of life but in most cases that double income becomes reduced to one source of income. Is there something I’m missing? Does this parenthood business offer me something that I’m just not seeing? Every parent you speak to will always be able tell you about the first time their little bundle of joy said their name, but honestly... I’d much rather hear my name being called out by the chauffeur waiting for me as I arrive at Vancouver International on my way to Whistler for a DINK fuelled skiing holiday.
It appears I’m not the only one who feels this way as the average age for parenting in Australia is currently over 30 for both mothers and fathers. Comparing this to 1983 when the average age for a new mother was 21 years of age, things have most certainly changed. With an ageing population it makes sense as to why the Australian government has implemented incentives for DINK’s to start having children such as the baby bonus and the recently implemented paid parental scheme. If you review the incentives surrounding the paid parental scheme you will realise it’s just a tool to assist DINK’s with the transition from receiving two sources of income to one, just to soften the blow and allow the new ‘family’ to adapt a little easier. But without these types of incentives what else can the government do to allow for the severe increase in ageing population and decrease in younger population? One might even call it an epidemic. That’s the catch phrase these days for something that’s a little out of the ordinary isn’t it? Epidemic? Whatever it is I’m sure we can all agree that something will need to be done.
Maybe instead of offering incentives for younger families to produce more children, we could offer incentives for the older generations to get involved in hobbies which have a higher risk association. The government could offer funding to aged BASE jumping, sky diving and bungee jumping. That could help reduce the ageing population.
I’m sure there’s lots of ways we could tackle this issue as a nation but for now I have another overseas trip to organise.