Well Enough Alone - A Guide To Thriving Solo

Claire Mason: on sobriety as a path to single freedom, self-love and happiness Can quitting drinking be the key to a happy, single life? This week, Jill talks to podcaster, body positivity advocate and digital creator, Claire Mason about her journey from party girl to sober queen. They share stories about their history of binge drinking and what happens when you can no longer numb your emotions with alcohol. There are many parallels with choosing to be single and choosing an alcohol-free life, and in this raw and real conversation, they discuss what it’s like to be stripped bare and feel all your feelings. You can follow Claire on Instagram @claire_maso_or @lyssk_official. And check out her podcast, Booze-Free Bants, here. To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only early access to episodes on Patreon. Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.   

Our friends are some of the most important people in our lives. They’re the people we can be 100% ourselves with. And for many single people, they are our family. So why are friendships seen as lesser than romantic or blood family relationships? This week, Jill talks to journalist and author, Gyan Yankovich, about her book, Just Friends, and what would happen if society treated friendship with the same reverence and respect as marriage. Can a friend be more than just a friend – can they be someone to build a shared future with? This conversation explores the power of modern friendship – what it means to be, to make, and sometimes to lose a friend, and why these pivotal relationships are so often undervalued. You can follow Gyan on Instagram @gyanyankovich learn more about her book Just Friends here. To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only early access to episodes on Patreon. Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.  

This week, Jill talks to TV presenter, public speaker and proud Warumungu/Yawuru woman, Megan Waters about growing and healing through times of struggle and why time alone is an essential part of her self-care toolkit. She also talks about her deep connection to her Indigenous culture and how kinship and community have helped her build a strong sense of self. Megan is open about her battle with a chronic health condition, the impact it’s had on her mental health, her plans to freeze her eggs, and how she’s grown stronger through times of adversity. Megan Waters is the co-host of NITV’s Yokayi Footy Show, a Nike trainer and ambassador, a gym owner, breathwork teacher, and a boundary rider for Fox Footy’s AFLW coverage. You can follow her on Instagram @megzyy_ To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only earlyaccess to episodes on Patreon. Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.  

One of the best things about solo life is the freedom to live life your own, without having to run decisions past anyone else. But one of the more challenging things is how expensive it can be to live alone. You have the same household costs as couples but only one income. Whether it’s booking a room in a hotel, paying for health insurance, or forking out for power bills, groceries and living expenses, it all costs more when you do it solo. We’re essentially paying a single person’s tax. So, how can we better manage our finances when we can only rely on ourselves? And how do we understand the patterns that drive our spending? This week, Jill talks to certified Financial Behaviour Specialist®, Emma Edwards – founder of The Broke Generation – about how to get underneath the emotional side of money and why our spending habits are often tangled up with our sense of identity and behavioural patterns. Emma also talks movingly about the challenges of being an only child caring for ageing parents. You can find out more about her through her website, The Broke Generation, follow her on Instagram @the.brokegeneration, listen to her podcast or read her book, Good With Money. To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only earlyaccess to episodes on Patreon. Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett. 

Why are single people often ignored by policy makers? And is that about to change?This week, Jill is joined by writer and political commentator, Lauren Beckman, to dissect Vice Presidential candidate J.D. Vance’s attack on “miserable, childless cat ladies” and how this group is becoming a potent voting bloc.Single person households are the fastest growing demographic and yet we’re often treated like we don’t exist as politicians make their pitches to “working families.”The number of people living alone is rising – it’s a constituency that political leaders should be courting rather than insulting. Ignore us at your peril!Lauren helps to break down the politics of being single and how the shifting social tides are changing the political landscape.She has a background in the Australian public service and is now Head of Canberra at Future Women, where she works to progress gender equality in Australian workplaces.You can follow Lauren for her political and social insights through an intersectional feminist lens on her Instagram account, @lauren.lately.To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only early access to episodes on Patreon. Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.

If a romantic connection is something you see in your future – whether for one night or forever – then you do not want to miss this week’s episode.Jill speaks to Alita Brydon – dating expert, body positivity champion and creator of the cult social media phenomenon, Bad Dates of Melbourne on Facebook.Just because you enjoy time on your own doesn’t mean you can’t still dip your toe in the dating pool. And what a cesspit that can often be!If you want to survive the modern dating scene, you’re going to need to be mentally prepared. And sometimes it helps to hear from those who have been through the wars too.Alita is the perfect guide to walk you through it.She’s created a space for people to share their dating horror stories – and the occasional triumph – and after hearing from hundreds of thousands of people from all over Australia, she has learned a thing or two about how to navigate the dating experience.You can follow Alita and Bad Dates of Melbourne on Instagram and Facebook.To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only earlycontent on Patreon.Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.

Danni Duncan: on choosing not to have children, and the rise of the child-free movement.The pressure to couple up starts early in life, but it’s not just a pressure to be partnered, it often comes with an expectation that you will also want to have children.In a world where the nuclear family is still the archetype, it’s often seen as a biological imperative to become a parent.But more and more people are choosing to be child-free. The number of women having children has been steadily declining for decades.This week, Jill speaks to someone who has torn up the motherhood rule book and is writing her own script.Danni Duncan is a content creator from New Zealand who has built an online audience by celebrating the choice to be childfree.With almost quarter of a million followers across Instagram and TikTok, her content showcases all the upsides to a life without kids.She joined Jill for a wide-ranging conversation about their choice not to have children, the pushback they’ve both faced, and how things are slowly changing.You can follow Danni on Instagram or TikTok.To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only earlycontent on Patreon.Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett.

From an early age we’re told that that the dream is to find our soulmate, have the big wedding, and then live happily ever after.But for a long time, that fairytale was one only straight people could aspire to.On the day same-sex marriage was finally legalised in Australia, Stuart Henshall was proposed to live on national television.He and his fiancée became the first couple to ever get married at Sydney Mardi Gras, tying the knot on top of a giant wedding cake in front of the world’s cameras.But the fairytale was short-lived. Stuart talks to Jill about the complex emotions of fighting for the right to get married, only to see it end in divorce.And they discuss whether gaining access to this traditional institution has imposed heteronormative pressures on LGBTIQ+ people to get engaged and marry, even if it’s not what they really want.Stuart also talks about the power of shame and his journey to self-acceptance, and how he’s learned to love his solo life.You can follow Stuart at @dvynepr.To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram.@wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only early access to episodes on Patreon.Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production.