Hugh Mackay on practicing everyday and much more

The founder of the Australian quarterly research series The Ipsos Mackay Report, Hugh Mackay AO, has established himself as an authoritative author of non-fiction and fiction. A psychologist, sociologist, social researcher, writer and former teacher, he is a regular columnist in The Age and a frequent commentator present on radio and television.

A graduate of Sydney Grammar School, Hugh holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Sydney as well as a Master of Arts from Macquarie University and is one of the founders of the St James Ethics Centre.

Mackay currently holds many esteemed academic positions, including Adjunct Professor of the Faculty of Arts of Charles Sturt University and Professor of Social Science at the University of Wollongong. As well as previously holding positions at the Australian National University, Macquarie Graduate School of Management and the University of Melbourne.

He is Patron of the Asylum Seekers’ Centre and member of the Bell Shakespeare Artistic Advisory Panel and was the inaugural chairman of the ACT Government’s Community Inclusion Board. Hugh previously held board positions with Charles Sturt University, Sydney Grammar School, The St James Ethics Centre, the Australia Council, the Law Society of New South Wales, the Sydney Peace Prize Advisory Committee, and the National Heart Foundation.

A Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society and the Market and Social Research Society of Australia, and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society; Mackay holds honorary doctorates in letters from Charles Sturt University, Macquarie University, the University of New South Wales and the University of Western Sydney.

As well as the Hartnett Medal from the Royal Society of Arts, and the Alumni Award for Community Service from the University of Sydney.

At the 2015 Australia Day Honours, Mackay was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to the community in the areas of social research and psychology as an author and commentator, and through roles with visual and performing arts and educational organisations.

How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? I don’t buy into ‘failure’ and ‘success’ as a binary model. Some books sell better than others; some marriages last longer than others … and pain, loss, disappointment are far better teachers than happiness and ‘success’.

Are there any quotes you think of often or live your life by? Gandhi: ‘The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others’

What is one of the best investment in a writing resource you’ve ever made? The purchase of other writers’ books — nothing else compares with the value of reading good writing

What is an unusual habit or an absurd thing that you love? (Nothing we do is ‘unusual’) In the last five years, what new belief, behaviour, or habit has most improved your life? Joining a new choir — one of the most therapeutic things we can do

What advice would you give to a smart, driven aspiring author? What advice should they ignore? Write every day — practice is just as important for a writer as for a musician. Don’t assume everything you write is for publication.

What are bad recommendations for aspiring authors, that you hear in your often? (Don’t hear any — I’m not in a ‘writerly’ culture.)

In the last five years, what have you become better at saying no to (distractions, invitations, etc.)? Invitations to do media interviews on topics where I have little or no expertise.

What marketing tactics should authors avoid? Any that tempt you to feel more like a celebrity than a humble creative artist

What new realizations and/or approaches helped you achieve your goals? You don’t have to stop doing one thing and start doing another: you can merge, morph, overlap the stages of your progress

​When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, or have lost your focus temporarily, what do you do? Walk

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