This year, from June 14-20, health services, community groups, publications and brands alike will take the opportunity to celebrate Men’s Health Week. But the average Australian who identifies as male won’t - and it's anopportunity that, all too often, is tragically missed.

Because in his lifetime, the Australian male will experience a higher incidence of illness and accident, as well as a significantly shorter life expectancy than his female counterpart. He’ll be statistically less likely to seek help for any grievances relating to his health, physical or mental, and the numbers paint a sobering picture – Australian men take their own lives at four times the rate of women – one that’s significantly worse for marginalised demographics.

In light of a year that has prompted a radical shift in thinking about ideas of health – of the individual and as itrelates to the greater public good – how do we talk about the health of men? Of its physical, mental, interpersonal and spiritual manifestations; of its relationship to work and productivity; of its relationship to constructs ofmasculinity, ageing, self-care and the body?

Herewith, Amsterdam-based menswear and lifestyle buyer turned founder of The Grey, Gregor Jaspers, reflects on what ‘health’ means in light of a global health crisis - not to mention the competing demands of time, age and runninga business of one’s own.

I try to keep a balance in my life concerning my health. I take care of my diet, but do love a guilty pleasure now and then. I work out and try to keep my mental health on point with Pilates and meditation. As I grow older, I try to focus more on my mental health as I feel that this needs more attention.

I decided a while ago to only gather people around me who give energy. I try to be a person that people come to when they have issues. In our office, I try to create an environment in which everybody feels free to talk about their personal life or issues [they have] going on, [or] that may be weighing heavy on a person's wellbeing.

Being locked inside and having to trust your immune system shifted my mindset in how I live my life. Things we took for granted are no longer. Healthy people around me were getting sick and the most social friend became depressed. This made me realize we were living in a rat race in which unimportant things played the most important role. I tried to – and still am – trying to bring back balance in my day to day life. I am trying to do the same with The Grey.

With The Grey, we always tried to take a holistic approach to skincare, health and mental wellbeing, but now we are really trying to emphasise this with articles on immune system support, the importance of sleep for mental healthand wellbeing, and the importance of a well-balanced diet. We are working on a series with different professionals to address a healthy and well-balanced life.

If we talk about anti-ageing, my attitude has not changed as I feel a man’s face can have a wrinkle here and there but the skin should be in a great and healthy condition. This for me is great skin. If we talk about ageing in general, the journey you make, the people you meet and the lessons you learn all come in good and bad shapes that makeyou the person you are today. With ageing, I learnt to appreciate it and use it, so I welcome ageing.

I noticed, like everybody else, that I bounce back less easily from a night out on the town and that at the end of the working week the battery was more empty physically and mentally than when I was a few years younger. To keep myself in balance, I try to build in moments for myself - whether it’s sport, reading, meditation or walking. This kept the balance and I started to watch my diet more. Less alcohol, more vegetables - this works for me. I am not the person that hits the gym six days a week or loses himself in full meditation programs. A combination of it [all] keeps me in balance.

The relationship you have with yourself is also one of the most difficult ones. For me, getting older resulted in becoming more secure. I learned to trust my gut feeling. I’m not constantly looking for approval and validation from other people, so I can say that my relationship with myself has become stronger than ever.

I am not always as productive as I want to be. Work is like a relationship. Sometimes it's up, sometimes it's down.When I started The Grey, I had this kind of obligation toward myself - that I needed to maximize every hour into productive work. In the end, I felt that my own company was my employer and I was the employee, creating a pressure I wanted to leave behind when I started out as a business owner. I realize now that it is okay to be less productive some days as it creates room for other things that in the end will benefit your company.

I am not always as productive as I want to be. Work is like a relationship. Sometimes it's up, sometimes it's down.When I started The Grey, I had this kind of obligation toward myself - that I needed to maximize every hour into productive work. In the end, I felt that my own company was my employer and I was the employee, creating a pressure I wanted to leave behind when I started out as a business owner. I realize now that it is okay to be less productive some days as it creates room for other things that in the end will benefit your company.

Think about how you fuel your body and mind, don’t expect to have a great condition, body or mental health with bad food and negative energy. What you put in will reflect the outcome, so think twice.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.