Shiny-ball-syndrome and how to focus on the work that makes you happy, with digital digital creator and storyteller, Tawsif Akkas

Bengalis of New York

Season 3 - Episode 13: I grew up in Bangladesh and moved to Perth, Australia in my late teens. When I moved to Australia, I was sure that Bangladesh was my home. My friends, my family - everything's there. But somewhere over the last 10 years I have slowly felt like I don't know where home is anymore. I believe a lot of people in the whole diaspora struggle with this question of identity. Moving away from Dhaka to a different country has really raised a lot of questions about my existence, from a cultural level. I think about it often, I still don't know the answer. If someone were to ask me, “Where is home?” I'll probably say it's in Australia, but a part of me is conflicted.

The people, the culture, and the voices all play a role as to what you call home. A lot of my friends in Dhaka have moved away as well. Those earlier memories and attachments - whether it’s the tree in the front yard or the ice cream cellar, when those things start fading away, your concept of home also fades away with it.

I’m at the part of my career where I'm learning to say no, I've got shiny ball syndrome. Anything creatively exciting that comes my way I start to lose focus, and that's really bad for your long term vision. If I do see a shiny ball, I'd be tempted to play with it, but I'll ask myself - does it align with my goals for this year? Does it align with my financial goals? My career goals? My creative goals?

Listen to the entire conversation with documentary filmmaker, Tawsif Akkas, on the BoNY Podcast.

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