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

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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