A lot of good can come out of striving for excellence - a high standard of quality, valuable skillsets and smarts, plus amazingly positive contributions to self and society. It can also have a dark side in the form of all-consuming and suffocating perfectionism - an existence where there's no room for error or subpar...well, anything. Every flaw, every "mistake" is irreparable or at the very least, a lasting source of guilt and shame. So many people are familiar with this kind of pressure, and some of the MOST familiar with this insane demand are Asian/Asian American women. In this episode, Minji sits down with Adele Lim, Malaysian American film and tv producer and writer, who is now the new director of the upcoming (and very raunchy) Asian American female-led comedy Joy Ride. Together they dive into Adele's upbringing in Malaysia through her journey in Tinseltown, struggling to defend facets of herself, and other women like her, that weren't always welcomed or valued in her home, community, or industry. They blow off steam on how oppressive and straight up boring it is to be perfect all day everyday. They also reinforce how giving ourselves permission to be human beings who do occasionally make mistakes and imperfect, loud, opinionated, sloppy, unruly, questionable choices is liberating AF, mentally healthy, and...OK. We can love ourselves at our best and our worst!
Follow Our Guest Adele Lim:
Instagram (@adeleblim)
Twitter (@adeleblim)
Follow Minji On:
▫️ Music featured in this episode include "Uzutrap" & “omg” by Gloria Kim
▫️ NEW!!: Subscribe to First Of All on YouTube & check out our S4 episodes on video!
▫️ Follow the show on Instagram and Twitter and support our Patreon
▫️ This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective
Audio Engineer @marvinyueh
Producer Da Eun Kim @daeunkm
Social Media Manager @JulianaDeer
Mentioned in this episode:
Listen to Inheriting from LAist & NPR
"Inheriting" is a show about Asian American and Pacific Islander families, which explores how one event in history can ripple through generations. In doing so, the show seeks to break apart the AAPI monolith and tell a fuller story of these communities. In each episode, NPR’s Emily Kwong sits down with one family and facilitates deeply emotional conversations between their loved ones, exploring how their most personal, private moments are an integral part of history. Through these stories, we show how the past is personal and how to live with the legacies we’re constantly inheriting.
New episodes premiere every Thursday. Subscribe to “Inheriting” on your app of choice
Listen to Inheriting now!
