How to stop overthinking: Kumi Taguchi has finally worked it out

Each week, Benjamin Law asks public figures to discuss the subjects we’re told to keep private by getting them to roll a die. The numbers they land on are the topics they’re given. This week, he talks to Kumi Taguchi. The journalist and presenter, 49, has been a news anchor and host of ABC’s Compass. She now presents SBS’s Insight. Her memoir – The Good Daughter – will be published on April 30.

“There’ve been gigs I’ve had where people have said, ‘Well, I guess they needed to tick the diversity box.’ And I’m like, ‘No.’ ”Credit: Edwina Pickles

BODIES

You turn 50 this year. How do you feel about it? It feels strange. I don’t feel … whatever I thought 50 would feel like.

What did you think 50 would feel like? I thought I’d feel – body-wise – older. I don’t feel like I look 50.

I can confirm that! And, internally, I feel younger than I felt at 40.

Oh, that’s interesting. How do you explain that? I’ve been an overthinker since I was a teenager, worried about life and the big questions. I was anxious, never really comfortable in my skin. As I’ve gotten older – probably from the age of 45 – I’ve been making decisions that are more about me. At a certain point, I thought, “I’ve got to start shedding this shit that weighs me down because if I don’t, I don’t have that much time to change the way I feel – about myself and life.” Now I feel more spontaneous, more joyous, more grateful for the little things.

What’s the secret to looking like you do? To be honest, my Asian genes have been helpful! [Taguchi’s father is Japanese.] I don’t do anything special: I literally wash my face and chuck face cream on.

How has your relationship with your Asian-ness changed over time? God, it’s been a gradual shift from resenting it – wishing I’d been born blonde-haired and blue-eyed – to realising that I love where that part of me comes from. I love that culture; I love that country. And seeing my dying dad’s face, I remember feeling that once he dies, my connection to Japan dies. So I guess it’s just changed over time to … I don’t want to say proud, but who I am is who I am.

RELIGION

Would you call yourself religious, spiritual or neither? Spiritual but not religious. I tap into a lot of Buddhist teachings. As someone who loves to be in control of everything and know what’s happening in life – which has caused me deep anxiety over the years – the concept of letting go has helped me.

You hosted ABC TV’s Compass. What drew you to a show that’s about religion, ethics and meaning? At first, I struggled with the concept of hosting it. I didn’t feel religious, and I didn’t want to have to produce content I didn’t really understand. But I realised very soon that it was a show about life: why we’re here and what we do with the time we’ve got on this planet. And if there was something I was resisting, I probably needed to look into what that was.

Hosting Insight, you take deep dives into people’s lives. And it’s such a privilege. I get to change and develop and learn from tapping into the lives of others. I feel as if I’ve changed as a person because of the work I do. I have to be a little more vulnerable and open, which is something I’ve really struggled with.

Because news journalism isn’t about that, right? Exactly. I needed to remove myself professionally. But, over time, I felt that wasn’t a way for me to live.

What does heaven mean to you? Exploring a city with no goal in mind. Just letting life unfold and being open to that.

What’s your personal version of hell? Small talk.

POLITICS

Can you be friends with someone who doesn’t share your values? Yeah, definitely – if it’s not going to affect your finances or safety. We tend not to interrogate other ways of looking at the world. Obviously, there are limits. If someone was deeply hypocritical, misogynist and stole money: no. People are often surprised that I’m such good buddies with a particular friend of mine, despite our being, politically, quite different, but we both believe in justice, fairness and people getting a fair go.

When you started out as a journalist and newsreader, there were so few people who weren’t white on Australian TV. How do you reflect on that now? It was only when I started going for certain jobs and was told that I wouldn’t get a job because of the way I looked that I started thinking about it. I’ve always felt conflicted about representation because I’ve always wanted to be in any position because I’m a good journalist. And there have been certain gigs I’ve had in my life where people have come up to me directly and said, “Well, I guess they needed to tick the diversity box.” And I’m like, “No, I got this because I’ve done X, Y and Z.” I’ve had a young Chinese girl come up to me to tell me I’m her hero. I remember feeling that way about Annette [Shun Wah, the Australian writer, director and broadcaster]. I want to hear different accents in my studio; I want a miner sitting next to a banker; I want people with tatts. Socioeconomic and educational diversity are essential.

What does Australia get right? Egalitarianism: the sense that no one is beneath you or above you.

What do you think we could do better? We could do better at being our own people.

What do you mean by that? We have more than 60,000 years of Indigenous history existing alongside 250-ish years of white settlement; there’s something unique about Australian innovation that comes from living on this harsh land. I feel like we don’t necessarily trust who we are, but we’re a really interesting country.

Insight returns to SBS on March 4 at 8.30pm.

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