Meet Anya Zhang

We recently connected with Anya Zhang and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Anya, we’re so appreciative of you taking the time to share your nuggets of wisdom with our community. One of the topics we think is most important for folks looking to level up their lives is building up their self-confidence and self-esteem. Can you share how you developed your confidence?

This is a good question because I personally am still in the process of doing so. It is an important subject for everyone but it also is a life-long one. For me it all starts with figuring out my own preferences. Most people struggle because they do not know who they are, so they have no idea what to belive in. Our identities are little pieces of what we like and what we don’t like, and it can start very small, such as do we like the noodles firmer or softer, do we like the apples crisp or mushy, or how much sugar do we like for our coffee? It is exactly these small, seed-like things that helps to build our identities, and to know oneself, one can have confidence and respect for their identity. I’ve started intentionally paying attention to these little details a couple years ago, and it has been a lot of help to let me understand my own perspective. Paying attention to the small seeds, and one day they will become an entire forest.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

My name is Anya Zhang. I am a multilingual non-binar artist based in tri-state area. My main focus is acting, as I do intend to become a professional full-time actor. This year I have also entered the field of playwrights and started developing my own scripts under the name of Zichen Zhang, both short and full-length. I made my debut as a playwright December 2024 with my short play “Hair” and attened Chain Theatre Summer One-Act Festival this July with my second short play “Dissolving Boundaries”, which I’ve also directed and acted in both of them. I am also developing 3 full-length plays, one finished and 2 in progress. I take inspirations from my daily life, and blended them with my thoughts and reflection of these experiences, and I am very excited to show my vision with the world 🙂

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

I would say the first quality I really find most help is the mindset of believing everything happening around me can be used by me. It originated from the Netflix show “Altered Carbon”, a motto of a special order of soldiers called the Envoys: to take what is offered. Though I am not a fighter, this mindset helps me view things more objectively when encoutering distressful siatutaions. My second skill is related to the first one, which is to create. Create may sound big and scary, but it can be anything. To create is to process, and process helps us gets better. The third skill is to be able to emerge into anything, shows, books, games. It gives me a chance to breath, to step back and regroup. I do believe the ability to relax is something that needs training to acquire, especially for Asian population. Taking a break is more important than constant working.

As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?

This might sound childish, but my favorite book of all time is A Little Princess by Frances Burnett. The protagnist Sara Crewe, even when she reached the bottom of her life, forced into a servant after losing her father, stayed true to herself. Instead of being corrupted by her surrounding, she chose to be a good person by respecting everyone and maintain her dignity. In a world which everything seems to be slipping away, to hold on and be a good person can sometimes seem pointless and sadly, weak. But it is actually stronger to be someone who’s ready to be vulnerable and empathetic. I read this book when I was 11 and still, it reminds me there are things I cannot compromise, which is to be kind even though sometimes I wasn’t being treated this way. It is about me, and who I am.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @aosakitarou

Image Credits

26stphotography, Elio Trevisan, Edwin Chavez, Grace Wang