How To Find And Do Work That You Love (Ikigai)

Hello everyone!!!

Today I’m going to talk about finding your IKIGAI which is a Japanese concept when it comes down to it. It is the balance between what you are good at or passionate about, and what the world needs and will pay for. It is what gets you up in the morning and keeps you going throughout every day for the rest of your life.

What is Ikigai?

Philosophers have been deliberating over constructs that explain the pursuit of happiness and the meaning of life for centuries. Ikigai is one thought to combine the Japanese words ikiru, meaning “to live”, and kai, meaning “the sensation of what hopes for”. Together these definitions create “a reason to live” or having a life purpose.

Ikigai is a beneficial practice in career growth because like your own passions and needs, and what the world needs — the meditation of ikigai grows and changes with you. There’s not necessarily an end to your ikigai practice, it’s an ongoing journey.

“Our ikigai is different for all of us, but one thing we have in common is that we are all searching for meaning. When we spend our days feeling connected to what is meaningful to us, we live more fully; when we lose the connection, we feel despair.”

-Hector Garcia Puigcerver-

How to find your Ikigai?

According to Japanese culture, everyone has ikigai. Detecting our strengths is not always easy. There are four questions that can help us find our path. If you write them down somewhere where you come across them regularly, you can use them as a compass bringing you closer to your purpose.

To find your Ikigai, you must ask yourself:

1. What do I love? (passion)

2. What am I good at? (vocation)

3. What can I be paid for? (profession)

4. What does the world need? (mission)

Ikigai is the union point of four fundamental components of life: passion, vocation, profession, and mission.

According to the diagram, the intersection of what you are good at and what you can be paid for is your profession. The intersection of what the world needs and what you love is your mission.

DO WHAT YOU LOVE

This section is about exploring what you love doing, what brings you joy.

When we choose a field of study and a job, we go for the convenient, the known, the recognized. We do it to please someone else. But that makes us overlook what we truly love doing in life.

*. What did you love doing or thinking about when you were a child?

*. What activities do you do in your spare time that make you happy?

DO WHAT YOU’RE GOOD AT

This bit of the map covers what you have learned to do thanks to your training or experience. Your skills are what you CAN do whereas your strengths are what you ENJOY doing. They might be the same, they might be different. If you’re stuck, have a look at this list of skills and this list of strengths.

*. What are your skills and strengths?

*. What do people ask you help for?

DO SOMETHING THE WORLD NEEDS

This aspect of Ikigai is quite an important one. It makes you think about the impact you want to have on your community.

*. What / who inspires you?

*. What makes you angry, frustrated?

DO SOMETHING YOU CAN BE PAID FOR

This last part of the Ikigai map is about securing an income — yes, we need one of these. Think broadly and don’t limit your possibilities when answering these questions. Who knows, one of these ideas could be your future job!

*. What product or service could you sell?

*. What job could you do?

“Curiosity is its own reason. Aren’t you in awe when you contemplate the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure behind reality? And this is the miracle of the human mind — to use its constructions, concepts, and formulas as tools to explain what man sees, feels and touches.”

– Albert Einstein-

The 5 pillars that enhance your Ikigai

In addition to answering those four questions about ourselves, there is another layer to the Ikigai concept: It is much easier to feel Ikigai when we create social connections. This explanation is perhaps due to the ingrained social connections that Japanese society promotes and is conditioned to seek.

Ken Mogi, a neuroscientist and author of Awakening Your Ikigai, advises us to focus on what he labels the five pillars, which are:

1. Starting small

2. Accepting yourself

3. Connecting with the world around you

4. Seeking out small joys

5. Being in the here and now

To make the most of the five pillar method, Mogi suggests incorporating this mindset in the first couple of hours after you wake up to start your day on the right foot and get your brain accustomed to this way of thinking.

Time to find your Ikigai

Keeping the five pillars in mind, take 10 minutes to ask yourself those four core questions. Be honest in your answers and see what you come up with.

Once you have found your ikigai, you will realize how good your life is. You will become more productive and feel motivated to achieve success. You will achieve a state of flow that makes it easier for you to enjoy being busy. So find your ikigai and start living a life filled with happiness and purpose.

“Life isn’t just a coincidence Everything’s for a purpose Happiness follows throughout Finding your ‘Ikigai’ ”

-Suri-

Thank you very much for reading!

Hope to see you again with another article. Till then, Goodbye All!