As you sit back and review the year that has passed, I wonder how many of you are reflecting on what was meaningful and fulfilling for you. With all the traditional gift exchanges, consider giving yourself the gift of Ikigai. ‘Ikigai’ originates in Japan representing Iki (life) and Gai (worth). A life worth living.
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles inspires us to usher in joy and meaning into our lives. Your reason for being or ‘raison d’être’ “is the reason we get up in the morning.”
Japanese psychologist Michiko Kumano (2017) differentiates between hedonic pleasure (transitory) and eudaimonic well-being (lasting happiness). He equates the latter to Ikigai.
Victor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning gave us the thoughtful pause on life itself. “Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather must recognize that it is he who is asked.” Instead of looking outside for the elusive and esoteric mystery ‘what is the meaning of life’, look within and ask yourself ‘what is the meaning in my life’. Identify your purpose in the life you are leading today. That is a life worth living.
Western adoption of the concept of Ikigai has further expanded into how to apply it to our work lives as well.
Clarify what you love to do and have a passion for. Then identify where your talents and skills lie that lead you to your profession. Once you figure out what can be sustainable with an income, you set your sights on what are the unmet needs in the world and how would your passion, profession and vocation lift up your mission to serve the world.
Create your Venn diagram as illustrated below. See if the circles are set far apart today or in reality can actually be pulled closer together. If so, the circles are aligning nicely. Watch the circles intersect in the middle. That sweet spot in the center is your Ikigai!
As the authors says, “Those who discover their Ikigai have everything they need for a long and joyful journey through life.”
Happy New Year!
