The Oxford English Dictionary defines ikigai as "a motivating force; something or someone that gives a person a sense of purpose or a reason for living".
Ikigai is a concept that has long existed in Japanese culture. It has taken on different forms through different generations, and after some light research the history and application of it are actually pretty complex. I’m no expert on the subject, so I’m not going to dive into any specifics about it. I’ll let you do your own research and study people much more qualified than me (Michiko Kumano, Katsuya Inoue, Chikako Ozawa-de Silva to name a few). I will, however, tell you what the idea of ikigai means to me, how I see it show up in my life and how you might apply it to yours.
Looking at the diagram above, you’ll notice there are four circles - what you love, what the world needs, what you’re good at and what you can be paid for. Passion, mission, vocation and profession intersect between any two of these. Ikagai, on the other hand, lies in the middle, the intersection of it all. Imagine living a life where your passion, mission, vocation and profession were all the same thing. I know very few people who live a life even close to this, and I’m certainly not there yet myself.
I have found passion in making music, but I don’t have the best voice. I’ve found profession in the corporate world, but no matter what, I don’t feel like I belong. I’ve found mission and vocation in my recovery work, but I will never get paid for it. All of these parts of me have been divided, clashing, endlessly at odds with each other as I’ve battled to unify my life. Often times, it has seemed fruitless. I’m sure many of you reading this understand what I’m saying and can relate - the search for ikigai is the search for the answer to one of life’s most fundamental questions: “What should I do?”
Take a look at the diagram again and play around with it. Maybe you don’t know what your ikigai could be, so now’s the time to find out.
What do you love?
What are you good at?
What does the world need from you?
What can you get paid for?
Eventually, if you meditate on it long enough, some interesting ideas will start to come up. This doesn’t mean you have to quit your job and move to Bali, but it could be the first step toward clarity in your own life and your own purpose. I know that it has been an incredibly useful tool for me as I’ve grappled with my own reasons for living.
Today, Modern Bronze is my ikigai. Great changes are on the horizon, and I’m going to see them through, because I don’t have any other choice. I envision a life in which I wake up every day and do all the things I love, serve others and get paid for it. If I have a chance to make that a reality, I’m going to take it. Wouldn’t you? So many people I meet are trapped in the grind. Adulthood comes with increasing responsibility, and many people take on responsibility over chasing their ikigai, often times through no fault of their own. It’s hard to chase your dreams when you have a wife, a couple of kids and a mortgage (sidenote: if you have these things you are a badass and deserve the utmost respect). I don’t have any of those things at the moment, so it’s my moral and social obligation to see this through. It’s now or never, sink or swim.
I’m out of mojo today, so I’ll keep this one brief. I hope you take some time with this concept. I hope you look at that diagram and see how it may apply to your life. I hope you find your purpose, and I hope most of all that one day, you find your ikigai.
I am so blessed ! Veterinary Medicine is my Ikigai!