Ikigai: Finding the Perfect Sweet Spot to Revolutionise Your Life

But the real value of the delicate text, as with all books, lies beyond the cover and in-between the pages, where it discusses an age-old Japanese tradition involved in the making of life choices and career decisions. In this article, we will be talking about what this seemingly wonderful concept of ‘ikigai’ is, how you can discover your own ikigai and how to harness it to turn your life around.

What is ‘ikigai’?

‘Ikigai’ (pronounced ee-key-guy) is a Japanese word that roughly translates into ‘reason for living’. It is a lifestyle that seeks to strike balance by mapping out different individual ambitions and aptitudes. It aims to create satisfaction in a life well-lived by uniting the practical and the spiritual things that sustain a person.

The New York Post perhaps said it best: “If hygge is the art of doing nothing, ikigai is the art of doing something – and doing it with supreme focus and joy.” Simply put, it is a theory of everything— everything that a person might possibly need to be contented, happy and prosperous.

How to find your own ikigai

The four things that this unique idea considers are: what an individual loves doing, what they are good at, what the world needs, and what the world is willing to pay for. A closer look reveals that for almost everybody, it strikes the sweet spot between earning money to sustain oneself comfortably and leading a life that has meaning and contributes to the progress and well-being of the world.

So, think about your passions, interests, talents, and what you want your impact on the world to look like. Then try to figure out which of these is or can be developed into a tenable career choice, and lo and behold! The answer that you arrive at, might just be your ikigai. If you’re struggling, then look on the internet for colorful pie charts that can make your work in determining your ikigai easier.

What follows next?

As with all things in life, nothing is attained without practice. The same is applicable here too, since realigning your life choices, purpose and essentially, your philosophy of living calls for a near-total upheaval on both fronts— the personal and the professional. However, since the central premise of this unique and fulfilling Japanese concept is based on realizing your desires and ambitions in a sustainable way, there is little that can go wrong in the long run if you stick to it!