Have you ever wondered what is your purpose in life? What gets you excited to jump out of bed in the morning? The Japanese have a special word for this feeling. It's called "ikigai" (pronounced ee-key-guy).
Many people think ikigai is about finding the perfect job. You might have seen a colorful circle diagram showing ikigai as the sweet spot between what you love, what you're good at, what the world needs, and what you can be paid for. This is not Ikigai, this is the Venn diagram.
The true meaning of ikigai comes from a Japanese psychiatrist named Meiko Kamiya.
Meiko Kamiya was born in Japan in 1914. She was a very smart woman who spoke many languages including English, French, and German. She became a doctor and psychiatrist at a time when not many women did these jobs.
Kamiya had many roles in her life. She was a professor who taught at universities. She was a translator who helped important books from other countries be read in Japanese. She was also a wife and mother of two children.
What made Kamiya special was her curiosity about what gives life meaning. In the 1950s, she worked with people who had a disease called leprosy. These patients lived on a small island away from everyone else. Many of them were very sick and faced difficult lives.
Did You Know? Meiko Kamiya translated the famous book "Meditations" by Marcus Aurelius from English into Japanese. She also taught the future Empress of Japan!
Kamiya noticed something interesting. Some patients with mild symptoms felt their lives had no purpose. But others with severe symptoms still found joy and meaning in their days. This made her wonder: "What makes one feel that life is worth living?"
She spent years studying this question. In 1966, she published a book called "Ikigai-ni-Tsuite" which means "About Ikigai" or "What Makes Our Life Worth Living." This book became very important in Japan and is still read today.
"There is nothing more for humans to live life fully than IKIGAI. Therefore there is no cruelty greater than to deprive humans of their ikigai, and there is no greater love than to give humans their ikigai." - Meiko Kamiya
The word "ikigai" is made up of two parts in Japanese: "iki" which means life, and "gai" which means value or worth. Put together, ikigai means what gives value to your life.
Did You Know? The Japanese character for "gai" in ikigai originally meant "shell" because shells were very valuable in ancient Japan.
Kamiya explained that ikigai has two parts:
In reality Ikigai is a combination of feeling in your everyday life that is unique to you. Your ikigai could be many different things. It might be:
Ikigai doesn't have to be something big or impressive. It can be small, everyday activities that make you feel good. The important thing is that it gives your life meaning and makes you want to get up each morning.
In Japan, people understand that ikigai is about finding joy in daily life. In fact, when researchers asked 2,000 Japanese people about their ikigai, only 31% said their work was their ikigai. Many others found meaning in their hobbies, relationships, or simple pleasures.
Meiko Kamiya discovered that to have a strong sense of ikigai, people need seven important things in their lives. Let's look at each one with simple examples:
You don't need to have all seven needs perfectly met to have ikigai. Even having a few of these needs met can help you feel that life is worth living!
Everyone has a unique formula.
One place where ikigai is especially important is Okinawa, a group of islands in southern Japan. Okinawa is known as a "village of longevity" because many people there live to be 100 years old or more!
Researchers who visited Okinawa found that the elderly people there all had something in common - they each had a clear ikigai. For example:
These seniors stayed active and engaged with their community. They had a reason to get up each morning and felt their lives had purpose.
Japanese culture values harmony (working well with others), mastery (getting really good at something), and contributing to society. All these values connect to ikigai. When you find activities that help others, that you can get better at over time, and that make you feel connected to your community, you're experiencing ikigai the Japanese way.
You might have seen a colorful circle diagram with four overlapping rings showing ikigai as the perfect balance of:
This diagram has become very popular around the world. Many people think this is what ikigai means. But there's a problem - this isn't the original Japanese understanding of ikigai!
The Venn diagram was created by a Western entrepreneur named Marc Winn, not by Meiko Kamiya or other Japanese experts. It focuses too much on finding the perfect job or career.
The real ikigai, as Meiko Kamiya explained it, is much broader and more personal. It's not just about your job or making money. Your ikigai could be:
None of these need to earn money to be your ikigai!
Japanese neuroscientist Ken Mogi explains that "ikigai can be something small or something big." He says ikigai is like a spectrum with many possibilities. You don't even need to be good at your ikigai - if you enjoy playing guitar even though you're not very skilled, that still counts as ikigai! In Japan, many people find their ikigai in retirement, when they no longer have a job. This shows that ikigai is about much more than work!
"Your career doesn't visit you in hospital. If you can no longer perform, it will let you down. Money and success are nice, but it's dangerous to hang your life on them." - Motoki Tonn, Ikigai author
Now that you understand what ikigai really means, you might wonder how to find your own. Here are some questions to help you think about your ikigai:
Your ikigai might change as you grow up, and that's okay! What gives your life meaning when you're 10 years old might be different from what matters to you when you're 15 or 25 or 50.
The important thing is to pay attention to what brings you joy and meaning right now. Notice the activities that make you feel good and the people who make you feel valued.
Understanding ikigai can help us live happier lives. When we know what gives our life meaning, we can make sure to include those activities in our days.
Ikigai helps us in many ways:
Having a sense of purpose is one of the most important things in life. When we help others find their ikigai, we're giving them a wonderful gift.
As you go through your day today, pay attention to the moments that bring you joy. Those small moments might be pointing you toward your ikigai - your own Japanese secret to a happy life!
After months of experimentation and researches we have found that one of the best way to find your ikigai is to create your perfect day.
By searching for what your perfect day looks like you’ll gain clarity and your behavior will naturally start to align with that vision.
After months of experimentation and research, we have found that one of the best ways to find your ikigai is to create your perfect day.
Here is the template we have created to help you discover your ikigai :
