What is ikigai? A review of ikigai book, the Japanese secret to a long and happy life
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| Ikigai |
What should we go for? To earn money or to run behind our passion or go to be a saint? Want to bring a change(how?) to your life? Then you are in the right direction in bringing a change in your life. Yes, every human being has an own purpose, then you have a purpose in your life, then you have an ikigai. Let’s find your ikigai with the help of ikigai charts as venn diagrams and.what? Read till the end! Just practise what you love(ikigai) day by day and don’t think of others, because we know that practice makes a man(you) perfect.
A research found that the U.S. individuals defined “purpose” as akin to “usefulness to others”, while the Japanese were powered by a deeper, more expansive interpretation of happiness. They mentioned this as IKIGAI.
Let me tell you about the secret formula (ikigai) used by Japanese people to live their lives very happily for more than a hundred years.
Hundred years? Before we get into ikigai, let’s see the people of immortals in Okinawa.
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| Okinawa, Japan – the land of immortals |
Okinawa, Japan. This place is also called the Land of Immortals.
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| People in Okinawa, Japan |
Why this name? This name is because the people living there are easily crossing their hundred years of age compared to other countries of the world. And also they are very active even though they reached their hundred years of age. Like MS Dhoni hitting centuries in T20s, the people living in this remote island are centenarians and supercentenarians.
Did you know?
A 92 year old lady, Tomi Menaka, is to sing and dance with her peers in the KBG84 dance troupe, she told the Mainichi newspaper. It is her ikigai, for others, it might be work itself.
The author of Blue Zones, Dan Buettner travelled the globe and he traversed the long-lived communities around the world, which he describes as “Blue Zones”. One such zone is Okinawa in Japan. He says the longevity of these people not only depends on the unique diet they follow but also ikigai plays a part in it.
Back to our topic, let’s start with the definition of ikigai. What does the term ikigai mean?
This is Ikigai – the only secret formula of people living in Japan.
‘Iki‘ means Life,
‘Gai‘ means Value.
Pronounce it as “ee-key-guy.”
In Japanese the word IKIGAI means the value of your life. That is, every life in the world has a value. We are born in this world for some value. According to them, every life has an Ikigai (even we have an Ikigai), a ‘reason for being‘ or a ‘path to life fulfilment‘. It is the joy of something we do and it is a sense of well-being, meaning of our life, and purpose in our life. Ikigai’s feeling is that your life is valuable and you have an impact. Ikigai is not linked with your status in the society, or the money you earn. These life practices lead to the longevity of Japanese people, then do we?
Did you know?
A research paper published in 2001 on ikigai, a clinical psychologist and associate professor at Toyo Eiwa University, Co-author Akihiro Hasegawa placed the word ikigai as a part of everyday Japanese language. It consists of two words: ‘iki’ means life and ‘gai’ means value or worth.According to him, ikigai’s origin dates back to the Heian period (794 – 1185). Gai came from the word kai ( in Japanese it means “shell”), which were deemed highly valuable and thus derivation of ikigai gives us the meaning – “value in living”
“Japanese people believe that the sum of small joys in everyday life results in more fulfilling life as a whole”
If you are eager to find your ikigai then you are just four steps away from finding your Ikigai. Come on, let’s go deep with these steps. The first step is:
1. What do you love?
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| What do you love? |
This is your first stepping stone, you must find what you love the most. In this world there are many more things which can make you happy. If you do something like dancing, singing, reading books, etc and whatever you are doing that no matters which makes you happy and feels like you are flying in the sky like an angel 👼 with your wings and forgets all things like you are in a flow state. When you do something that you really love, it creates a positive vibration around you and makes you feel better. Think if you are so happy, then this positive feeling might be your Ikigai and you can convert this positive feeling as your Ikigai.
Did you know?In 2010 a survey was conducted by Central Research Services, out of 2000 Japanese women and men, just 31% of recipients told that their work is their ikigai. Yes, work is their life value(ikigai), but is certainly not limited to that.
2. What the world needs from you?
Many times, what things you like may not be liked by others. It may be your family members or friends. If you like something it may not be liked by your friend. That is your friend’s attitude. His way of thinking might be different or he just does not need it from you. But why does this happen? Because you don’t know what he needs from you, right.
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| What does the world need from you? |
But if you love sleeping for 10 hours😴😴 which has no use to others, than what benefits others will gain from your sleeping? So it will not be your Ikigai.
First you should understand that all skills are not equal so you should not spend equal time on it. Take time in finding your skill that you love. You should choose the skill that what you love and it should be valuable🎯 in the eyes of world. Your loved skill should give some value to the world. If a skill that you really love and the world needs is your skill, then you are coming closer in finding your Ikigai.
3. How will you get Paid?
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| Ikigai – third step of getting paid |
Did you know that?
“Many Japanese people never really retire—they keep doing what they love for as long as their health allows.”
Many people might tell you that money is not needed for a happy life. But remember, Ikigai technique advices you that if you aren’t able to make money 💰💰 from your skill, then don’t waste your time in it. Because if you can’t make money from your skill then how will you pay your bills? How do you pay your rent? And how will you manage your family without a need of money? So you will spend more time thinking about how to solve your financial problems and you will be more stressed and depressed. When can you run a happy and joyful life? Answer is, when you’re financially good and able to make money with your loved skill, that is from your Ikigai which the world needs and you will be very happy.
Did you know that?
A research conducted by Wharton management professor Adam Grant explained how the employees were motivated is “doing work that affects the well-being of others” and to “see or meet the people affected by their work”
Did you understand this topic? Right, then we can move to the fourth step of finding your Ikigai.
4. What are you good at?
This is the most important question: What are you good at? Check whether you are best at your Ikigai. See how you are performing your Ikigai.
For example if you love playing cricket, though cricket is loved by others and also they love watching it and they love to play also. But if you are not performing well compared to others, though you love cricket it cannot be your Ikigai.
But in the case of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, it is his Ikigai. What is the reason? Because he loves playing cricket and we love watching him playing cricket. From that cricket he makes money and he is best in his batting, wicket keeping and captaincy skills compared to others. Yes right, do you agree with this? He satisfies all the four conditions and we can say that cricket is his Ikigai.
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| Mahendra Singh Dhoni – An example for Ikigai |
If you are doing your job and being stressed, then after finishing up, spend your time in your Ikigai. When you earn a reasonable amount of money from your Ikigai then quit your job which you don’t love and work full time in your ikigai. When you do this you can lead a long and happy life.
Did you know?
There are many books in Japan devoted to ikigai, but one in particular is considered definitive: Ikigai-ni-tsuite (About Ikigai), published in 1966.
IKIGAI CHART
Look at this IKIGAI CHART, you can understand the current stage in your life.
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| IKIGAI CHART |
Your Passion:
For example, you love dancing and you are performing better than others but you don’t know how to make money with this skill, then it is your passion, because you love dancing and performing better than others, but how to make money? You don’t know. What to do? You should improve your sales and marketing skills to earn a reasonable amount of money from your skill.
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| Ikigai chart for your Passion |
Study successful people who succeeded in your interested skill about what they did in your current situation to reach their goals. When you do this, you would know what strategies they used to become successful and it will be useful to achieve your goals🎯.
Your Mission:
For example, you love a skill and you think that the world needs your skill. And you are about to
bring a change to this world, then it is your mission.
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| Ikigai chart for your Mission |
In this category, most of the people work as a NGO and they can actively take part in those organisations. You think you should bring a change to this world but you are lacking in skills to influence others to express your ideas, then you should learn how to convince others to accept your ideas. Only because when your idea is accepted by this world you can bring a positive change in it. If the world needs your idea and you are trying to convert your idea as a business, then you should influence investors to invest in your idea and you should study how to convince them to invest in your idea. If your idea is the best, then your mission will be your Ikigai.
Your Profession:
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| Ikigai chart for your Profession |
For example, you are good at a skill and you earn a reasonable amount of money from it. Then it may be your profession. You should know the key difference between your passion and your profession. Because you want to earn money to manage your financial problems whether you like your job or not, you are getting paid because you are good at your job. But you are not happy doing your job and think in your mind “when I go home?” and you become more stressed doing your job. When you are under this category, if you quit your job also there is nothing that will happen to you. So after finishing your job try new things and find what you love. Develop your loved skill and try to earn a profitable amount from it. When you earn money from your skill, then quit your job which you don’t love. Then it has a chance to be your Ikigai.
Your Vocation:
You do a skill which the world needs and you are getting paid. Then it might be your Vocation.
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| Ikigai chart for your Vocation |
Most teachers and professors come under this category. Because their teaching skill is needed by the world and they are getting paid for what they teach to students. But one thing is that they are teaching the students with the same subjects for years to decades. They became tired of teaching it again and again for many years and became stressed. So their life will be like stagnant water. When you are in this situation, challenge yourself to try something new and teach in a better way to students than others. Think how to teach students in a better way day-by-day and try to interact with them always. So you can grow your skills. When you do this you would definitely love your teaching skills and students will love your way of teaching.
So let’s see the summary of what you have learned from this topic:
- IKIGAI means the value of your life, a ‘reason for being‘ or a ‘path to life fulfilment‘. Pronounce it as “ee-key-guy.”
- You must find your Ikigai to lead a long, happy and joyful life and also lead a stress free life.
- When you live along your ikigai your life will be meaningful and you can lead a fulfilled life.
If a skill to be your Ikigai then it should satisfy these four conditions:
What do you love? Do something that you love.
What does the world need? Do something the world needs.
How will you get paid? Do something you love that can pay you money, and
What are you good at? You should be better at your loved skill than others.
These above conditions are explained clearly in this topic with many examples. When your loved skill satisfies these four conditions you will lead a happy and successful life. When you miss any of these four conditions, then you will not be happy and the skill will not be your Ikigai.
We can lead meaningful and fulfilling lives like the people living in Okinawa, Japan. The people living there are among the longest in the world. Their only secret is following their Ikigai and living according to its characteristics in their day-to-day life, and thereby maintaining a constant happiness and stress free life.
What some famous celebrities told about ikigai:
“Ikigai is not something grand or extraordinary. It’s something pretty matter-of-fact.” — Gordon Mathews, professor of anthropology.
“You don’t need huge ambition to be very happy, you just need a bunch of friends to drink green tea and talk with. Get rid of the mess and at the core is your ikigai.” — Héctor García.
“Finding the answers and a balance between these four areas could be a route to ikigai for Westerners looking for a quick interpretation of this philosophy. But in Japan, ikigai is a slower process and often has nothing to do with work or income.” — Laura Oliver.
These Ikigai tips to get you started…
An interview has been made with one hundred centenarians and supercentenarians in Ogimi, Okinawa to try to understand their way of living and life philosophies and their longevity secrets, based on the interview the authors have developed 10 rules of ikigai to get you started.
They are:
1. Stay active, don’t retire.
2. Take it slow.
3. Don’t fill your stomach.
4. Surround yourself with good friends.
5. Get in shape for your next birthday.
6. Smile.
7. Reconnect with nature.
8. Give thanks.
9. Live in the moment.
10. Follow your ikigai.
This topic has been taken from the book IKIGAI – The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life. Additionally we have discussed many myths, research papers on ikigai and facts on this blog post. So whom could you share this with?
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| Ikigai Book |
I sure tell you this book will change your life if you want a change. This topic is made with examples and this topic tells how ikigai works and how it can change your life. There is much more information you should read in this book. A small investment can change your life. So check the price of this book. Click below to check this book price at amazon. Infoments earn a small percentage at no additional cost to you. This helps fund the costs to support the site…
👉 IKIGAI – The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life.
This book should be in everyone’s hand who wants to lead a happy and successful life and you should practice these techniques as mentioned in the book. “Practice makes a man perfect.”
When you practice these ikigai techniques and when you apply this formula in your life you will lead a happy, long and meaningful life.
“Ikigai is an attitude towards life, a way of finding our optimal activities in life, and a set of characteristics that can create meaning and happiness in life.”
Japanese people believe that the sum of small joys in everyday life results in more fulfilling life as a whole
Have you found your ikigai? Let me know in the comments below. And stay tuned for my next post.
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