4 Key Takeaways from Yukari Mitsuhashi’s ‘Ikigai’
1. What is ikigai?
Simply put, ikigai is what makes life worth living; it is the Japanese concept of the value of life or the happiness of life. Ikigai is about practicing mindfulness and savoring each moment of life. By paying attention, we can find ikigai in our everyday moments. Having ikigai allows us to feel alive and gives our life a sense of purpose. To identify your ikigai, knowing yourself and knowing what you want out of life is important, and identifying our ikigai brings focus and direction to our lives.
2. Finding one’s ikigai
By looking inwards and discovering what we enjoy the most, what we are curious about, what gives us a sense of fulfilment, we can realise our ikigai. We can do so by being more aware of our actions, thoughts and emotions. Ikigai is different for each person, and each person can have different ikigai at different times of their life. A person can even have more than one ikigai. Therefore, it is important to be in continuous dialogue with oneself and take time for self-reflection. A person’s ikigai could be their work, their family and relationships, hobbies and interests or any other role they play in their life, that gives them true joy.
3. Ikigai in action
To have meaningful ikigai, it has to be accompanied by action. According to Mitsuhashi, ikigai is the action we take in pursuit of happiness. Things we do without being forced to, things we do purely for the joy of, lead us to realizing our ikigai. We find contentment when the choices we make are in tune with our ikigai.
4. Life’s anchor
When we discover our ikigai, the decisions we make in personal and professional lives can be made to align with our ikigai. Knowing our ikigai helps us understand what really matters to us; it enables us to cut out all the background noise, so that we can focus on what brings us happiness. When our life is centered around our ikigai, it brings us inner peace; it becomes the guiding principle based on which we make all decisions. When we do so, we remain true to ourselves and find our bliss.
