6 steps to get you started on your Ikigai
Extract from ‘Don’t Say I Never Told You’ Series 1 www.PatStormBooks.com
-A guide to life from a loving father to his millennial daughters
"Ikigai" translated it means “life’s purpose”. It is a holistic, altruistic way to see more meaning in your life. Ikigai is also about finding joy, fulfilment, and balance in the daily routines of life. In other words, it is a guiding force.
Ikigai is seen as the convergence of four primary elements:
-
The talents you have that could be turned into remarkable strengths (your vocation)
-
What you love to do (your passion)
-
Where you can help your community / the world (your legacy)
-
The meaningful work that will reward you adequately (your economic engine)
The six steps to get started on your Ikigai map
-
Have a 20-second life's purpose elevator pitch. Write your life’s purpose as you currently would like it to be. A story with you in it. What you want to achieve, what differences you want to make, what legacy you want to leave. You will need to rewrite this at least once a year and eventually be able to say it with conviction in a 20-second elevator ride. The more altruistic it is, the more you picture it, the more it will become a reality. The key to this process is that it will help you break free from any self-defeating cycles of negative thinking. The future story will energise you to take action in the intended direction.
-
Make plans to start your journey while in your current situation. The experts suggest you start a side-hustle, to gain some skills. You actually have more time than you think if you cut down on TV and other escapism activities and utilise the hours from 6-8 AM and 6-8 PM.
-
List what you love to do (your passions), and what talents you have that could be turned into remarkable strengths (your vocation). I have a section on ascertaining your talents so this step should not be too difficult. You now have two parts of the puzzle worked out. Your future lies in doing something you love to do and that utilises your talents.
-
Search to find that job that suits you better. Start thinking about what meaningful work you can do that will reward you adequately and be in the general direction of your life’s journey. Now you will, after time, start to get closer to that type of work. This journey takes time.
-
Attend an Ikigai workshop to ensure your life’s purpose is robust. To find a course search Ikigai + workshop+___________ (the city you live in or the nearest one).
-
Set out a series of goals that you attend to achieve in the next 12 months. I call this a treasure map, and this is explained in the next section.
Extract from ‘Don’t Say I Never Told You’ Series 1 www.PatStormBooks.com
-A guide to life from a loving father to his millennial daughters