How Your Ikigai Can Guide You Towards Healthy Productivity
A few weeks ago I coached a senior leader during a transition phase at work. They were looking for a better balance: How could they shape their role so that they can do more of what they enjoy whilst still being productive?
In Japanese culture, the concept "ikigai" offers a framework for understanding your reason for being. It represents the intersection of what you love, what the world needs, what you can be paid for and what you're good at.
In our coaching session we explored their ikigai and it didn’t take long until they gained major new insights into what was holding them back from achieving it.
It made me wonder: How does our mindset (the way we think), our habits (how we act) and our connection with others (how we relate) affect our journey towards our ikigai?
Understanding the Ikigai Framework
The traditional ikigai model visualises four overlapping circles:
What you love (passion)
What the world needs (mission)
What you can be paid for (profession)
What you're good at (vocation)
Where these four circles intersect lies your ikigai—your reason for getting up in the morning, your purpose in life.
Cultivating an Ikigai Mindset
Your mindset—the way you perceive yourself and the world—fundamentally shapes your ability to discover and live your ikigai.
Here are three approaches I found particularly helpful:
Growth Orientation: Approach life with curiosity rather than certainty. Those who embrace a growth mindset believe their abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work. This perspective allows you to explore new possibilities without the fear of failure.
Present Awareness: Practice being fully present. When you're constantly focused on the past or future, you miss the subtle clues that point toward your purpose. Mindfulness helps to notice what activities make you lose track of time or give you energy rather than drain it.
Gratitude Practice: Appreciating what you already have creates space for recognising your unique abilities. A grateful mindset helps you see opportunities where others might see obstacles.
Developing Ikigai-Supporting Habits
Your daily actions can either move you toward or away from your ikigai.
Here are three habits that can have a big impact:
Regular Reflection: Set aside time each week to reflect on activities that energised you, challenges that engaged you, and moments when you felt most alive. These reflection sessions can reveal patterns that point toward your ikigai.
Purposeful Experimentation: Commit to trying new activities or skills regularly. Create a "curiosity calendar" where you schedule time to explore interests without pressure to master them.
Deep Work: Cultivate the ability to focus without distraction on cognitively demanding tasks. This skill allows you to develop mastery in areas aligned with your ikigai.
Nurturing Connections for Ikigai Discovery
Your relationships and community connections play a crucial role in discovering and living your ikigai.
You might particularly benefit from:
Mentorship Networks: Seek guidance from those who have found fulfilment in areas that interest you. Their insights can help you navigate your own path.
Community Engagement: Your ikigai often emerges through service to others. Volunteer in areas aligned with your values to discover how your gifts might meet the world's needs.
Feedback Loops / Coaching: Create trusted relationships where you can receive honest feedback about your strengths and blind spots. Sometimes others see our gifts more clearly than we do.
Please get in touch if any of this resonates with you.
The Ongoing Journey
Finding your ikigai isn't a destination but an evolving journey. As you grow and change, your ikigai may also shift. The framework provides a compass, not a map with a fixed endpoint.
By cultivating an ikigai-supportive mindset, developing aligned habits, and nurturing meaningful connections, you create the conditions for your purpose to emerge and evolve.
What might it be like to find joy and meaning in everyday living? Imagine waking up each morning with a sense of purpose, no matter how humble it might seem to others.
What parts of your life already bring you joy, meaning and fulfilment? How might you expand these elements while exploring new possibilities?