Ikigai: An Art Form That Helps You Find Your Life Purpose
Ikigai is a Japanese word that can be translated as “the reason to be” or “the reason we wake up every morning”.
For the Japanese, we all have our own ikigaier inside us, and it is important to discover them and own them. Because then we will have what it takes to overcome difficulties.
Few psychological and existential principles are as fundamental to our daily lives as this concept encompasses.
Finding meaning in yourself, having reasons to live… that is the key to keeping despair away. And it’s fundamental to dealing with one of today’s worst enemies: depression.
Many of our psychological problems can be improved by finding our ikigai who are sometimes hidden, repressed and even silenced. It has the power to give air to our lungs and give us back our will to live.
It is known, for example, that a large number of mood disorders see clear improvement when the person creates an obligation to themselves, simply by doing what they like.
Soon, these positive thoughts and beliefs will act as buffers, protecting us from suicidal thoughts, limiting beliefs, and fears.
But we also know that it is not easy to commit to our ikigai, our purpose in life.
Therefore, the Japanese remind us that we must be like a loyal and energetic warrior who fulfills a very specific goal: to preserve their integrity and love of life.
Your ikigai will only do one thing: “shake off” your passivity
Sebastian Marshall is a famous author who a few years ago gave us a book with a very simple title: Ikigai.
It must be said that of all that has been published on this subject, this book has had the greatest impact. It also stays away from some of the overused words and concepts associated with personal growth.
The first lesson we must learn is not to strive for the same happiness that others “supposedly” have. Most of the time it is not real. If we are obsessed with having and doing the same as those around us, we become like 99% of the population.
On the other hand, if we dare to act according to our dreams, desires and life purposes, we will be unique. We will be among 1% who want authentic fulfillment.
And it can only be achieved in one way: by leaving our passivity behind us, and finding our ikigai. Once we have clarified and defined it, several things happen.
The first is that we want to be more nonconformist, and that is good.
The second is that we will finally be aware of our own potential to turn into “dynamite”.
How do I find my purpose in life?
This may seem like a funny question to many of our readers. Who does not know what their life purpose is? Well, as strange as it may seem, it is not always clear. In fact, sometimes we have goals, ideals and objectives that are slightly distorted or impregnated by values that are not ours.
The pressures of how we grew up, our family and social environments, shape us in a way that we are not always fully aware of.
We must stop exposing the needs, joys, and passions that make us who we are and that can ultimately determine our path. It’s not easy, but we have to do it.
We will now explain how to define your ikigai.
7 to shape your ikigai
Your ikigai is shaped by the intersection of four basic aspects: your passion, your calling, your profession and your mission in life. To clarify each of these key aspects, these strategies will help:
- Stop living on autopilot: ask yourself daily what makes you happy.
Do not compare yourself with anyone. Do not try to be the same as others. You are your own point of reference. - We all have talent. We all have an exceptional ability that sets us apart from others, and we should take advantage of that. Make it yours and enjoy it.
- Ikigai is not just a life purpose or an ambition, it is a lifestyle that must be followed here and now.
- It is something that gives us energy every morning, and something that translates into things we do every day and want to invest in getting better at.
- Sometimes it means to live according to our ikigai to leave a large part of what surrounds us. We must therefore make it clear that it will take against.
- Ikigai is the opposite of passivity or conformism. It demands everything from you and makes you feel alive, free and full of energy, regardless of age or your physical condition because, above all, it is a state of mind…
To conclude, if you have not yet found your ikigai, it’s ok. Sometimes in the journey of life awakening occurs so undeniably that it is not possible to return.
That’s when you have no choice but to follow it.
