What makes you get up out of bed in the morning?
If your first thought is 'duh, the alarm clock', try going a little deeper. Do you leap out of bed with the idea that today will be a pleasure, doing what you love? Or is rising from bed a slower, more painful process?
On the islands of Okinawa, they have a concept that we don't even have a word for in English (like schadenfreude in German). It is called ikigai which can be loosely translated as "the reason to get up in the morning" or life purpose. I first heard about it in The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest
. Here is the same concept on YouTube .
The concept has always made sense to me intellectually, but never in the context of my life. I've been a student, a naval officer, a mother, an employee, a volunteer but none of these 'jobs' were the reason to leap from bed. All of these things were what I do, not who I am. Let's just say the whole thing bugged me. This fisherman on Okinawa still relished fishing at 86; it was his ikigai. Where was mine?
It crystallized this week. I went onto the Authentic Happiness website and took the VIA survey of Character Strengths. The results were baffling. What a useless group of strengths. Here they are:
- Appreciation of beauty and excellence
- Spirituality, sense of purpose, and faith
- Curiosity and interest in the world
- Love of learning
- Zest, enthusiasm, and energy
Doesn't it kind of look like a recipe for the eternal college student who has studied art, art history, divinity, and basket weaving? When I looked at it from the perspective of ikigai, it looked different. It became very clear. My reason to get out of bed in the morning was almost the same as my business mission statement (Creating a more peaceful world one satisfied client at a time). My ikigai is "make each meeting matter."
Not only does it make each person I meet a little happier, but it also is a continual challenge for my personal growth. Sometimes it's just easier to resent the person in line who is yelling at their kids or who cut me off in traffic rather than loving them into a better world. What is interesting is that I have been living by this "rule" for all of my life, but writing it down clearly was such a relief. Not only did it clarify some past decisions but it also freed me to be the person I have always been. Strange, but wonderful.
Now, a lot of you readers I only touch through these posts. To make this meeting matter, I need to provide interesting information in a clear manner that helps make your life better. I hope this post fulfills those criteria and helps you find your ikigai. The journey is worth it.
, here is exactly what I've been trying to write. (He approaches the subject from the perspective of meditation because that is what the whole book is about.)