I loved this perspective, and the traditional explanation of Ikigai. Balance is such a beautiful concept; there has been a lot of push back on work life balance online, yet I think that balance is great to keep in mind when crafting the life of your dreams.
Awesome. I think what you see online is the Hustle Culture which is all about growing grow grow whether it's writing, a business, or money. Everyone is trying growth hacks to 10x 🤣. That's been burning a lot of people out.
I am so fortunate to have been able to craft the right kind of life for myself, and I also fell into these exact same traps. It's good to see that we have followed similar paths! Life is frustrating for a while, and then something just kind of clicks.
It has taken a few outside moments to reshuffle the cards in my own deck, but every now and then I'm able to question my own assumptions without that sabbatical or dramatic moment (EG, the start of the pandemic or death of a loved one). The sabbaticals are a sure-fire way for me to reconsider things, though, and they work every time - it's just that I am getting way better at deliberately reconsidering what I'm doing on a regular basis.
Now that I'm in that habit, it's like a constantly running subroutine I never much notice. So far, so good.
That's awesome. It's hard to figure out that balance when you feel like you're trying to keep all the plates and cups balanced without it all crashing. Like you said, it needs to be a constant analysis subroutine.
My best friend found this back in the 90’s, not sure if it had the fancy name though. She worked in the customer call support center at Avon. She had a degree in architecture and space planning, but took the job at the call center just to get the healthcare benefits they offered at the time, which were significant. Her husband ran a small successful business but the cost for healthcare for their family of four was just too much. She told me her family was her first priority and if she could do this one small thing they could enjoy many other things. And they did. That family is as close as one could ever be today.
That's a great example. It took me a while to figure it out. Ironically, it took getting laid off to diversify properly. It's great when you can find it but so hard to find it!
Sorry Miles, are you agreeing? The amazed as in wondering about the premise That just being, though an alive state it’s also inert. Am I understanding that you too see greater from moving, action is fundamental and when done with purpose and intention we …what?
I love that you write about this. As someone who teaches purposeful play for improving all things business, I often say that it’s not about work life balance because work is part of life. Life balance is the secret. This takes it one step further and I’m going to do more research into ikigai for even better programs! Thanks!
Awesome. I think Ikigai is super powerful, but like so many fashionable ideas, it gets misapplied quite a lot. I'd love to hear what you come up with. Maybe that would be a good topic for a future podcast? How to build better Ikigai.
Although I enjoyed this article, the premise that “Ikigai is mostly a BS concept” felt off. I’m a big fan of the concept, and it’s nudged me along the way as a journaling construct and framework to redefine what I do in the world. It sounds like it had similar benefit to you. And the “Ikigai Trap article you cited, from a company that provides Ikigai coaching, advocates for it.
I know and imagine many people interpret the framework incorrectly, and there are a lot of good “FAQs” and warnings here about how NOT to interpret and use it, but that doesn’t mean the idea is bullshit.
And just because “work-life balance” has the word work first doesn’t mean it’s 90/10 about work.
To me, the power of Ikigai (perhaps) lies in the fact that the American cultural framework is so different — maybe we think 90% work first. Clearly that’s not “balanced.” But either way, your article presents a nicely articulated view of how you applied the framework — well done!
That's a valid critique. I'm trying to think of out to phrase it better because I attempted to specify that it's mostly bullshit in how it's applied. Kind of like many of the popular ideas in even things like Agile/Scrum. What's a way that you'd phrase it better? *Edit I did take a swipe at trying to clarify my position 🙂
I think it's important to start with the knowledge of what gives your life meaning and purpose. Your values show in your behavior. Work should complement what gives you meaning that but the reality of life offers us bad examples everywhere.
I am continually amazed at people with no goals or aspirations or bucket list. They say, "just be." "Isn't that enough? Why do you need to strive?"
I loved this perspective, and the traditional explanation of Ikigai. Balance is such a beautiful concept; there has been a lot of push back on work life balance online, yet I think that balance is great to keep in mind when crafting the life of your dreams.
Awesome. I think what you see online is the Hustle Culture which is all about growing grow grow whether it's writing, a business, or money. Everyone is trying growth hacks to 10x 🤣. That's been burning a lot of people out.
I am so fortunate to have been able to craft the right kind of life for myself, and I also fell into these exact same traps. It's good to see that we have followed similar paths! Life is frustrating for a while, and then something just kind of clicks.
It has taken a few outside moments to reshuffle the cards in my own deck, but every now and then I'm able to question my own assumptions without that sabbatical or dramatic moment (EG, the start of the pandemic or death of a loved one). The sabbaticals are a sure-fire way for me to reconsider things, though, and they work every time - it's just that I am getting way better at deliberately reconsidering what I'm doing on a regular basis.
Now that I'm in that habit, it's like a constantly running subroutine I never much notice. So far, so good.
That's awesome. It's hard to figure out that balance when you feel like you're trying to keep all the plates and cups balanced without it all crashing. Like you said, it needs to be a constant analysis subroutine.
I love the insights here and it's a pleasant reminder that I need to relook at this in my life.
Awesome. Thanks!
My best friend found this back in the 90’s, not sure if it had the fancy name though. She worked in the customer call support center at Avon. She had a degree in architecture and space planning, but took the job at the call center just to get the healthcare benefits they offered at the time, which were significant. Her husband ran a small successful business but the cost for healthcare for their family of four was just too much. She told me her family was her first priority and if she could do this one small thing they could enjoy many other things. And they did. That family is as close as one could ever be today.
That's a great example. It took me a while to figure it out. Ironically, it took getting laid off to diversify properly. It's great when you can find it but so hard to find it!
I imagine it’s more difficult for men, since I’m not a man, but it’s an observation.
Sorry Miles, are you agreeing? The amazed as in wondering about the premise That just being, though an alive state it’s also inert. Am I understanding that you too see greater from moving, action is fundamental and when done with purpose and intention we …what?
I love that you write about this. As someone who teaches purposeful play for improving all things business, I often say that it’s not about work life balance because work is part of life. Life balance is the secret. This takes it one step further and I’m going to do more research into ikigai for even better programs! Thanks!
Awesome. I think Ikigai is super powerful, but like so many fashionable ideas, it gets misapplied quite a lot. I'd love to hear what you come up with. Maybe that would be a good topic for a future podcast? How to build better Ikigai.
Although I enjoyed this article, the premise that “Ikigai is mostly a BS concept” felt off. I’m a big fan of the concept, and it’s nudged me along the way as a journaling construct and framework to redefine what I do in the world. It sounds like it had similar benefit to you. And the “Ikigai Trap article you cited, from a company that provides Ikigai coaching, advocates for it.
I know and imagine many people interpret the framework incorrectly, and there are a lot of good “FAQs” and warnings here about how NOT to interpret and use it, but that doesn’t mean the idea is bullshit.
And just because “work-life balance” has the word work first doesn’t mean it’s 90/10 about work.
To me, the power of Ikigai (perhaps) lies in the fact that the American cultural framework is so different — maybe we think 90% work first. Clearly that’s not “balanced.” But either way, your article presents a nicely articulated view of how you applied the framework — well done!
That's a valid critique. I'm trying to think of out to phrase it better because I attempted to specify that it's mostly bullshit in how it's applied. Kind of like many of the popular ideas in even things like Agile/Scrum. What's a way that you'd phrase it better? *Edit I did take a swipe at trying to clarify my position 🙂
I think it's important to start with the knowledge of what gives your life meaning and purpose. Your values show in your behavior. Work should complement what gives you meaning that but the reality of life offers us bad examples everywhere.
I am continually amazed at people with no goals or aspirations or bucket list. They say, "just be." "Isn't that enough? Why do you need to strive?"
That's a really good point. Without that element, how do you even structure the rest?