According to author Oliver Burkeman, most of us can expect to live an average of 4,000 weeks. Many of those weeks will be spent in work. That’s a long time if you’re in a job you don’t find fulfilling. Wouldn’t it be great if you could simply wave a magic wand and conjure up your perfect job?
Is there a way to decide what kinds of job would best suit you? The Japanese have a word which encapsulates the concept of a fulfilling life- a reason for being rather than simply a job. It’s called Ikigai.
The IKIGAI diagram is a helpful tool to appraise any opportunities you may be contemplating. Considering these key elements in combination can help you decide whether a job is right for you. While there is no such thing as the perfect job, investing time trying to move as closely as you can to the centre of your IKIGAI is likely to deliver a stronger sense of fulfilment.
The reason many of us are dissatisfied in our jobs is because we often focus on only two or three of the four dimensions of IKIGAI.
For example, my first job delivered solely on what I could be paid for. There was a recession and I needed a job. My choices were limited. I got a job in telesales. I hated it. I dreaded each Monday morning and couldn’t wait to leave. It wasn’t something I was good at and the world really didn’t need another telesales person. Eventually I retrained and achieved all four elements of Profession, Passion, Vocation and Mission through my move into careers work.
Later I moved into a role where the sense of Mission was missing. A friend of mine described the work I was doing at that time as ‘hitting the target but missing the point.’ This was such a good description that I knew then I would have to leave in order to regain what I’d lost from the previous jobs I’d enjoyed so much. Once I changed jobs, I appreciated what it was to be energised in work again.
Questions to ask yourself when exploring options:
- It might seem sensible to focus on Profession: what you’re good at and what pays well. You may convince a recruiter that you’re the right fit. You may well be successful. Whilst you can do it, if you don’t love it, you will become drained of energy.
- If you focus on Mission– what you love to do and what the world needs, will this work also pay you? Will it make use of your skills ?
- If you focus on Vocation- what the worlds needs and what you can be paid for, do you also have the skills that will make this employment secure? Will you also enjoy it?
- If you focus on Passion, what you love and are good at, will it pay you? Does the world need it?
Ikigai isn’t a magic bullet
Of course, there are no quick fixes for finding work that’s fulfilling. Your freedom to choose may be compromised by financial needs, geographical constraints, health, relationships and caring responsibilities. And what you consider to be an ideal job now may well shift, as will your skills, values and opinions, over time.
However, the Ikigai framework does provide an opportunity to explore the concept of fulfilling careers.
Use the Ikigai headings to ask yourself the following questions:
Finding what you love to do
- Are there any particular things you’ve enjoyed doing since childhood?
- Which activities make you so happy that you lose track of time?
Finding what you’re good at
- Write down your talents and strengths. You may find it helpful to complete this FREE strengths questionnaire.
- What are you naturally better at than other people? What are you the ‘go-to- person for?
Defining what the wold needs
- What things in the world make you sad or angry?
- What things are important to you? (e.g. poverty, homelessness, loneliness, pollution). You may find it helpful to see my post on how to identify jobs that give you meaning.
Defining what you can do as a profession
- Can you offer any services or create products people would want to buy?
- What job are you so good at that it could easily be your profession? You may find it helpful to complete the Prospects Planner questionnaire.
Then go through your answers and discuss them with people who know you well. Can you imagine a goal that could meet all the Ikigai segments? If this makes you feel energised, explore it further.
The minute you choose to do what you really want to do, it’s a different kind of life.
Buckminster Fuller
