Ikigai: A Japanese concept to improve work and life

Rather, ikigai is about feeling your work makes a difference in people's lives.

How people find meaning in their work is a topic of much interest to management experts. One research paper by Wharton management professor Adam Grant explained that what motivates employees is "doing work that affects the well-being of others" and to "see or meet the people affected by their work."

But, knowing your ikigai alone is not enough. Simply put, you need an outlet. Ikigai is "purpose in action," he says.

For 92-year-old Tomi Menaka, her ikigai is to dance and sing with her peers in the KBG84 dance troupe, she told the Mainichi newspaper . For others, it might be work itself.

In a culture where the value of the team supercedes the individual, Japanese workers are driven by being useful to others, being thanked, and being esteemed by their colleagues, says Toshimitsu Sowa, CEO of HR consulting firm Jinzai Kenkyusho.

"Older people are celebrated, they feel obligated to pass on their wisdom to younger generations," he says. This gives them a purpose in life outside of themselves, in service to their communities.

According to Buettner, the concept of ikigai is not exclusive to Okinawans: "there might not be a word for it but in all four blue zones such as Sardinia and Nicoya Peninsula, the same concept exists among people living long lives."

Buettner suggests making three lists: your values, things you like to do, and things you are good at. The cross section of the three lists is your ikigai.

Japan has some of the longest-living citizens in the world -87 years for women and 81 for men , according to the country's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. Could this concept of ikigai contribute to longevity?

Author Dan Buettner believes it does. He's the author of Blue Zones: Lessons on Living Longer from the People Who've Lived the Longest, and has travelled the globe exploring long-lived communities around the world, which he calls " blue zones ".

One such zone is Okinawa, a remote island with a remarkably high number of centenarians. While a unique diet likely has a lot to do with residents' longevity, Buettner says ikigai also plays a part.