Hasegawa points out that in English, the word life means both lifetime and everyday life. So, ikigai translated as life's purpose sounds very grand. "But in Japan we have jinsei, which means lifetime and seikatsu, which means everyday life," he says. The concept of ikigai aligns more to seikatsu and, through his research, Hasegawa discovered that Japanese people believe that the sum of small joys in everyday life results in more fulfilling life as a whole.

Life's value

"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.

Living a fulfilling 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 <a href="https://faculty.wharton.upenn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Grant_OutsourceInspiration.pdf">research paper </a>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."

How to live out ikigai practically

For Japanese workers in big cities, a typical work day begins with a state called sushi-zum e, a term which likens commuters squeezed into a crowded train car to tightly packed grains of rice in sushi. The stress doesn't stop there.

Ikigai: A Japanese concept to improve work and life

David Shin