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 <a href="https://mainichi.jp/articles/20151226/dde/041/070/041000c">Mainichi newspaper </a>. 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.

In one experiment, cold callers at the University of Michigan who spent time with a recipient of the scholarship they were trying to raise money for brought in 171% more money when compared with those who were merely working the phone. The simple act of meeting a student beneficiary provided meaning to the fundraisers and boosted their performance.

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

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