Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Happy and Fulfilling Life

Startup Lab
4 min readApr 10, 2023

Ikigai is a Japanese concept that helps you find purpose in your professional and personal life. Learn the secret to career fulfillment with this basic framework.

Do you ever wonder what your purpose in life is? Do you feel like you’re just going through the motions every day, without any real sense of direction or fulfillment? If so, you might be interested in learning about ikigai, a Japanese concept that can help you find meaning and purpose in your life.

What is ikigai?

Ikigai (pronounced ee-kee-gah-ee) is a Japanese word that roughly translates to “a reason for being” or “a sense of purpose in life.” It’s a concept that has been around for centuries in Japan, and has recently gained popularity in the Western world as a way to help people find meaning and happiness in their lives.

At its core, ikigai is about finding the intersection of four key elements in your life:

  1. What you love
  2. What you’re good at
  3. What the world needs
  4. What you can be paid for

When you can find a way to bring these four elements together, you’ll have found your ikigai. It’s a powerful concept that can help you live a more fulfilling and purposeful life.

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Startup Lab

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