Choosing the Right Problem to Solve: A Guide to Finding Your Purpose
You might not agree with “Ikigai” completely but I think the majority of us would say it covers the bases of finding “purpose” (however defined) pretty well, especially for the modern world*. In this article, I aim to provide a step-by-step explanation to it, as to why this predominant Venn diagram navigates us to a single determinant of purpose — impact. Additionally, I will lay out the practical applications of this theory and how one can leverage the knowledge gained from it.
As a STEM enthusiast trying my hand in the humanities, I may employ mathematical vocabulary and connotations to substantiate my argument. You can safely ignore those. Please note that any statements I make are my personal opinions and are not meant to be taken at face value or to persuade anyone. I should also say that this blog isn’t meant as a “demything” of Ikigai. On the contrary, most of my logic assumes that Ikigai caters to the principles of finding purpose. I realize that there are many exceptions to my consensus and I do not recommend anyone to make this their own philosophy. However, I believe it does cater to majority of the ambitious minds that I presume must be reading this blog and maybe (hopefully) some of them can relate.
It’s commonly accepted that anything that creates value can be monetized. When we make others’ lives better, they tend to reciprocate by offering us the one (relatively) quantifiable measure of satisfaction they have: money. Therefore, anything that creates an impact can be monetized. Hence, “what you can be paid for” is a moot point.*
Scott Adams’ book, “How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big,” has a chapter entitled “Passion is Bullshit.” Cal Newport’s “So Good They Can’t Ignore You” discusses the same concept, except the entire book is based on it. In my view, both authors posit that passion is a man-made illusion meant to make us feel good. What we consider “passion” is really just a result of hours and hours of practice. When we regularly engage in an activity, we become proficient at it, and therefore enjoy doing it. Consequently, when we like it, we want to do it more, which, in turn, makes us even better at it and so goes the merry-go-round. This cycle goes on to show that we can become “passionate” and adept at any skill of our liking. This argument implies that both “what you love” and “what you are good at” are redundant since their scope encompass every conceivable skill.*
To bring it all together, to be the best version of oneself and earn the most money while doing it, one must work on a problem that impacts the lives of many people and find a solution to it. How can you tell if you’re capable of operating at such a level of complexity (given that world-changing, unresolved problems won’t be easy to tackle)? Well, since you can master and love any skill of your choosing, you can, by definition, love and master the skills required to tackle any problem. Therefore, if you truly want to realize your potential, you should explore world-threatening problems and world-saving solutions via an entrepreneurial journey.*
Choosing A Problem
“Okay, so I should consider solely the impact my work has on this world and choose my purpose based on the same. But how do I quantify impact?”, you must be thinking. This is where it becomes subjective. I might think the development of AGI will impact the world in a way that no technology has ever before, you might argue that bio-engineering has similar disruption potential if not more, and both of us will be right. So how do you choose the problem you want to work on? You take into account the following two parameters :
- How much value will the solution provide, and what do the people it’s providing value to mean to you?
- Do you have enough time?
The first point is fairly self-explanatory and the answer is subjective, therefore I will leave it to you to interpret it as you wish. As for the second one, what I want to drive across is that the reason some real-world issues remain unresolved to date is because they’re just hard to solve. There are some on which scientists and PhDs have spent their entire lives and achieved nothing. Your goal should not be the same as these professionals, it should be focused on the betterment of society, not the progress. Most times these two are not mutually exclusive but it’s tricky to identify when they are. It is once again up to you to decide which problem to pick keeping this in mind. High risk, high reward (or a spectacular failure). Another side to the coin of time is your current status. For the lack of a better word, you would be pretty stupid if you were an expert in physics but chose an issue in molecular biology. What I mean by this arbitrary example is that if you have already reached a certain level in a field then you should focus on similar problems simply due to the efficiency of building upon current knowledge/work. If you’re young and a blank slate or experienced but a generalist, then you now have the power of choice — use it wisely.
Resolved mystery of the unsaid
In this section I elaborate on the points where I left an asterisk.
*Why I say modern world is because this is a unique time where neither our necessities nor our “inner self” takes priority, rather it is our success in our surroundings that enjoys all the spotlight. I’m not commenting on the same, merely assuming this philosophy to be an axiom of life (which most people do, at least subconsciously) for the sake of simplicity.
*There are of course some exceptions, most of which tend to be altruistic. In those cases, you can find indirect ways of monetization. For example, no one will pay you to remove garbage from beach-sides, however, you can sell that garbage to companies that use plastic to create fuel. You can argue that most altruistic ventures are for inner-fulfillment and are not meant as a form of generating income anyway.
*Some people might face difficulty in acquiring certain skills due to biological or cultural/mindset limitations however this statement does generalize well when you look at the overall process of learning.
*Why I recommend “entrepreneurial” is a matter of simplicity. You are much more free to do what you want when you are in chargeof yourself and therefore it is just easier to follow this philosophy in the business world.
