How To Start Yourself Up?

Create a great future for yourself though Ikigai

We’re starting up again. And at best you’ve been at home making plans or at the least are full of new ideas. It might alas also be you’re broke and lost everything. Or.. sigh, you have to get back to that job or business you’re quite tired of. Well, let’s change all that and set yourself on a path of destiny.

In my work for Umana Forma, an Italian professional trainings and business development agency one question asked to me was, “How can we improve the professionalism of young talent?” I think we’ve raised young talent too much as a worker who must fit a system. As young professional you can better ask yourself, “How do I find the most interesting career, best fitting who I am?”

Let’s explore 3 steps. The first is to get yourself into action. The second is to find your destiny through Ikigai, the Japanese model of the best job ever. And three, profit from your weaknesses. We mostly can’t escape our weaknesses, better use them to our advantage. ;)

1. What gets you into action? How to trigger it?

Realize everyone is different. And you have to find what works best for you. Check from the following options who you are and follow up the tip.

Are you a structure person? Make a plan with steps. Use discipline to work every day on a project. Include show and tell moments, so you have moments some steps must be presentable and ready.

Are you playful, curious? Ask big questions and follow where they lead. Play around with the subject and see what comes up, and or go interview people who know about it and ask them a lot about it.

Are you ambitious? Challenge yourself. Set yourself to prove something, from stepping the silk road, to setting up the biggest new tourist attraction in Padua, just to compete with Venice.

Are you socially conscious? Go solve a big issue. Discover and design ways to tackle the issue, whether in your community or all over the world.

Are you totally unclear? Ha! Notice what you think about all day. What subject are you most busy with? Wonder how to make that viable? Could you make a youtube channel on it, or a blog or sing about it?

If still clueless, ask your friends. “When do you see my eyes start to shine?” “What do they see, makes you much more active?” Believe what they say, and wonder, alone or with them, “How could this be the core of my job?”

2. Ikigai, finding your best job ever.

Now that you have started, you still may wonder: “How to turn that plan, concept into paid work?” Well, through the four key points that make up the Ikigai model. Answer each of these questions separately before you move on.

What do you love to do? How can you make that, a bigger part of, your work? For doing so will let you enjoy and shine more at work.

What is your talent? How can you make that, a bigger part of, your work? For doing so, will make it more easy to offer something more unique.

What will people pay you for? How can you make that, a bigger part of, your work? For doing so, will increase your income.

What does the world need? How can you make that, a bigger part of, your work? For doing so, will give you meaning at work.

Ikigai, the Japanese model of what makes a perfect job.

The more aspects you combine the better. Even if only one is missing you’ll feel it. If you ain’t fulfilling some need of others, work becomes meaningless. If there’s no love in what you do, work may become bitter. If there’s no reward, you won’t feel valued. If it’s not something that comes natural, you’ll struggle to make it work every day.

Thus working towards this combination is a joy for life. Note that even when you may have the wrong job, you might learn how to bring in the elements you lack. A baker can focus more on laughing with customers, of making pies into art, on having actions to help the poor, find out what sells more. This all demands you play a bit more, with possibilities at work. Don’t be afraid to fail a little, because each lesson is a building block. Step by step you’ll get there.

And each time you are asked to do a job, wonder, what’s my adventure in this? What Ikigai aspect can I focus on, to have more fun, become better, give it meaning, or get value back.

This is how I experience my own Ikigai. I love and am good at being creative for a better world and find just enough people willing to pay for it. I often experience a kind of inner gratitude because of it. And by being and sharing what I come up with, (among others, I co-founded 2 schools and a festival, coached others, invented games, workshops, methods & events)I find I attract enough income in general. While some need to focus on income first, I find for me this works best: I focus on what I think contributes by being me.

Consider this: through less pleasing and being more direct about who I am, and what I love to do, I attract people who want exactly that and those that want a pleaser to fill a gap in an organization stay away.

So, journey on and find how to integrate more and more Ikigai in your life.

Get paid for your weaknesses.

Now I want to make a special note about weaknesses. The sides we often condemn because teachers said, “You must improve this, or you won’t make it!” or said “You must drop that, you can’t do that.” But what may have little value in our crazy school system, might be very valuable elsewhere. So when faced with a weakness here’s some questions to help you.

What’s your weakness framed as a talent?

It’s best when you try this more deeply for yourself and be more precise at it. But here are some common examples I ran into, in training or coaching.

Are you insecure? This often means you’re very sensitive, more empathic and feel better what’s going on. It might even be considerate leadership.

Are you blunt? This might be reframed as bold, outspoken, clear. Not accepted as student, it’s needed on stage, decision making, in truth telling.

Are you lazy? What? Who invented the wheel? Indeed, the creative guy, who was wondering: “How to do this much easier?”

Then wonder who might pay for this skill in what professions?

I got paid as coach for impatience. I coached someone on presentation skills. Each time I got bored, and that was quickly, I’d tell him. He found my impatient feedback helped him keep audiences interested.

I got paid as actor in training for my aggression. Service managers could test their social skills on me. And I learned to switch my own anger on and off better than in therapy.

I got paid to be lazy in organizations. I would wonder, how can we do this easier? I once brought a work proces of four days back to 10 minutes. That was worth much more in savings, than it cost to have me think about it.

So what is this ‘weakness talent’ of yours? Who might pay for it? And then take your talent and turn it into a job title you use to get a job with. A great job title does three things: 1. Clarity: It makes clear to others what you do. 2. Curiosity: It interests them to speak more to you about it. 3. Liberating: You feel free to do what you most feel like doing and get paid for it.

Enjoy and find your Ikigai!

Floris Koot, Job Title Coach & Educational Innovator