It’s no secret that a lot of us (humans) often struggle to find our “reason for being” – our purpose in life.
Why are we here? Where did we come from? Where are we going? These are some of life’s hard questions, and we’ve been (probably – we can’t really know for sure) searching for the answers since the dawn of man.
As I alluded to in my previous post, I too have been (still am) struggling to find my purpose. It seems so spoiled to say this, when I have everything a man could ever ask for; A nice home, a loving wife (for the most part), a beautiful daughter and a well-paying job, in an industry that keeps screaming for more employees.
This is supposed to be the dream, but somehow it’s just not enough. I feel guilty for saying it, as I know there are people around the world, who can only dream of having what I have.
As I’m writing this, I realize that I’ve been on this path (to discover my reason for being) for several years now. It could potentially be a life-long journey, as I suspect my purpose might shift, as I grow older (I certainly hope that becoming FI is going to change a thing or two!). I find a lot of inspiration in the FI community, and it’s really awesome to see that a lot of the FIRE seekers are on the same path: To discover/fulfill their true purpose.
So what is my purpose? I don’t know, yet! – But I’m sensing that I’m getting closer to the answer, day by day, little by little. I’m certainly closer to the answer, than I was a year ago (or so it feels, anyway). This gives me a great deal of hope! Hope that I will one day find what I’ve been searching for. In the meantime, I find a lot of inspiration in all the insightful posts from my peers.
This blog is an important tool for me, to work (write) through my “issues”, and sometimes the topic of the weekly post automatically comes to me, and sometimes it doesn’t (I aim to write at least 1 post per week, and I’m often reminded that it’s a good idea to adhere to this strategy, which is said to be invented by the famed comedian, Jerry Seinfeld. If you google “don’t break the chain” you’ll know what I’m talking about 😉 ). This week I was struggling to find a good topic, and I was also struggling to find the time to write.
So I decided to seek inspiration in some of this weeks posts from other bloggers that I follow. The post that made the biggest impact on me this week, was this one from Sebastien over at impactivated.com. Sebastien wrote about IKIGAI, which is a Japanese concept that means “a reason for being”. I’ve read several posts about IKIGAI before (take a look at this one too, if you’re danish 😉 ) but never one from a guy who already reached FI. This puts a new perspective on the term, and Sebastien even coins a new “concept” that he dubs FI-KIGAI.
Let’s have a quick look at the concept – I’m going to borrow Sebastiens drawings, as I’m the lazy blogger, remember? (I hope he doesn’t mind) 😛 You should go read his post (after reading this one, of course!).
The concept of IKIGAI explains the “sweet spot” between the following 4 “traits”:
- What you love (doing)
- What the world needs
- What you can be paid for
- What you are good at
That seems simple enough, right? So in order to find your IKIGAI (your “reason for being”), all you need to do is find something you love doing, that the world needs, which someone will pay you to do, and that you’re good at doing!
Problem S.O.L.V.E.D.
Well, we all know; it’s not that easy!
So, where do we start?! Most people (in the developed world) will start with #3: What will someone pay me (well!) to do!?
Some people will start with #4: What you’re good at.
A few will start with #1: What you love doing.
VERY few will start with #2: What the world needs.
None the less, Sebastien suggest that you should start with #2 (What the world needs).
So let’s reorder the categories, based on Sebastiens suggestion:
- What the world needs
- What you are good at
- What you love (doing)
- What you can be paid for
In case the world isn’t your playground, we could “downsize” it to:
#1: What can you do to help others?
Start small 😉
Interestingly enough, that sentence has been brewing inside my head for several years now. “What can you do to help others?”. So agreeing with Sebastien, that that in fact seems to be the right question to ask, when seeking to find your “reason for being”, finding the answer to this question is not as easy (so it seems to me, anyway).
If you’re far away from being FI (or not looking to become FI at all?), you’re now thinking something along the lines of this: “Yeah right, that’s easy for him to say – I’ve got bills to pay, man!”.
Enter: FI-KIGAI
If you somehow manage to “remove” #4: What you can be paid for, you are one step closer to IKIGAI 😉
Now you just have to worry about the other 3!
- What the world needs
- What you are good at
- What you love (doing)
That somehow seems more tangible. If you somehow manage to remove the dependency of a (well) paying job from the IKIGAI equation, it suddenly seems a lot more attainable.
Hence: My journey towards FI begins (continues)…
So far, my journey has brought me to the point, where I’ve realized what I really love doing: Create & Inspire
– Now I just need to figure out #1 and #2, and then I’m golden! 😛
Don’t break the chain.
After reading this, I realized how blessed I am to have achieved IKIGAI. I have a successful pain psychology practice which I love so much, making it difficult to walk away due to FIRE. It is fulfilling, helps other, and is financially and personally rewarding. This confirms my plan to transition further into coaching, which meets the 4 traits, but allows me to do it from anywhere in the world. Excellent Post!
Hi Kathryn, I’m glad you liked it. And I think that it’s great that you have found your IKIGAI. To me that’s really what FIRE is about, and why I’m looking to become FI; so I Can be “free” to find my IKIGAI 🙂
Lovely post, Nick.
It seems like we’re going through similar feelings right now. You’re focusing on what you can change externally, whilst I’m looking at the internal aspects of happiness/fulfilment.
As I’m plowing as much as I can into saving for FI, I feel that my external circumstances can’t change much for the foreseeable future (as my dreams seem counter-intuitive for earning/saving a lot), so I’m focusing on internal wellbeing.
But, I imagine, as the FI number comes closer, the external aspect will take president. You need something fulfiling to retire to, right?
I’m looking forward to seeing where your journey will take you 🙂
Hi TSN!
I’m glad we’ve found a common ground (since we don’t agree at all on how to best invest our savings 😛 ).
It’s interesting that you interpret it like that; that I’m looking externally, whilst you yourself is looking internally. That’s definitely not how I perceive it. I’m fully aware that happiness/fulfillment comes from the inside (much like beauty? 😛 ), but it would seem that my internal feelings are highly influenced by external factors 🙂
I liked your story about “clearing your head” during a hike – I can relate to that! Unfortunately I have a kid and a “disabled” wife (she’s got a bad back) so 6-hour hikes are not in my future. I have been playing with the idea of mountain biking though! But it seems to come with a shitload of requirements: Like the right gear and a lot of equipment cleaning afterwards 😛 So I haven’t started on that journey yet! HAHA!
I’ve recently started meditating (lightly), and that gives me a little bit of “grounding”, so I think I’m going to continue to explore that.
A while ago I assisted to an “improving relationships course” (that means external and internal) taught be a monk. 50% of the course was done thorough meditation but as an overall it was so helpful to me. That was the time when I decided that I would start the blog and donate 100% of its income to a charity. I would continue the meditating experience if I were you, it is very powerful when “mastering” it.