Work-life balance unknown

The author of this little booklet on the subject of ikigai, which is well worth reading, believes that it makes no difference whether you find happiness at work or in your free time. The only important thing is that you find it.

You probably know someone you could give this book to. It is now also available in a German translation.

We found neuroscientist Kenichirõ Mogi ‘s approach convincing. He summarizes his five suggestions at the beginning of the book:

1 Start small | Starting small

2 Losing yourself in it | Releasing yourself

3 Harmony and sustainability | Harmony and sustainabilty

4 The joy of little things | The joy of little things

5 In the here and now | Being in the here and now

An insight into the Japanese way of thinking

The author highlights these five principles using many examples from Japan. He describes a Sushi master whose outwardly simple but Michelin-starred restaurant(Sukiyabashi Jirio) was chosen to kick off a state visit by then US President Barack Obama.

The owner of this now famous restaurant started out small and, after training as a sushi master for several years, has continued to perfect the sushi combinations, rice and sauces over the decades. To this day, he does not try to create new, more complex sushi dishes, but rather to perfect the existing ones.

The then Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wanted to welcome his guest from the USA with a small dinner on the eve of the official state banquet the following day. There would have been plenty of excellent restaurants to choose from in Tokyo. The choice of this restaurant was a sign of what Japan is proud of.

Barack Obama raved so much about his visit there that it is still difficult to get a reservation at the small restaurant with 10 seats. The documentary“Jiro and the best sushi in the world” gives a good insight into the now 90-year-old sushi master’s lifelong pursuit of perfection.

Children don’t know any different

Children lose themselves in the activities they enjoy. Time plays no role. They don’t think back or plan ahead, they are in the here and now. As adults, we usually find this difficult, especially when we are busy with things that we actually rather dislike.

As soon as we engage in activities in which we are absorbed, time no longer plays a role. The author Kenichirõ Mogi emphasizes that ikigai is by no means limited to leisure activities. It can be any kind of activity.

The status of the activity or the complexity of the activity is also meaningless. Perfect Days, the film by Wim Wenders starring the famous Kõji Yakusho as a toilet cleaner in Tokyo, is the best example of someone taking their job seriously and doing it with joy. Day after day. We had already warmly recommended this Oscar-nominated film in an earlier article.

Perfect Days, Wim Wenders, 2023 © Alamy Stock Photo

The joy of the little things

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Perseverance made easier

This article, like many others, was written during a long journey on an ICE train. The view through the window is of a late summer landscape in the sunshine, the cappuccino is reserved at your seat on request and, unlike in Ukraine, no air raid sirens are to be expected. However, if you look at the faces of the passengers, you don’t see much joy, positivity or even a smile on their faces.

There is no joy in the little things on this Sunday and we doubt that our fellow travelers will reflect in the evening on the many little things that could have brought them joy today.

The prerequisite

Perhaps this is due to the important premise that the author emphasizes again towards the end of his book: the happiness of ikigai can only be found by accepting yourself as a person and then finding out what makes you jump out of bed in the morning with a happy mind.

Few set out to find out who they really are and hope to find happiness by fulfilling the demands that others place on them.

This is precisely the crucial difference to the desire for applause, recognition, clicks and publicity. As long as our happiness seems to depend on the appreciation of others or on short-term success, it will be fleeting or unrealizable.

The desire for happiness is universal

The small volume Ikigai has become an international bestseller, although it quotes almost exclusively Japanese examples and the book is admittedly somewhat easier to understand if you are sensitive to Japanese aesthetics and the Japanese way of life. After all, not everyone may understand that you can dedicate your life to making a particular tea bowl.

Cover picture © GloriousMe 2024

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