44 – The social need of ikigai in a neo-liberal capitalist society

What are the little things that motivate you?

We often become too fixated on our significant goals, causing us to overlook the small things in life that help us navigate each day. At times, it's more beneficial to pause for a moment and reflect on the daily motivators that can be a source of our ikigai.

There are many sources of ikigai

Podcast Highlights

• Struggling with life in Japan. At 14:07, Ted shares other examples of people suppression he witnessed in Japan.
• Do all Japanese people have ikigai. At 22:34, Ted shares his thoughts if all Japanese people possess ikigai. 
• The western lens on Japanese culture. At 31:48, Nick and Ted discuss the Western lens on Japanese culture and how it becomes romanticised.
• How to know if it’s ikigai. At 36:37, the two talk about how one can distinguish if it’s ikigai or not.
• Gudetama. At 45:31, Ted talks about gudetama, a popular character with millennials.
• Ted’s ikigai. At 49:57, Ted shares what his ikigai is. 

Ted Bonnah

Struggling with life in Japan

Ted shares that Japanese people have a strong work ethic and that it’s hard for them to quit even though things are tough. In the West, whenever people encounter difficult situations at work, it isn’t hard for them to leave and just quit their jobs. However, that’s not the case with Japanese people; they take pride in their work, and quitting isn’t an option for them even though being faced with stressful situations – it is part of their identity.

Other forms of Japanese social pressure involve people being stuck with dead-end jobs that they can’t afford a decent kind of living, and Japan being home for undiagnosed mental illnesses: some Japanese people walk around and talk to themselves, and others would just ignore it.

Do all Japanese people have ikigai

Some Japanese people find small ikigai. For instance, someone who dreams of becoming a world-class painter ended up doing paintings for a billboard; although he didn’t get to become a renowned artist, he still managed to do the thing he’s passionate about, which is painting. For some people who find a great purpose in their work, that could be their ikigai. However, those who struggle with their work can find hobbies that can be the source of their ikigai.

For the Japanese, ikigai is something that is private – something personal for them; it is a big life-defining goal that they commit their lives to. 

The Western lens on Japanese culture

Regarding the case of some Japanese concepts being romanticised in the Western culture, Ted believes that it is because of people’s curiosity – they want to look for something that they believe doesn’t exist in their culture. For instance, after finishing university, he had the urge to go to Japan because of a Japanese movie he saw. He thinks that Japan has a unique culture.

Years later, when he came back to his hometown, he met a Japanese person doing research for the same reason that she found Newfoundland, Ted’s hometown, as a unique and interesting culture. Hence, Ted thinks that taking a concept from a different country is more like a coping strategy for people to survive the culture that they’re in.

How to know if it’s ikigai

One way to feel ikigai is through creative expressions. However, it does not apply to everyone. Some people who do arts and crafts inherit them from the older generation – it is something that is passed on to them; sometimes they don’t have a choice but to continue with their traditions – that is not something that can be considered as ikigai.

Ikigai is when you have the freedom to express yourself through some form of creativity, like writing or music – doing something that you enjoy and not being forced to do so.

Gudetama

Ted wrote an article about gudetama, a popular character among millennials. Gudetama is a raw egg—a Sanrio character. In the first episode, they show an egg being cracked and put on the rice, however, once cracked the egg doesn’t want to leave its place — being lazy, which Ted thinks is a representation of millennials who don't want to do their job and complain about it.

A lot of young Japanese people aren’t excited about their work, but watching gudetama makes them feel better. It is something that they can relate to and make them laugh about their situations. Although, Ted thinks it is conveying to people how to deal with someone who goes to work with depression – just ignore it and push people to do their job.

Ted’s ikigai

Ted’s ikigai used to be teaching, he’s a student-centred teacher and wants to motivate people. Then he got into researching and writing, which are the current sources of his ikigai. Another thing that impacts his ikigai is his son, who has special needs. He enrolled his son in a Japanese school but he thinks that it isn’t helping. Hence, he decided to join a Facebook group for people with disabled kids, where he shares everything he would do with his son.

That gained attention from other members of the group, and he started getting requests to write a book chapter about it. That gave him the idea to start giving workshops about power harassment to Japanese companies, and how to deal with special education children, which he considers as his ikigai as well.

Conclusion

Some people think that work should be their ikigai because that is what they do most of their lives. However, when things get complicated, it is hard to feel ikigai with your work -- in fact, it is rare to feel ikigai in our work. Sometimes we need to look for other sources that can contribute to our ikigai. That is why it is vital to find these little things – be it the hobbies or relationships that we have – that keep us motivated amidst some difficulties we encounter.