In the worksheets you'll find more detailed information on the ikigai concept, questions to contemplate and exercises to help you understand and find your own ikigai. These ikigai worksheets feature definitions and frameworks from Japan's research pioneer, Kamiya Mieko and current leading authority, Professor Akihiro Hasegawa.
The ikigai worksheets include
- exercises
- ikigai & ikigai-kan definitions
- The Kamiya Flower
- The Constituent Elements of Ikigai
- the ikigai spectrum exercise
The Ikigai Worksheets
My Ikigai Source Worksheet
The Kamiya Flower Worksheet
The Ikigai Spectrum Worksheet
The Ikigai Venn Diagram
The Venn diagram below and literally thousands of copies of it is what you will find on the internet when you google ‘ikigai’. This is NOT Ikigai. This is not what ikigai means to the Japanese. They do not use this framework, and the Japanese do not contemplate the four questions in the framework when they think of their ikigai. This framework is just one blogger’s interpretation (misinterpretation) of ikigai.
In fact, in his own words:
“In 2014, I wrote a blog post on the subject of Ikigai. In that blog post, I merged two concepts to create something new. Essentially, I merged a Venn diagram on ‘purpose’ with Dan Buettner’s Ikigai concept, in relation to living to be more than 100. The sum total of my effort was that I changed one word on a diagram and shared a ‘new’ meme with the world. “ - Marc Winn
The worksheets do not feature the Western Ikigai Venn diagram. This an appropriation of the concept that I don't recommend that you associate with the ikigai concept. With the Venn diagram is inspiring and helpful on its own, positioning ikigai in the centre of the Venn diagram is a blatant misuse of a word that has important cultural significance. Like it or not, the fact that this misuse has been caused by, and is perpetuated by, Westerners is textbook cultural appropriation. This is not to suggest that I am pointing fingers, but to highlight a Western behaviour that often goes unchecked.
