Ikigai is an Okinawan philosophy on how to live a passionate and purposeful life. Loosely translated it means a reason for being. The Okinawans are among the proud members of the world-famous “ blue zones.” These places have the most amount of centenarians per capita, in the world. Ikigai is their way of perfecting what it is to live a long and meaningful life. So let’s take a deep dive into this fascinating philosophy to enrich our own lives.
Are you stuck in a job, relationship, or life situation that you hate? Do you find yourself always daydreaming of something or someone that you would rather have instead? Maybe you’ve made some feeble attempts at finding something better but the cards seemed stacked against you. It seems that no matter how hard you try, you can’t find the right person, dream job, or improve your environment that you find yourself stuck in for so long. It seems like the universe is against you and you’re doomed to settling for what you have forever. Here’s a crazy thought. Maybe you need to change and be the best version of yourself and therefore attract the best things to you naturally.
Sleep is one of the most overlooked factors for optimal health. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need at least 8 hours of rest to achieve this goal. The largest study of over 1.1 million people showed that it’s quality, not quantity, that matters most. The researchers found that the participants who slept an average of 6.5 hours a night were able to function at a higher level than those who slept for 8 hours or more. These are the ways you can optimize your sleep.
We are all energy beings. The choices we make each day either give us energy or steal it away. We only have a finite amount of energy before it runs out and we cannot function properly. Then our productivity goes out the window and we’re left just spinning our wheels. We can find ourselves being busy but not very efficient, or getting exhausted and needing more downtime to recuperate. The more you are aware of this fact, the more you can take measures to build energy throughout the day and avoid energy vampires
