An alternative to the flawed ikigai diagram everyone keeps reposting…

I’m not going to rant about how the Japanese wisdom of ikigai has been misinterpreted and mispackaged by Western minds on the internet for two reasons:

1. I was not raised in Japan with a deep, intrinsic, unspoken conceptual awareness of ikigai, so I cannot speak on it with any authority.
2. This has already been well documented by those far wiser and more qualified than me (see SOME LIGHT READING below).

What I will offer is an alternative visualization that I crafted as a touchstone for my (most recent) UX team, as part of my broader professional development coaching rubric.

You’re welcome to use this in its current form wherever you like, just please include the attribution.

This is an aggregate of over a dozen other “what’s my purpose” frameworks that I researched in 2020. It still gets the point across, without culturally appropriating the ikigai term and concept.

WHY USE THE TERM “PURPOSE”?

Well, aside from the fact that, as a term, its scope of definition is far less ambiguous and more universally agreed upon than ikigai, it’s also a more broadly understood concept (and not just in English).

PURPOSE (n.)
/ˈpərpəs/

1. the reason for which something exists or is done, made, used, etc. an intended or desired result; end; aim; goal.
2…