Why do you get out of bed in the morning? Is there something or someone that motivates you to get up and get going?
Not long ago I heard a talk by Dan Buettner, author of Blue Zones. He and other researchers studied multiple groups of people around the world who were known for their high levels of longevity and health. One of these groups were the people of Okinawa, Japan.
One intriguing thing about this group from Okinawa was that the idea of “retirement” is a foreign concept to them — they don’t even have a word for “retirement” in their language. Their adult life is not separated into a “work career” followed by “retirement.” Rather, they focus on something they call “ikigai” — a word that roughly means, the reason for which you wake up every morning.
In studying the group, the researchers found that this sense of purpose seemed to be a factor that contributed to their extreme longevity. Everyone had a personal reason for getting up and contributing throughout their lives.
In their work, the goal wasn’t simply to grind out another day, waiting for the weekend to arrive. Or to work a few more years, and finally reach retirement. Instead, the focus was on identifying their reason for being — their purpose. And it was finding this that brought fulfillment and satisfaction to their lives.
The concept was something they all understood and were familiar with, being able to readily answer what their ikigai was when asked. It was highly personal, differing from person to person, and season to season. For a martial arts instructor, his purpose was to help younger students learn the craft. For another woman, it was to spend time with her great great grandchildren. Everyone was different, but they all were clear about what was most important to them — why they got up in the morning.
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Having a sense of purpose, whether it’s for our entire life, or for the specific project or task we’re working on, is extremely helpful. It can provide the motivation and inspiration necessary to keep going, even in the midst of difficult times.
It can also provide clarity for decision making along the way. When faced with multiple options, having a clear sense of purpose can help us identify which option is actually in line with what matters most to us, and which ones are distractions.
And since having a sense of purpose helps us to move forward, and also provides clarity along the way, it inevitably feeds the sense of fulfillment and satisfaction that we experience as we find ourselves living in alignment with this purpose.
But it all starts with identifying our purpose. Why do we get up in the morning? What, or who, have we chosen to live for?
It’s not an easy question, and may take some time of reflection to find a satisfactory answer. But being clear on the purpose that lies behind whatever we do will go a long way to experiencing the fulfillment that comes from intentionally living in that direction.