Make It Count

lkigai is a concept that originated in Japan that effectively defines our life’s worth, the reason we get out of bed in the morning. It’s the intersection of four simple precepts:

• Do What You Love.
• Do What You Are Good At.
• Do What The World Needs.
• Do What You Can Be Rewarded For.

While most of us want to work to live, not live to work - the truth is that we spend most of our adult lives working, so it’s truly important to LOVE WHAT YOU DO, TO LIKE WHO YOU DO IT WITH, TO FEEL THAT YOU ARE VALUED, AND TO KNOW THAT YOU’RE MAKING AN IMPACT - whether it involves excelling at your job, helping a teammate, or volunteering your time or resources to give back to your community.

It’s up to each of us to create this CULTURE OF IMPACT - where we embrace our mission and take ownership for our actions and behaviors to effect positive change. Where we take the initiative to recognize problems and work to solve them. Where we strive every day to make a difference, as opposed to complaining that things are not our job or beyond our control. Where we take the time to show gratitude for work well done, to say “Thank you.”

MAKING IT COUNT ALSO MEANS ENSURING YOU’VE GOT BALANCE IN YOUR LIFE - that you’re able to spend time with friends and family to rest, recharge, and reorient - intellectually, physically, and emotionally. Taking vacation is as important as working. Without it, we burn out, depriving us of our career and our colleagues of our contributions. Often, we think that taking our foot off the gas detracts from the mission or from our colleagues. On the contrary, ensuring that you maintain balance in your life is key to attaining your ikigai, that ideal combination of mutually re-enforcing career and personal success.