Art Healing and Ikigai
What is Ikigai?
(pronounced Icky-guy) 🤡
From Wikipedia:
Ikigai is a Japanese concept that means "a reason for being." The word "ikigai" is usually used to indicate the source of value in one's life or the things that make one's life worthwhile. The word translated to English roughly means "thing that you live for" or "the reason for which you wake up in the morning."
Too many of us have been wandering through life thus far clueless as to what we want out of it. We listened to parents and society and were most likely told to follow the money rather than follow our passion. We have been so busy listening to others that we have blocked our own innate sensors.
Doing this has dampened our intuition and we ended up putting ourselves in situations that have hurt us from lack of direction.
For today’s exercise I want us to work on discovering what brings us joy. It will take us going all the way back to childhood and remembering the things that lit us up. When we discover what brings us joy it is easier to have something to hold on to during our tough moments instead of reaching for our old methods of coping.
We will be answering the questions:
What do I love?
What am I good at?
What can I make money doing?
What will help the world? (because at the end of the day this is what each of us were put on this planet for.)
The Breakdown:
These 4 questions hold the key to your happiness. (A bold statement but very true).
When I was beginning my art healing journey I didn’t know the term ikigai - I just knew that I needed to make radical changes in my life. I felt that I had lost myself to the role of wife and mother in a way that was so unrealistic - the 1950’s housewife...even though at the time I was the primary breadwinner for the family. I was stretched thin and unhappy. I tried to remember the last thing that brought me true joy - and it was sitting on the floor coloring with my sister in the 90’s. 🤯(cue sad violin music)
By using art (painting, writing, and doodling) as a tool for radical self-reflection, I was able to slowly bring awareness to small things I enjoy doing and eventually turn those things into positive habits.
(This is also the way I was able to finally kick my drinking habit)
Thankfully, this ikigai map makes it easier to pinpoint the right questions to ask yourself right from the get go.
I created a few editable worksheets to help you with this process.
Ok, let's begin...
What Do I Love?
This section is about exploring what you love doing, what brings you joy.
When we choose a field of study and a job, we go for the known, the accepted - and sometimes, the convenient. We do it to please someone else (usually our parents). But that makes us overlook what we truly love doing in life.
What did you love doing or thinking about when you were a child?
What activities do you do in your spare time that make you happy?
What Am I Good At?
This bit of the map covers what you have learned to do thanks to your training or experience. Your skills are what you CAN do whereas your strengths are what you ENJOY doing. They might be the same, they might be different.
Below I give examples of skills (personal, transferable, and knowledge-based). Can you come up with 3 skills and 3 strengths that you possess?
Some examples of skills include:
Personal Skills (i.e. Personality Traits):
Ambitious
Logical
Dedicated
Passionate
Responsible
Transferable Skills (developed through past training or innate):
Great at communication
Time management
Analytical
Problem Solving
Well Organized
Knowledge Based (gained through past work/school experiences):
Photography
Engineering
Computer Science
Carpentry
Nursing
Some examples of strengths include (to recap a strength is something you enjoy doing):
Leadership
Creativity/Creating Ideas
Teaching/coaching
Listening
Working with your hands
What are your skills and strengths?
What do people ask you help for?
What Can I Make Money Doing?
This part of the Ikigai map is about securing an income - yes, we need one of these. Think broadly and don’t limit your possibilities when answering these questions. This is your chance to dream that crazy dream. Just a few years ago AirBnb and Uber were just someone’s dream. Play your cards right and one of these ideas could change your future!
Some examples:
Cooking
Painting
Doing hair
Landscaping
Pet-sitting
What product or service could you sell?
What job could you do?
What Will Help The World?
This aspect of Ikigai is quite an important one. It makes you think about the impact you want to have on your community. Tara Mohr gives a great list for recognizing your calling.
Some crucial things to note about your calling from Tara:
You might feel huge resistance.
You might not - yet - have what you need to complete it.
You might not - yet - be the person you need to be in order to complete it.
BUT, that doesn’t mean it’s not yours to pursue.
So go ahead - thinking about what your calling is and how it can be used to help society.
What / who inspires you?
What makes you angry, frustrated?
Your Turn!
Grab a pen or your digital editable copy of my file here and let it out, girlfriend.
There is no rush, momma! Take each section at a time, and dive deep into your thoughts. You might find some are easier to answer than others. I know for me I was coming back to my worksheet for days after...normally during the quiet time of washing dishes! And guess what...I still unearth new things that I love with each day of healing.
Take your time and talk it through with supportive friends and family members to brainstorm ideas. Sometimes having the perspectives of others can be helpful but be wary of criticism.
😕Still feeling a bit confused? I’m making a video as a visual aid and share two examples for added clarification. It’ll be emailed to you as soon as it’s wrapped up, so join the mailing list!
Note: I’m adding an extra email into this series because I still want to cover the 5 Momma Healer pillars (at least in brevity) before this mini-series wraps up.
Chat soon, same time, same place MAH! <<Momma Art Healer>>
Kya