How to Ikigai | Tim Tamashiro | TEDxYYC

Summary

The speaker introduces 'iki guy,' a Japanese concept representing one's life's purpose, akin to a treasure map guiding individuals to discover and share their unique qualities with the world. He shares his personal journey of self-discovery, from quitting a stable job to pursuing various exciting endeavors, ultimately finding his iki guy in delighting others. He encourages the audience to explore their iki guy through part-time projects or side hustles, emphasizing the importance of aligning one's passion with the world's needs and being rewarded for it, suggesting a path to a meaningful and joyful life.

Takeaways

• 😊 The word 'Ikigai' is pronounced 'iki-guy,' and it means 'life's purpose.'
• 🌟 Ikigai is like a treasure map that helps you find and share wonderful things about yourself with the world.
• 💼 The speaker distinguishes between a job (regular employment for money) and work (something done to achieve a meaningful result).
• 🌍 Ikigai has four directions: do what you love, do what you're good at, do what the world needs, and do what you can be rewarded for.
• 🥋 The speaker compares Ikigai to karate, suggesting you can earn 'belts' or degrees in Ikigai as you progress.
• 🎶 The speaker's personal Ikigai is to delight, which they express in various activities like music, travel, and helping others.
• ⌛ Ikigai can start part-time by focusing on what you love and are good at during your free time, potentially growing into a full-time pursuit.
• 💡 A side hustle can help turn part-time Ikigai into a full-time endeavor, while a side helpful focuses on activities that broaden your heart and happiness.
• 🧘 According to a course at Yale University, real happiness comes from kindness, meditation, time affluence, and spending time with friends and family.
• 🏆 Ikigai is an action verb, and it can be something you enjoy every day, eventually leading to a meaningful life.

Q & A

What is the correct pronunciation of 'iki guy'?

The correct pronunciation of 'iki guy' is with a smiling expression, lifting the cheeks as if smiling, and it sounds like 'ee-kee guy'.

What does the speaker suggest 'iki guy' represents?

The speaker suggests that 'iki guy' represents a treasure map that can guide one to discover wonderful things about oneself to share with the world.

Why did the speaker quit his job at CBC Radio 2?

The speaker quit his job at CBC Radio 2 to focus on his work, which is something he does to achieve a result or purpose, rather than just for regular employment.

What is the difference between a 'job' and 'work' as described by the speaker?

A 'job' is described as a regular form of employment for monetary compensation, while 'work' is something done to achieve a result, such as a product or a more meaningful purpose.

What significant experiences did the speaker have in the past year?

The speaker traveled to Oregon to see a full eclipse, went on an icebreaker across the Northwest Passage, visited Canada's north coast, helped build houses in the Dominican Republic, filmed a documentary, and took a family trip to Okinawa, Japan.

Why is Okinawa special to the speaker?

Okinawa is special to the speaker because it is where the speaker's grandparents were born, and it is also the origin of 'iki guy', a concept that resonates with the speaker.

What is the meaning of 'karate' in Japanese?

In Japanese, 'karate' is a combination of two words: 'kara' meaning 'empty' and 'te' meaning 'hand', which literally translates to 'empty hand'.

What does 'iki guy' stand for in terms of life's purpose?

'Iki guy' stands for 'life's purpose', with 'iki' meaning 'life' and 'guy' being a representation of 'purpose'.

What is the speaker's iki guy according to the script?

The speaker's iki guy is to 'delight', which is the purpose he aims to fulfill in his interactions and work.

How does the speaker suggest one can start discovering their iki guy?

The speaker suggests starting part-time, focusing on what one loves and is good at, and considering side hustles or side helpful activities to explore one's iki guy.

What is the formula for iki guy as presented by the speaker?

The formula for iki guy is time affluence plus your gifts plus rewards in return, which can be practiced repeatedly to enrich one's life.

What is the significance of earning 'belts' in the context of iki guy?

Earning 'belts' in the context of iki guy signifies progress and mastery in understanding and living one's life's purpose, similar to the ranks in martial arts like karate.

Outlines

00:00

🌟 Embracing the 'Ikki Guy' Philosophy

The speaker introduces the concept of 'Ikki Guy', a term derived from Okinawa, Japan, which translates to 'life's purpose'. They emphasize the importance of finding one's purpose and sharing it with the world. The speaker shares personal experiences, including quitting a job to focus on meaningful work, traveling, and creating various projects. They highlight the significance of Okinawa, where their grandparents were born, and the influence of 'Ikki Guy' in their life. The speaker also connects the idea to the origin of karate, another Okinawan concept, emphasizing the resilience and adaptability of the Okinawan people.

05:02

🎓 Discovering Your Life's Purpose Through 'Ikki Guy'

The speaker delves deeper into the 'Ikki Guy' philosophy, explaining it as a guide to finding one's life purpose. They break down the concept into four directions: doing what you love, doing what you're good at, doing what the world needs, and doing what you can be rewarded for. The speaker shares their personal journey of discovering their 'Ikki Guy', which they define as 'to delight'. They encourage the audience to start part-time, exploring their passions and talents, and suggests that one can earn 'belts' in 'Ikki Guy', similar to martial arts. The speaker also discusses the importance of time affluence and the impact of kindness and meditation on happiness.

10:03

💪 Pursuing a Meaningful Life with 'Ikki Guy'

The speaker concludes by emphasizing the action-oriented nature of 'Ikki Guy', describing it as a verb that involves serving, creating, delighting, nourishing, providing, teaching, healing, and connecting. They highlight the importance of starting small and gradually building up to a full-time pursuit of one's life purpose. The speaker also introduces the concept of earning 'belts' in 'Ikki Guy', starting with a yellow belt and working towards a black belt. They encourage the audience to embrace the 'Ikki Guy' philosophy, promising a richer and more meaningful life through the pursuit of one's purpose.

Keywords

💡Iki Guy

Iki Guy is a term derived from Okinawa, Japan, and it means 'life's purpose'. It is central to the video's theme as it represents the concept of finding and pursuing one's passion and purpose in life. The speaker uses the term to illustrate his journey of self-discovery and the idea of a 'treasure map' that guides individuals towards personal fulfillment.

💡Pronunciation

Pronunciation is the way in which a word or language is articulated when spoken. In the context of the video, the speaker emphasizes the correct pronunciation of 'Iki Guy' as 'iki guy', not 'Ikki Guy', and uses the example of 'lime green four-speed' to humorously illustrate the importance of getting pronunciation right.

💡Treasure Map

A treasure map is traditionally a chart or guide that leads to buried treasure. In the video, the term is metaphorically used to describe the concept of 'Iki Guy' as a guide that helps individuals find their life's purpose and the 'wonderful things' about themselves that they can share with the world.

💡Work

In the video, 'work' is differentiated from a 'job'. Work is defined as something one does to achieve a result, such as creating a product or fulfilling a purpose. The speaker's focus on work over a traditional job is a key part of his narrative and the exploration of 'Iki Guy'.

💡Job

A job is described as regular employment where one is paid to perform certain tasks. The speaker contrasts a job with work, indicating that while he enjoyed his job as a radio host, he ultimately chose to pursue his work to find his 'Iki Guy'.

💡Passion

Passion is a strong emotional connection to a pursuit or interest. The video emphasizes finding and doing what one is passionate about as a part of discovering one's 'Iki Guy'. The speaker's own passions, such as music and travel, are highlighted as examples.

💡Purpose

Purpose refers to the reason for which something is done or created, or for which something exists. In the context of 'Iki Guy', purpose is one of the four directions on the 'treasure map' and is integral to the concept of finding one's life's work.

💡Side Hustle

A side hustle is a part-time job or venture that one engages in alongside their primary employment. The speaker suggests starting a side hustle as a way to explore one's 'Iki Guy' part-time before potentially transitioning to a full-time pursuit of one's passion.

💡Karate

Karate is a martial art that originated in Okinawa, Japan. The video uses the history of karate as an example of another concept from Okinawa that spread worldwide, drawing a parallel to the potential global impact of 'Iki Guy'.

💡Yellow Belt

In the video, the 'yellow belt' is a metaphorical achievement that signifies the beginning of one's journey in discovering their 'Iki Guy'. The speaker humorously awards 'yellow belts' to audience members who demonstrate an understanding of the concept.

💡Delight

Delight is a feeling of great pleasure or satisfaction. The speaker identifies 'delight' as his personal 'Iki Guy', meaning that his life's purpose is to bring joy to others and to find joy in his interactions and work.

💡Part-Time

Part-time refers to employment or work that is less than full-time. The video encourages starting the pursuit of 'Iki Guy' on a part-time basis, allowing individuals to explore their interests and passions without fully committing until they are sure of their path.

💡Time Affluence

Time affluence is the concept of having enough free time to engage in activities that are personally meaningful. The speaker mentions time affluence as one of the components of 'Iki Guy', suggesting that having the time to do what one loves is a key to a fulfilling life.

Highlights

Introduction of the concept of 'ikigai' - a Japanese word for finding one's purpose and passion.

Emphasizing the importance of enthusiasm and engagement in the audience.

The speaker quit his job at CBC Radio 2 to focus on his ikigai journey.

Differentiating between a 'job' as regular employment and 'work' as pursuing a meaningful result.

The speaker's personal experiences traveling and exploring his passions as part of finding his ikigai.

Connection between the speaker's family roots and the concept of ikigai originating from Okinawa, Japan.

Drawing a parallel between the spread of karate from Okinawa and the potential global impact of ikigai.

Defining ikigai as 'life's purpose' and breaking it down into four directions: love, skill, need, and reward.

The idea of earning 'belts' in ikigai, similar to martial arts, to represent progress.

The speaker's personal ikigai is to 'delight' others through various interactions and performances.

Encouraging the audience to start exploring their ikigai part-time and gradually.

Mention of the high percentage of Millennials with side hustles as a way to pursue ikigai.

The concept of 'side helpful' as an alternative to side hustles for those motivated by broader purposes.

Laurie Santos' course on the science of well-being and its relevance to finding ikigai.

Ikigai as an action word, with verbs like serve, create, delight, nourish, and connect.

The formula for ikigai: time affluence + personal gifts + rewards in return.

The idea that a meaningful life is not a destination but an ongoing journey of joy and fulfillment.

Invitation to the audience to embark on their own ikigai journey with the provided map as guidance.

Transcripts

[Music]

everybody how enthusiastic are we today

[Music]

yeah no indifference in this crowd

that's for sure that's what I like to

see today I want to tell you about an

amazing word and it's that word right

there that word first thing you have to

learn is how to pronounce it it's

pronounced iki guy you lift your cheeks

like you're smiling it's iki guys say it

with me

iki guy you got it that's right it's not

pronounced iki guy if I was wearing a

lime green four-speed oh that would be

an achy guy

this is iki guy and the most wonderful

thing about this word is that first off

it's a good-looking word but secondly

this word is really like a treasure map

and this treasure map can help you find

your way to finding wonderful things

about yourself that you can share with

the world and the world will say thank

you for it

so let me tell you all about it but

first they have to warn you it takes

work

now I had a job once upon a time about

this time last year had a radio host job

at CBC Radio 2 was wonderful I enjoyed

it thoroughly it was so good however I

quit my job I quit my job so I could

focus on my work instead so let's just

clarify that a job in this context is

something that you do as a regular form

of employment it's what you get you know

money to do so you can pay for your

house and for your food and things like

that work on the other hand work is

something that you do in order to

achieve a result something like a

product or maybe even something like a

purpose like maybe like a more

meaningful you sounds good doesn't that

so this last year my work focused on

anything that I could do

that was exciting that was interesting

to me I went on a trip to Oregon and I

saw the full Eclipse with my full eyes I

also went on a icebreaker and I traveled

across the Northwest Passage I went to

Canada's north coast I also traveled

with my family and some dear friends we

went to Dominican Republic we helped

build houses for people and I filmed a

documentary and I also did all sorts of

little projects as well and I had a

podcast for a while I did I wrote a play

that was a musical I also did a Facebook

live talk but probably more precious

than anything is that I finally got to

go on a family trip to Okinawa Japan now

Okinawa is very precious to me because

it's a place where my grandparents were

born it's also the place where a key guy

comes from I've always felt something

urging me to get out and to do special

things in my life and I think it was a

key guy that did it

Okinawa by the way is a place that the

most 100 year olds in the world live per

capita 100 year olds are revered and

respected but Okinawa was very very

special to me because of the connections

to my family and a key guy and I was

thinking boy why couldn't this whole

Ikki guy thing spread around the world

well it is possible and there is another

idea that came from Okinawa that you've

heard of its karate karate kid'

Danielsson

karate is actually two words in Japanese

Cara which means empty and Tay which

means hand so it literally translates to

empty hand now in 1609 the Japanese

forces invaded Okinawa it was called

real cool islands back then Oh

basically they won the battle and they

said to the Okinawan okay you can't have

weapons anymore

give us your weapons and the Okinawan

said okay here you go

our hands will be our weapons they had

already invented karate they didn't call

it karate yet but they knew that they

had a special form of self-defense then

in the Second World War there was

another terrible battle that happened in

Okinawa and it was the American forces

this time fighting the Japanese forces

history shows that the American forces

won the Battle of Okinawa and they have

been stationed there ever since and

since then the American soldiers have

witnessed karate for the first time and

they said hey this is pretty cool I want

to learn karate too so they learned it

and eventually they will take it back to

the United States and it started to

spread and spread and spread now

everybody knows about karate right

daniel-san that other concept becomes

from Okinawa is iki guy iki guy is two

words as well iki means life guy purpose

iki guy is life's purpose isn't that a

beautiful word it's a lovely word thank

you for your indifference

this is what it means this is the

treasure map a key guy has four

directions do what you love do what

you're good at

do what the world needs and do what you

can be rewarded for it seems simple but

it's difficult now I would estimate that

a key guy similar to karate in that you

can earn degrees or belts in it as well

you have to start someplace and I think

that I got my yellow belt when I was 20

years old sexy time

I was 20 years old and I was living at

my parents house and I remember laying

in bed one day thinking to myself what

am I gonna do for the rest of my life

that would be interesting and fun I

didn't want to just go get a job I

wanted to focus on my work and like a

bolt of lightning it hit me and I sat up

in bed and I said I am going to go to

music school so that's what I did I went

to music school for two years and then

from that moment on I focused on nothing

but music aspects in my life

I've done all sorts of amazing things in

my life I work for a record company

called MCA records I also made six jazz

albums I've performed all over the

country I had that 10 year career at CBC

Radio - six nights a week writing 70

stories every week it was such an

amazing career but then they came to

realize something that I enjoyed myself

but I didn't really know why I was doing

it I didn't I knew what I wanted to do

or what I love to do and what I was good

at but they didn't understand why I was

doing it and why the world needed that

so I spent this last year figuring out

what my ikki guy is and I boil it down

into a two-word phrase my ikki guy is to

delight to delight that's what I go out

for every day

the world where that I'm talking with a

clerk at the grocery store or if I'm

singing a song on stage or if I'm on the

radio or if I'm giving a TED talk to you

wildly attractive people right now my

iki guy is two delight I throw it out

into the world and I get it back in

return it's the full cycle now you're

probably wondering to yourself well

that's great Tim well now we know what

Eureka guy is what is my iki guy let me

give you some directions on how you

might be able to start figuring that out

I suggest the start part-time part-time

icky guy is within reach right it is

very within reach and I'll tell you

something when you look at there and you

see on the screen that there are two

sections of the day where you don't

really do anything that adds up to eight

hours you can focus your work on the

five to nine hours of the day okay start

part time figure out what you love to do

and what you're good at

spend time on that for as long as you

like and there's a couple of ways you

can do that you can start a side hustle

or you can do a side helpful a side

hustle by the way there's a lot of

Millennials that have side hustles up to

fifty percent of Millennials have side

hustles according to studies 50 percent

and why do they have those side hustles

it's because it gives them the

opportunity to be able to do what

they're good at and do what they love

and it opens up the opportunity to be

able to transfer that part-time Niki guy

into maybe full-time a key guy down the

road and it doesn't hurt that you can

make a little bit of money off it either

right

but what if money isn't necessarily

behind you're a key guy maybe you want

to just broaden your heart well you can

do a side helpful instead at Yale

University professor Laurie Santos

teaches a course that is called the

science of well-being and this course

she takes time to be able to explain

that we are really really bad at

figuring out what it is that we are

going to make us happy so things like

and job and your good looks and your big

house they really have no impact on your

base level of happiness

what does have an impact are things like

kindness and meditation time affluence

in other words doing with your time what

you want to do with your time and

spending time with friends and family a

key guy is an action it's a verb to

serve to create to delight to nourish to

provide to teach to heal to connect to

build is there any verb on that list

that resonates with somebody in the

crowd nod your head if there is yes yeah

there's some nodding happening down here

yes so we put up your hand if you see

something up there that's accept I have

some yellow belt this is good go over

your words your hand there we go here's

a yellow belt for you we've got a yellow

belt in the front row over there and

there's got to be somebody over there

there's a yellow belt right there you

have earned your yellow belt and a key

guy you know what you're good at you

know what you love to do looks good on

you a key guy is as reliable as a

mathematical equation a key guy equals

time affluence plus your gifts plus

rewards in return and you can do it over

and over and over again and you're going

to be so much richer because of it your

meaningful life is not a destination you

have to get to your meaningful life is

something you can enjoy right now and

anytime you want to okay a little bit of

joy every day is going to add up to a

lifetime of joy isn't it

and when you finally get the chance to

spend time getting to know what you do

or what you love and what you're good at

you're a key guy will start to come into

light and eventually over time you will

earn your black belt your meaningful

life is going to be a lot of work

but I think you really already know this

that you are worth the work

and now you have the guy map to show you

how so I invite you to try iki guy thank

you

[Applause]

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