A Quick Guide for Your Career Path in 2023

Are you prepared for 2023? Do you intend to join a college/ University, an internship, graduate school, a new company, a new job, a business, move abroad, or even improve your status quo? What are some thoughts that have crossed your mind?

We have jotted down our goals and are excited to jump to the new year. We have a few days to close the 2023 chapter and evaluate ourselves. If you are not proud of your achievements, push yourself a little. The most important thing is that every day we wake up, we have another chance to be better than yesterday. 

This year may have been fulfilling to you and unrewarding to some others. Regardless, to human beings, change is inevitable.
How prepared are you for the 2023 goals you have listed or in your mind? I joined a course on finding life purpose (Ikigai), and it would be great if I shared with you some of the peculiar lessons I learned.
 While the four tips discussed below are essential, it's worth noting that other factors that may influence your career success. 

You may have come across the word Ikigai or have been lucky enough to read the various IKIGAI books from multiple authors. If not, that's fine; you will learn a lot from this article.

What is Ikigai?

Different authors have different understandings of Ikigai, and so do the definitions. However, I agree with the unique description by Kemp, 2022 who argues that Ikigai is not "finding a life purpose," as many people say. He refers to IKigai as "the mental and spiritual circumstances under which individuals feel that their lives are valuable as they progress towards their goals. " 

In simpler terms, Ikigai is a daily process of finding your inner potential as you actively pursue what you enjoy, offering service to your family, work, or community through your life roles. Ikigai originated in Okinawa, Japan (home to the longest-living human beings), where many often practice Ikigai.

Having mentioned that, let us try to understand Ikigai and open our minds to do a simple exercise at the end.
The four Ikigai guides

1. What do you love or enjoy doing?

Passion is what you love and enjoy doing. I grew up when hobbies and interests were hard to identify; however, that has changed as many people can quickly identify themselves with a particularly unique talent. To make the best use of your hobbies, start by listing them. Passion refers to pursuits you love doing for yourself and others without being pushed and willing to do the same thing for an extended period. For example, I like traveling, writing, graphic design, meeting new people, and learning new experiences. Nevertheless, we see some people turn talent into income owing to technological advancement. While that's perfectly fine, Ikigai calls for much more.

2. What are you good at doing?

Besides passion, you need to identify what you are good at; we are all uniquely abled. What may come easy for you may not be easy for someone else. For instance, I am good at research, data collection, and analysis. 

You are probably good at drawing, poetry, storytelling, crafting, etc. Some people may misinterpret work or job with what they are good at simply because they have been doing it for a long time. To bring the best from your work, it should entertain you, provide a purpose, and make you feel fulfilled. 

The ideal question is, do you feel motivated to wake up and do the same work every day? If not, probably, it's not it.

3. What will bring you an income?

Refers to what you work for to earn a livelihood or income. You don't need to be passionate about the job; at the end of the day, you pocket some money. In essence, what is society willing to pay? For instance, in my case, society rewards data analysts. Many of us fall under this category, primarily beginner-level job hunters who are ready to uptake a paid activity even if it is unfulfilling. Evaluate whether society is willing to pay for your passion or what you are good at doing.

4. What does the world need from you? 

What the world needs to be a better place is also called a mission. Finding what gap you can fill may require observation and some research. Think of what kind of world you would like to live in the future and what type of activity you can do to make it an ideal place. Still using my example, the world needs facts and correct data trends relevant to decision-making even in the future.
Define your job/career path using Ikigai

Practice makes perfect, and this is a good chance to sit down, take a pen and paper, and list as many answers within the four aspects:

• What do you love or enjoy doing?
• What are you good at doing?
• What will bring you an income?
• What does the world need from you?

To make it easier: Use different colors for each section.
If you are still deciding, use my example to give you rough ideas and take your time.
Find common words in each category, underline them, and finally, identify what matches your dream job.

Hurray! You managed to use the Ikigai theory to identify your career goals. Curious to know my Ikigai results? You may have guessed right; my dream job is a researcher.