Press the Reset Button on Your Business Vision

It’s A-Okay to press the reset button on your business vision!

I’ve turned my back on corporate life 7 years ago, on Friday the 13th March 2015.  When I first started I didn’t really know what I wanted or even what I needed and who I wanted to work with. It was all a haze and uncertainty of what was to come.

However, I couldn’t be in a place where my skills and expertise weren’t appreciated. So, the only solution to my problem was to fire my boss and start my long life ambition of starting my own business.

I can confidently say that my VISION at the time was 100% to “Become my own Boss” but in what exactly it has been a journey, that I had to navigate and endure. This will happen to you too! It’s inevitable because once you decide that you can’t take the mundane life anymore then you have to dig deep into the reason why you took that decision. And most importantly what is your “reason for being”.

The Japanese IKIGAI Framework is a powerful tool to help you find your purpose which means “reason for being” in Japanese.

The IKIGAI, It’s the perfect balance of skills, knowledge and activities that you love, are good at, can be paid for and the world needs.

So how do you find your Ikigai?

You can start by asking yourself some of these few questions for each area of your life and career:

• Do what you Love:
  • What did you love doing when you were a child?
  • And what exactly are you passionate about doing?
  • What activities fill you with joy and contentment?
• Do what you’re good at:
  • Who do you want to become?
  • What are your skills and strengths?
  • What’s your Super Power?
  • What do people ask you for help?
• Do something you can be paid for:
  • What is it that you’re good at?
  • What would bring you joy as you start your day?
  • What product or service could you sell?
  • What could you teach others?
  • What is something that you know how to do so well that others want to know how?
• Do something the world needs – Contribution:
  • Who inspires you?
  • What makes you frustrated and irritated?

What I have noticed in all these years doing what I do, is that you’ve got to get really clear on your inner world and align it with your external world.

For me, the IKIGAI framework is the alignment of all four areas that I’ve mentioned previously. It’s not just to find out what you love and what you’re good at and neglect the other two. You need to dive deeply into all 4 areas and bring them together. When I did this exercise I had breakthroughs and insights that have been buried deep down inside of me for years.

You see, we need to find the right balance between all of them in order to answer the deepest question: “What is the meaning of my life? What is my purpose in life?”.

I’ve woke up one day and felt like something was missing. Maybe you can also resonate with this. The moment I read “Ikigai – The Japanese Secret to a long and happy life“, it was like a lightbulb had appeared in my mind. Everything started to make sense and be clearer. Then I set out to draw my own and answer all of those incredible questions.

This exercise is so powerful if you are doubting yourself or want to find out the deep reason why you even exist in this world. There is always a reason why and if you ever felt like “there has got to be more”, and like the Japanese say it “a reason to jump out of bed each morning“.

Now, I’ll challenge you to do this exercise yourself. It really is very empowering and it might reveal something that you’ve been disregarding for years.

Share in the comments your own drawings and breakthroughs. I would love to see them and know what has come up for you with this exercise.