Find your Ikigai: your personal compass (with a touch of ChatGPT)

3 min read

Date: May 29, 2025

Author: Alexandro Trujillo

Have you ever wondered what your purpose in life is? The Japanese concept of Ikigai can help you find it.

What is Ikigai?

Ikigai is the intersection of four key elements:

• What you love
• What the world needs
• What you can be paid for
• What you’re good at

How to find your Ikigai

1. Reflect on your passions
2. Identify your skills
3. Analyze what the market needs
4. Find the intersection

🎯 Start your search

”Your Ikigai is your reason for being, your purpose in life.”

Start your journey toward your Ikigai today!

How to use this framework

1. Set aside 30–45 min (yes, trust me, they’re worth it)

• Your calendar is full of “urgent things”.
• Block this time like an appointment with yourself: you are your priority!

2. Grab paper and pencil (goodbye distractions)

• Writing by hand makes ideas stick and sparks your creativity.
• Bonus: have a comforting drink and put your phone on silent.

3. Go through each section at your own pace

• This is your personal space.
• Pause and pick it back up whenever you need: one step at a time counts.

4. Be brutally honest

• Your notebook is your confidant, no judgment.
• Write down what you really think, no filters.

5. Review, underline and connect

• Highlight what excites you most or keeps coming up.
• Spot patterns and points where things cross.

Ikigai dimensions

1️⃣ Passion

What do you love even when nobody pays you?

• Write down 5 activities or topics that light you up.
• Reflect: when do you lose track of time?

2️⃣ Talent

Where are you a results machine?

• List your strongest skills, technical and personal.
• Think about the compliments you get without expecting them.

3️⃣ Impact

What deserves your energy and attention?

• Identify causes, problems or communities that move you to act.
• Example: “If I could change one thing around me, what would it be?“

4️⃣ Reward

What would people gladly pay you for?

• Write down services, products or roles you could charge for.
• Ask yourself: “What would others invest in to have my help?”

🔄 Synthesize your Ikigai

1. Read and underline the ideas that repeat.

2. Look for crossings between dimensions:

   • Passion + Talent
   • Passion + Impact
   • Talent + Reward
   • Impact + Reward

3. Write your Ikigai in one sentence:

   “I help [who] through [which skill] to achieve [which benefit].”

🤖 Boost it with ChatGPT

1. Turn on memory in ChatGPT so it remembers your story.

2. Use this prompt when you start your session:

   I want to do an Ikigai exercise. Help me reflect on:

   1. What I love doing
   2. What I’m good at
   3. What the world needs
   4. What I could be paid for

   Ask me deep questions, one at a time, and help me see patterns. At the end, help me write a paragraph that sums up my possible Ikigai.

3. Answer calmly and let the bot guide you.

🚀 What now?

• Design a small project based on your Ikigai.
• Revisit your Ikigai every 3–6 months: your priorities change.
• Share your experience: we grow as a community.

Start today! Grab your notebook and discover your inner compass.

”Our life is what our thoughts make it.” — Marcus Aurelius