>[!abstract] >Ikigai is a Japanese concept meaning "reason for being", referring to the intersection of what one **loves**, what one is **good at**, what the world **needs**, and what one can be **paid for**. Traditionally more about life purpose than career optimization, it frames fulfillment as arising from balance between passion, mission, vocation, and profession. Ikigai emphasizes continuity and harmony rather than dramatic breakthroughs, suggesting that meaning is found in daily practice, relationships, and contribution. Popularized in Western self-help, it is often visualized as a four-circle Venn diagram, though in Japanese culture it can carry more subtle, less instrumental connotations. >[!related] >- **North** (upstream): [[Personal monopoly]] >- **West** (similar): [[Eudaimonia]], [[Self-actualization]] >- **East** (different): [[Alienation]] >- **South** (downstream): —