Life as Sakti

A Personal Confession After 25 Years

I’ve spent over 25 years in corporate life, and I’ll be honest—there were long stretches where work drained every ounce of my energy. Periods where I genuinely hated my job. Moments when I’d sit in yet another pointless meeting and think, “Why am I doing this?”

You know those meetings—the ones where you contribute nothing, learn nothing, but your attendance is somehow mandatory? Yeah, those.

So when my mentees tell me they want to “follow their passion,” escape the “corporate rat race,” or confess they’re counting down to retirement, I get it. I’ve been there. And here’s what I’ve learned: 100% of the time, it’s not that they chose the wrong career initially—it’s that they took a wrong turn somewhere along the way.

Sometimes it means you’re losing a battle and looking for an exit. But more often, it means you’ve drifted away from your ikigai.

Why Most People Get Career Wrong

You check your watch at 3 PM on a Tuesday, calculating how many hours until freedom. Monday mornings feel like a slow death. You live for weekends and dream of retirement. Sound familiar?

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: If you’re separating “work” from “life,” you’ve already lost.

We spend our most energetic years—ages 25 to 55—chasing a paycheck, planning for a retirement that often disappoints. By the time we’re “free” to live, we lack the health, energy, or resources to actually do it.

But what if there’s a better way?

The Missing Piece: Your IKIGAI

The Japanese have a concept called IKIGAI (pronounced ee-key-guy)—your “reason for being.” It can be loosely explained as the intersection of what you love, what you’re good at, what the world needs, and what you can be paid for.

People who’ve found their ikigai don’t experience Monday blues. They don’t desperately need vacations to “recover from life.” They wake up with purpose, regardless of age.

The good news? You can discover yours through intentional exploration.

The IKIGAI Career Framework

Your ikigai sits at the center of four critical questions:

1. What do you LOVE? (Your passion)
2. What are you GOOD AT? (Your strengths)
3. What does the world NEED? (Your mission)
4. What can you be PAID FOR? (Your profession)

These create four overlapping areas:

• Passion = What you love + What you’re good at
• Mission = What you love + What the world needs
• Vocation = What the world needs + What you can be paid for
• Profession = What you’re good at + What you can be paid for

Your ikigai is where all four overlap.

Exercise 1: The Four Questions Deep Dive

Time needed: 2-3 hours over several days

Grab a notebook. Answer each question with at least 20 responses. Don’t overthink—write quickly and honestly.

What do I LOVE doing?

Think beyond work. What activities make you lose track of time? What would you do even if nobody paid you?

Examples:

• Solving complex puzzles
• Helping people understand difficult concepts
• Building systems that run smoothly
• Creating beautiful designs
• Connecting people who should know each other

What am I GOOD AT?

Don’t be modest. What do people consistently ask for your help with? What comes naturally to you that others struggle with?

Examples:

• Breaking down complex ideas simply
• Spotting patterns in data
• Staying calm in crisis situations
• Getting people excited about ideas
• Organizing chaos into order

What does the world NEED?

Look at problems that frustrate you. What gaps do you see? What makes you say “Someone should fix this”?

Examples:

• Better mental health support
• Simpler financial tools for regular people
• More efficient healthcare systems
• Technologies that connect rather than isolate
• Education that adapts to individual learning styles

What can I be PAID FOR?

Be realistic. What skills have market value now or in the near future?

Examples:

• Data analysis
• User experience design
• Project management
• Technical writing
• Sales and relationship building

Action Step: Circle the top 5 items from each list. Look for patterns and connections between them. Where do your lists overlap?

Exercise 2: The Flow State Test

You’ve found your ikigai when you achieve FLOW—that state where you’re completely absorbed, time disappears, and you feel energized rather than drained.

Answer these six questions about your current work:

1. Do I know exactly what to do? (Clear objectives)
2. Do I know how to do it? (Competence)
3. Do I know how well I’m doing? (Feedback loops)
4. Do I know where this is leading? (Direction)
5. Do the challenges match my skills? (Not too easy, not impossible)
6. Can I focus without constant interruptions? (Deep work capability)

Scoring:

• 5-6 Yes answers: You’re likely in your ikigai zone—keep going!
• 3-4 Yes answers: You’re close—refinement needed
• 0-2 Yes answers: Major career reassessment required

Exercise 3: The Career Audit Matrix

Time needed: 1-2 hours

This is where rubber meets road. Let’s examine your actual daily work, not what the job description says.

Step 1: List Your Activities

Write down 8-10 tasks you do regularly in your current role. Be specific and honest.

Example for a Software Engineer:

1. Writing code
2. Debugging issues
3. Attending meetings
4. Code reviews
5. Writing documentation
6. Learning new technologies
7. Mentoring junior developers
8. Planning architecture

Step 2: Rate Each Activity

Create a table with these columns:

Activity	Love It? (1-5)	Good At It? (1-5)	World Needs? (1-5)	Paid For? (1-5)	Total	Keep/Modify/Eliminate

Scoring guide:

• 1 = Strongly disagree
• 3 = Neutral
• 5 = Strongly agree

Step 3: Analyze Your Results

Activities scoring 16-20: These are your ikigai activities. How can you maximize them?

Activities scoring 12-15: Potential ikigai. Can you modify them to score higher? What would need to change?

Activities scoring below 12: These drain you. Can you delegate, automate, or eliminate them?

Step 4: Design Your Ikigai Role

Based on your high-scoring activities, what role would maximize them?

Example transformation:

Current role: Software Engineer
Draining activities: Routine maintenance coding, administrative meetings
Energizing activities: Mentoring, architectural design, writing technical content

Ikigai role: Principal Engineer / Technical Educator
Modified focus: 50% mentoring & knowledge sharing, 30% architectural guidance, 20% strategic coding

Exercise 4: The Three-Level Challenge Test

Found something you think is your ikigai? Validate it with these three tests:

Level 1: Increase Difficulty

When the task gets harder, do you lean in or avoid it?

Example: If teaching is your ikigai, do you seek more challenging topics or difficult audiences? Or do you stick to the easy stuff?

Level 2: Long-Term Vision

Can you see yourself doing this for 10+ years with enthusiasm?

Example: Does the thought of being a master mentor in 15 years excite or bore you?

Level 3: Single-Task Focus

Can you concentrate on just this task for extended periods without feeling restless?

Example: When mentoring, do you wish you were coding instead, or is mentoring itself fulfilling?

All three Yes? You’ve likely found your ikigai.

Exercise 5: The Gap Analysis

Where are you now versus where your ikigai wants you to be?

Create three columns: Current State | Ikigai Target | Bridge Actions

Example:

Current State	Ikigai Target	Bridge Actions
Individual contributor writing code	Technical leader shaping strategy	1. Lead architecture reviews 2. Start writing technical blog 3. Speak at internal tech talks
Isolated in single team	Influencing across organization	1. Join cross-functional committees 2. Offer brown bag sessions 3. Build mentoring relationships across teams

Make your bridge actions SMART:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Relevant
• Time-bound

The Career Transition Roadmap

Your path to ikigai depends on where you are in your career journey.

For Young Professionals (20s-30s)

Your advantage: Time and energy to experiment

Strategy: Use the 70-20-10 rule

• 70% in core competencies that pay bills
• 20% developing adjacent skills that excite you
• 10% wild experiments in completely new areas

Action plan:

1. Complete all five exercises above (2-3 weeks)
2. Identify your top ikigai zone (Week 4)
3. Find one small project in that zone (Month 2)
4. Track your flow state weekly (Ongoing)
5. Adjust role or seek new position (6-12 months)

For Mid-Career Professionals (40s-50s)

Your advantage: Deep expertise and established networks

Strategy: Leverage what you’ve built while pivoting toward meaning

Action plan:

1. Audit your current role honestly (Week 1)
2. Identify which existing strengths align with ikigai (Week 2)
3. Eliminate/delegate low-scoring activities (Months 1-3)
4. Reshape your role toward high-scoring activities (Months 3-6)
5. Build reputation in your ikigai zone (Ongoing)

For Senior Professionals (55+)

Your advantage: Wisdom, perspective, and often financial stability

Strategy: Focus purely on impact and fulfillment

Action plan:

1. What legacy do you want to leave? (Week 1)
2. Which activities give you energy vs. drain you? (Week 2)
3. How can you package your wisdom for others? (Month 1)
4. Design your “encore career” around pure ikigai (Months 2-6)
5. Transition gradually while maintaining security (6-24 months)

Warning Signs You’re Off Course

Monitor these red flags quarterly. If you’re experiencing two or more consistently, it’s time for a reset:

• Sunday Night Dread: Anxiety about the coming week
• Clock Watching: Constantly checking how long until you’re “free”
• Energy Vampires: Feeling drained by activities others find energizing
• Envy Without Action: Resenting others’ success rather than being inspired
• Health Decline: Stress-related illness, sleep issues, burnout symptoms

These aren’t weaknesses—they’re warning signals that something fundamental needs to change.

The Ikigai Maintenance Plan

Finding your ikigai isn’t a one-time event. It evolves as you evolve.

Quarterly Review (30 minutes):

• Retake the Flow State Test
• Review your Career Audit Matrix scores
• Adjust activities that have shifted

Annual Deep Dive (4-6 hours):

• Complete the Four Questions exercise fresh
• Update your Gap Analysis
• Set new bridge actions for the coming year

5-Year Reinvention:

• People change. Your ikigai at 25 may differ dramatically from 45
• Repeat the full discovery process
• Be willing to pivot completely if needed

The Ultimate Truth

You don’t find your ikigai by thinking about it. You find it by experimenting, experiencing, and reflecting.

After 25 years, here’s what I know for certain: Those energy-draining meetings, those Sunday night dreads, those moments of “why am I doing this?”—they’re not inevitable parts of working life. They’re signals that you’ve drifted from your ikigai.

Start today:

• This week: Complete Exercise 1 (The Four Questions)
• Next week: Do your Career Audit Matrix
• This month: Test one small ikigai hypothesis
• This quarter: Make one concrete change toward alignment

Remember: A career aligned with your ikigai doesn’t feel like “work-life balance” because work and life aren’t separate. They’re integrated expressions of who you are.

The Monday morning blues disappear when Monday morning is just another day to do what you’re meant to do.

Your reason for being is waiting. Will you answer the call?

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What’s one activity from your current role that scored highest in your Career Audit? Share in the comments below—I’d love to hear what energizes you.