Ikigai- a Japanese word to describe “the happiness of being busy”

Learnings from the book "Ikigai – the Japanese secret to living a long and happy life"

I’m reading a book now called Ikigai – the Japanese secret to living a long and happy life. It gave me some insightful thoughts about happiness and quality of life. Ikigai is many things, one of them is to find a happiness in doing things that bring meaning and happiness to your life.

Do stuff that you love to do

Sometimes, I wonder if it’s OK to be busy? It is good to be busy doing things that you love and that occupy your mind in a happy way.

The book describes how to find focus and concentration when completing something and being in the present moment. It’s a form of mindfulness to be in the present and not think about the past or future when you’re in the moment of completing something, even if it’s just doing the dishes.

Challenge yourself

It’s good to challenge yourself while learning new things. I love to play guitar, it’s something I started at High School, but study, work and kids meant I left it behind. Now I am learning again and really enjoying playing guitar with my like-minded buddies at Lyrebird Guitar School. Learning new things is hard and incremental. One sleep and then another while the learning path is built up in my mind. Keeping a young mind is good to challenge and build a strong mind.

Perhaps one day I will be good at guitar!

Share a smile

A simple smile and greeting is a great way to connect with others. I must do more of this. Sharing a good thought is easy and brings happiness. And sharing my products too is a joy for me to see my customers smile when they get something either for themselves or a loved one. When I visit a customer or chat with them at local Markets I feel good that they have enjoyed my labour of love too. Anxiety can affect every part of our body including our skin.

Flow like water

I try to practice mindfulness but It can be hard to re-direct thoughts away from the negative. By reading about Ikigai I have learnt to let the bad thought pass. Be strong and flow like water. Let the bad thoughts go. Quite difficult to do but I’m trying! It helps to zone out from constant phone pings from messages and chats. We need space to see nature and just relax.

Today I had a bushwalk in the Blue Mountains. And sat in a Café in Leura for the first time since Lockdown has been lifted. Wow that was nice to appreciate simple pleasures.

Gentle exercise

Gentle exercise every day is recommended, or at least some exercise that you enjoy doing. Tomorrow some swimming will be my mindfulness practice! In the meantime, a warm bath can help relax my mind for a while after bushwalking in the Mountains. I have added some of my Sweet Orange Blossom Bath Soak to my warm bath. Right after taking a bath we experience relaxing brain waves and they are similar to the same feeling of calm after meditating.

Bubbles

My new Citrus Blossom Bubble Bath has a variety of blends of essential oils including calm, tranquil, serene, balance and harmony. Each blend is made up pure essential oils with an uplifting fragrance that help to promote relaxation.

I have enjoyed some me time reading Ikigai. Keep healthy and happy.

Cheers, Louise from Busy Bee Blossom.

Extracts and learnings are from the book Ikigai – the Japanese secret to living a long and happy life with Identifiers: LCCN 2017005811 (print) | LCCN 2017022599 (ebook)

 Last updated 27th October 2024