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Ikigai: Value in Living This week's exercise is inspired by a Japanese concept called ikigai, which is about discovering your purpose. Feeling uncertain about what's next?  We often find ourselves so focused on the day-to-day that it can be challenging to take a step back to see how it all relates to a broader purpose.  While it has no direct English translation, ikigai, is thought to be a combination of the Japanese word ikiru, "to live," and kai, "the realization of what one hopes for." This loosely translates to the idea of finding your value or purpose in life.  Your Ikigai Exercise What It Is A 15 minute opportunity to identify what's meaningful to you. Why We Love It  We spend so much time in our own heads with lots of unsubstantiated self-talk about who we are and our purported purpose. That conversation often plays out in our minds without resolve. This activity breaks those thought patterns by taking a systematic approach to imagining all of life’s possible directions.  How It Works Take 15 minutes to answer each of the following questions and a second 15 minutes to play with the potential overlap between them. 1. What do you love? 2. What are you good at? 3. What does the world need from you? 4. What can you get paid for? Image Credit: Toronto Star Want to learn more? To learn more about how ikigai is way bigger than a framework, check this out.  To explore the cultural nuance of ikigai, check this out from an anthropologist who focuses on Japanese culture. To go deeper on the philosophy and five pillars behind ikigai, check out Ken Mogi's book. Whaddaya Think? If you have praise, gripes or random thoughts about this trek, drop us a line at treks@lifetrekkers.me. Here is what one trekker had to say about the Mindful Meals trek:   "The 'mindful meals' trek was one of my favorites. It started with one meal, but I've found myself focusing more intently on almost everything I've eaten since." - Ev Boyle, Director @ LA-Tech.org Follow Us Send Feedback Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@trekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.

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Your Creative Recovery This week's exercise comes to us from creativity guru, Julia Cameron. In her book, The Artist's Way, she swears by Morning Pages as a must-have "creative recovery" staple for every artistic endeavor.  Feeling creatively stuck? Cameron would argue that you have to clear your mind to unlock new creative energy. She refers to “[Morning Pages] as the daily broom that clears my consciousness and readies it for the day’s inflow of fresh thought.” Welcome to Your Creative Recovery Exercise What It Is A daily exploration of all the things, big or small, on your mind, written by you for your eyes only. Why We Love It  This is essentially writing meditation. By just writing out what you think and feel, you'll uncover new ideas for projects as well as realizations about yourself and others. How It Works Reserve a spot in your calendar to be completely alone for a moment of reflection on 2-3 specific days this week. Consider the morning when you first wake up, a quiet time during lunch, or in the evening.  When you get to your reflection point each day, spend 10-30 minutes writing whatever is on your mind. This isn't about getting it right or following one storyline. It is about embracing stream of consciousness and letting your thoughts flow onto the paper.  At the end of the week, consider how this daily practice felt. Did your daily pages clear away mental space for something new? Did your pages help you uncover a new idea or source of inspiration?  Need a little more? Here are some kindred threads for further exploration: To learn more about the routines of some of history's greatest minds, check this out. To understand the science of creativity, check this out from LifeHacker. For more on how to exercise your idea muscles, check this out from James Altucher. Whaddaya Think? If you have praise, gripes or random thoughts about this trek, drop us a line at treks@lifetrekkers.me. Here are some highlights from past treks, courtesy of your fellow trekkers.   "The 'mindful meals' trek was one of my favorites. It started with one meal, but I've found myself focusing more intently on almost everything I've eaten since." - Ev Boyle, Director @ LA-Tech.org Follow Us Send Feedback Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@trekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.

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Your Energy Quota This week's exercise is inspired by Tom Rath's work in positive psychology. In his book, How Full Is Your Bucket, he offers a formula for keeping your personal energy quota full. Feeling an energy level imbalance? We've all had those days where something crappy happens, and, before you know it, that seemingly trivial thing engulfs your entire day. Introducing Your Energy Quota Exercise What It Is A 15 minute opportunity to find new ways to restore your energy. Why We Love It  At times it can feel like each day consists of a laundry list of must-do's that don't bring us joy. This exercise helps you center more of your energy around the little things that give you energy.  How It Works Take a moment to think about the everyday things you enjoy doing. Make a list of at least 10-15 of these happy items. These things can be as commonplace as taking your dog for a walk or using your favorite reusable bag. The point is to identify the ordinary moments in life that bring you joy.   Now, take a look at your week ahead and identify any potential low energy points (e.g., your long commute or that monthly meeting that always zaps you). Find a spot in your calendar right after that low energy point and schedule a moment of reflection by asking yourself: A. Is this low point an important indicator of a deeper emotion I need to explore?  B. Is this low point an indicator of the need to recharge my own energy? If A, explore what you are feeling. Recognize that this emotion might be telling you something and give yourself some space to consider what that might be. If B, consider making time to recharge your batteries. Take a look at your happy list in #1 and consider what you can do now to help replenish your energy quota. Is the goal to try to be happy all the time? Definitely not. According to HMS professor Susan David, happiness is an important emotion, but it shouldn't be used to mask other feelings like sadness, frustration or anger. While focusing on joyful activities can be a great way to balance your energy levels, the goal shouldn't be to fake an overall state of happiness or bottle up emotions that we are afraid of feeling.  Hungry for more? Here are some additional morsels: To learn more about how to better balance your physical, emotional, and mental energy at work, check this out from HBR. To learn more about how to treat your energy levels like a bank account, check this out. To learn more about Susan David's research on emotional courage, check out this TED talk.  To learn more about how a famous Google engineer finds happiness, check out Solve for Happy. Shout. It. Out. To Angel Hu for her exercise crafting skills!  Missed out on past treks? Click Here Follow Us Send Feedback Learn More Copyright © 2018 LifeTrekkers, All rights reserved. Want more information? Drop us a line at info@trekkers.me. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.