I recently finished the book, Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles. If you’re not familiar with the term, ikigai is a Japanese concept referring to something that gives a person a sense of purpose, a reason for living. It is the sweet spot at the center of four key things — what you love doing, what you are good at, what people will pay you for, and what the world needs. You can see a diagram of the ikigai concept below.

I’ll speak more about my ikigai in a moment. First, I’d like to share a story and how my journey led me to this email that made its way to your inbox…

I’ve been an artist and musician for over 30 years. As quad captain, I played in the Macys Thanksgiving Day parade in front of 80 million people. I played at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheater in two different bands. One of my bands won an award for the film we produced that accompanied our album. I spent the better part of ten years of my life devoted to the music industry as a music buyer, touring musician and DJ, and music promoter.

Then, I left my life as a DIY musician to become a corporate creative and do what others said was the proper way to “make a living” because I was poor, in debt, and continuing to struggle as a working artist after years of complete devotion in a difficult industry. I spent ten years as a professional creative in marketing and media production. I helped to design the online community platform for Adobe. I designed websites for one of the premier theatre companies in the US. I was a senior designer, photographer, and video producer for the largest natural/organic expo in North America. I helped to produce 150 feature-length educational shows in less than four years with partners like Nikon, Lowes, and Sur La Table.

That was until one day when I started my own creative business after working 60-70-hour weeks for someone else’s dream at a startup that ended with an acquisition by a Fortune 50 company. I was so devout to our mission and to the people we served because they were kindred creative spirits. I not only drank the Kool-aid; I made it! It was then that I began a whole new journey. I left the life of a corporate creative and began walking my own path in life and business. A path I’ve realized is much harder but so much more fulfilling. Over the years, we’ve been blessed to support national retail brands, music education startups, tech companies, nonprofits, outdoor adventure companies, and more with creative services. 

In the third year of my business as it was becoming successful, my wife was burned out in her career, needed to take a sabbatical, and asked to travel for an extended period of time (not just a vacation). We planned and prepped for an entire year, sold most of our possessions, put the rest in a small storage unit, rented our house, and figured out kitty care. I even worked with a business coach for six months figuring out how to make money while we traveled. We dropped off the kitties, said goodbye to friends and family, and flew to Asia to begin our adventure together after months of upheaval and stress, finally able to breathe and enjoy our hard work. We got two months into our yearlong trip and the pandemic hit. Six months later my dad was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer and I flew back to my childhood home to be his caregiver with my mom during the worst part of the pandemic. He passed away after 3 months of aggressive treatments and two dozen pills a day. I helped my mom with his transition and urgent affairs then returned home to my wife and two furry kids, Midi and Mojo. I was sad, depressed, and forever changed after such a maturing experience.

I spent my entire life trying different things, going on adventures, embracing opportunities, and exploring the world in order to seek joy, fulfillment, and more recently, purpose. After processing the experience of being a caregiver for my father, away from my family, during a pandemic and one of the most divisive times in our history, I realized what was truly important to me in my life. It was then that I decided to help other creative souls like me to find their ikigai and create the ärtful life they really want — which leads me to my question for you.

Is your soul in anguish as you listen to people drone on meeting after meeting when you know you were meant for something more? Does it hurt enough yet to make a change?