For over a decade, I’ve been running this ikigai workshop on Unsettled trips, usually out in some wild places, with a group of life explorers. In 2024, I had the opportunity to travel to Okinawa to learn more about this concept, and my way of thinking about it has evolved.
Ikigai (生き甲斐) is often translated as “a reason for being,” but in the Okinawan view it’s less about a grand mission and more about the quiet thread that makes life meaningful. The core idea is that everyone has an ikigai, and it’s uniquely shaped by your personal history, values, beliefs, interests, and personality, not your title, income, or social status. Finding it can take real self-searching, but even then, ikigai should never be treated as some dramatic declaration or something grand; it’s something you stay connected to through everyday life.
The framework below is a practical way to explore this thread.
I suggest you use a piece of paper and answer these 4 questions with as much info as you can:
1) What do you love? List everything you can practically think of.
2) What are you good at? Again, make a long list.
3) What have you been paid for (or could be paid for) based on your skills and experience?
4) What you think the world needs more of?
Next, begin looking for patterns in the overlaps (often labeled Passion, Mission, Profession, and Vocation). From those themes, you can play with a simple statement like “My ikigai is…”. Don’t think of this as a final answer, but as a living hypothesis you can test, live, and do in real life.
Click on the diagram below to explore your ikigai.
Ikigai
A Japanese concept meaning “A Reason for Being”
What You Are Good At
What You Can Be Paid For
What The World Needs
What You Love
Passion
Mission
Profession
Vocation
Ikigai
It’s not meant to be grand.
Over the years, I’ve watched something go wrong.
In the West, we’ve taken a nuanced Japanese idea and flattened it into a career Venn diagram, a productivity tool that quietly puts work at the center of meaning, by saying “turn this purpose into a career” (ven the popular four-circle diagram itself is often noted as a modern construction rather than a traditional Japanese model).
And this creates a particular kind of pressure.
Researchers have described something called “purpose anxiety”. That is, the stress and frustration people feel when they can’t define their “one true purpose.” One widely cited figure (from research by Larissa Rainey) is that up to 91% of people report experiencing it at some point.
I became one of them.
The mistake we make is attaching purpose to outputs: status, impact, scale, recognition, achievement, or the title on the LinkedIn headline.
When we attach purpose to outcomes like this, we outsource our sense of worth to only those things we “accomplished.”
I’ve learned to focus on inputs — small, accessible practices that are available regardless of whether the world applauds.
For me, purpose often shows up as:
Connection: the genuine laugh shared with someone I work with
Reflection: 20 minutes thinking about a poem, a big question, a real conversation
Presence: moving my body outside — not to “optimize,” but just to feel alive
Service: choosing usefulness and kindness for others over trying to “change the world”
This will show up differently for you. Look for things you can practice without waiting for permission, luck, the dream job, or a perfect plan.
My dad is the case in point.
He worked in hospital maintenance for 25+ years. On paper, it’s not the kind of job people associate with a grand life mission. But I watched him live his purpose with more clarity than many people I know who have the “dream job”.
If you think in terms of outputs: he fixed broken toilets.
But I saw the inputs If you focus on inputs: he brought a smile and steadiness to serving others by making things work again.
That’s not grand, but it when you live it everyday like my dad did, it adds up to a life full of purpose, a purpose you can experience for yourself and share with someone every day.
My ikigai
So what does this look like for me?
What I’ve learned is that, surprisingly, the parts are greater than the whole. That each input is what counts. Yes, I have an ikigai statement that holds meaning for me, and I reflect on it when I feel a little unsettled.
But more than that grand statement, it’s the small moments, the things I can control every day, that really guide me.
Connection: It’s connecting with a friend through real conversation
Reflection: 20 minutes thinking through a big idea, a poem, or a spicy question
Movement: Getting outside and hiking, biking, sailing, swimming, or just walking
Service: Making small gestures to serve others in my life and my community
These matter more than the big, grand idea of an ikigai, because Okinawa taught me that ikigai was never meant to be anything grand to begin with.
My Ikigai
My reason for being (in this season)
What I LOVE
The raw edge of the wild and the quiet spark of someone’s first realization.
I love navigating the unmapped—whether that’s a physical coastline or the interior landscape of an honest conversation.
I live for those rare moments where the listening is as loud as the speaking, and for the energy that happens when people are stripped of routine and dropped into a transformative experience.
This is the DNA of a true Unsettled leader: not a travel guide—a navigator of the human experience.
What I’m GOOD AT
I’m a steady hand in the unknown.
I’m a calm leader on big adventures—and a leader of quiet reflections.
Whether I’m at the helm of a sailboat in high seas or facilitating an exercise that peels back the layers of a difficult truth, I’m good at keeping people calm while they confront the unknown.
I have a tactical ability to translate complex emotions into actionable understanding.
What I’ve been PAID FOR
Building authentic connection among people.
My career has been an evolution of facilitation. I’ve been compensated to lead expeditions, conduct deep-dive research, teach, and stand on stages as a speaker.
At the core of all of it, I’ve been paid to create the containers—the workshops, the trips, and the conversations—where authentic connection isn’t just possible, but inevitable.
What I think the WORLD NEEDS
An antidote to the shallow.
The world doesn’t need more “content”; it needs more real-world experiences that demand presence.
We need the stillness found in nature, the empathy found in deep listening, and the radical permission for people to stop hiding their weirdness.
We need a culture that values core values over foolish consistency—so we can finally live as our actual selves.
My Ikigai
I navigate the intersection of the wild and the human spirit, leading experiences into the unknown to help people shed the scripts society wrote for them—and reclaim their lives based on authentic aliveness.
About Michael.
Michael Youngblood is a facilitator, strategist, and expert on the future of work and innovation. Over the past decade, he has built and helped organizations and teams align around purpose, culture, and strategy.
Michael is the co-founder of Unsettled, an award-winning global travel company recognized for innovation in tourism and experiential design. He has advised Fortune 100 companies on remote work and leadership development, taught entrepreneurship and globalization on behalf of the U.S. State Department, and served as Managing Editor of Innovations Journal, a publication about entrepreneurial solutions to global challenges co-hosted by MIT, Harvard, and George Mason University.
His work and ideas have been featured in The New York Times, Forbes, Outside Magazine, Entrepreneur, TED, MIT Press, and more. He is a member of the inaugural TED Residency, a member of Sandbox, and a speaker and workshop leader on purpose, innovation, community, and the evolving nature of work.
Whether facilitating strategic planning sessions, leading a global retreat, or sailing across an ocean, Michael’s work invites people to reconnect with what drives them — their True North — and translate that clarity into action to live a life that matters. He lives and plays in the mountains of Western North Carolina.
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Goals & Results Sprints
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Vision, Results, & Accountability Workshops
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![Group of retreat participants smiling at sunset in the Dolomite Mountains, Italy — team retreat and facilitation workshop led by Michael Youngblood with golden alpine peaks in the background.]()
Workshops & Speaking
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Strategic Planning
Easy Ways To Start Working Together
Strategic Planning
I help teams rediscover their why and translate it into a clear, actionable strategy. My approach blends purpose and performance. I take a human-centric approach to strategic planning. First, we rediscover your organization’s True North by listening to your leadership, stakeholders, team, and community. Then we co-create a plant. Next, and this is where I excel, I facilitate quarterly meetings with your leadership to set, track, and learn from mission-aligned goals.
Speaking & Workshops
From keynote talks to immersive workshops, I bring 15+ years of experience in innovation and purpose-driven leadership to help people reconnect with what drives them. Popular topics include Why Meaning Matters (and How to Cultivate It); Staying on Course in a World of Uncertainty; Designing & Delivering Meaningful Experiences; Future of Work; Remote Work; Community-Driven Engagement; and much more.
Adventure
I’m the co-founder and CEO of Unsettled — one of my outlets for meaningful travel, adventure, and global connections. Unsettled is the leading conscious travel company for globally-minded professionals. Outside of Unsettled, I lead sailing adventures as well as personal expeditions into some of the world’s deepest wilderness areas by foot, kayak, bike, or other self-powered means. Additionally, I’m a volunteer for the National Ski Patrol and am on my local Search and Rescue team.