What Goes Into Creating An Amazing Company: Finding Your IKIGAI As An Organization (8/9)

Over the years, I have developed a working model of what goes behind creating an amazing company. As I look to build my 3rd venture - ithinkyouare - the world's 'compliment' app - I thought this might be a good opportunity to publish these ideas

In case these strike a chord with you, or you think of someone with whom they will - the misfits, the rebels, the round pegs in square holes - I am also building the initial team of pirates for ithinkyouare - so do get in touch with me

Arguably, The Most Important Ingredient of Success: Perseverance

Every person and every organization has their own unique path to success

What's meaningful then is finding the common patterns

What do virtually all successful individuals and organizations have in common?

Arguably the one ring to rule them all is perseverance. The ability to go on and on, and not give up. The ability to get up after each fall

It's the biggest predictor of long-term success

What Creates Perseverance: IKIGAI

What creates Perseverance though, in people and organizations?

People tend to think that it's some form of discipline

And yes it is, but that's still not the root cause

What produces this level of insane discipline?

I think it is aligning yourself with your IKIGAI. To whatever emerges as your meaningful purpose

Perseverance is the natural outcome for an individual or organization aligned to their IKIGAI

If you are living a life that you feel is aligned with your IKIGAI, then you will not be easily tempted to give up at the next big obstacle

Your motivation for a higher cause will hold you steady, when your staying power is tested

The Components

Ikigai is a Japanese philosophical idea that translates to "reason for being", or purpose

You will find similar ideas in all the world's philosophical systems

Shakspeare said 'All the worlds a stage, and we are all actors'

Once you understand the role you are meant to play, once you align your life to it, that's when it all comes together

Ikigai is the harmony that happens when a few different components of the self and the world come together:

1. What you love: What are you really passionate about? What do you most enjoy doing? What can you talk about (or do) for hours on end?
2. What you are good at: What are you unnaturally good at? What comes easier to you, than to virtually anyone else?
3. What the world needs: What important need in the world can you fulfill? How do you make the world a better place? A happier place?
4. What the world will reward you for: What has value in the world?

Organizations That Align Particularly Well With Their IKIGAI

Which organizations align the best with their IKIGAI? You will find that these are all organizations that stand for something. They have personality. They have a role in society that you can intuitively understand. They have a coherent purpose

Apple: Apple's coherent purpose (its role in society) is to make high-quality, super-easy-to-use, intuitive technology tools that make people's lives more productive. They have stuck to that since the company was founded in the 1970s

Facebook: Facebook's coherent purpose (its role in society) is to make social interactions natural and easy. All their products are aligned to that role

Google: Google's coherent purpose (its role in society) is to make all the world's information accessible to everyone, everywhere. Whether it's Google search, or Google Maps, or Android, or Chrome, or Youtube - all their products organize the world's knowledge/content and make it searchable

Tesla: Tesla's coherent purpose (its role in society) is to transition the world to (more efficient, and less damaging to the environment) electric vehicles. It is the brand that has pushed electric vehicle adoption by bringing in the best technology to the sector. Traditional car manufacturers are now following suit

In each of these examples, you will find the companies doing - what they are passionate about, what the world needs, what they are particularly good at, and things that the world rewards them for

All of them are playing their own unique roles

What Happens When An Organization Is Aligned With Their Ikigai

The harmony that comes from aligning with your Ikigai, gives you some special superpowers. Such organizations can:

1. Persevere in the face of tests: As we talked about before, when you feel like you are working for a purpose greater than yourself, it can be the most powerful motivator of all
2. Make better long-term decisions: When your compass is clear, when you know your north, you can make better, more confident long-term decisions
3. Provide purpose to the people who work at these organizations: Human beings seek purpose. We seek a reason to make life worth living. And the best reason is service. If we feel like we are making the world a better place by doing our roles, that's what makes our lives meaningful
4. Create a long-standing brand: Since companies that know and align with their Ikigai tend to have a distinct character, personality, and role, they end up carving a unique space for themselves in the minds of people. These are the most powerful brands of all
5. Hire better: Since these organizations have such a district, universally sensed character, they automatically attract the right kind of people (and repel the wrong kind). That kind of pre-selection makes hiring both easier and better

For humans and organizations alike, understanding your Ikigai and aligning with it is possibly the greatest predictor of the impact they leave on the world!