I recently came across the concept of ikigai a Japanese philosophy referring to something that gives a person a sense of purpose, a reason for living. It involves finding the intersection between what you love, what you're good at, what the world needs, and what you can be paid for.
This got me thinking about how I can use this philosophy to refactor my approach to work and personal life.
At the start of this year my mantra was to be curious, read widely and try new things. Guiltlessly exploring software development, design, HCI, architecture and other interests. It makes me want to drop everything and be meticulous about my craft as an engineer.
By immersing myself in these domains, I can find my own unique path and create a life that provides economic mobility, creativity, and impact.
All I want to do is “make something wonderful and put it out there”.
Building this website was a good starting point. Personal websites are an opportunity to describe yourself, showcase your craft, over-engineer and write. I want mine to reflect who I am, what I'm passionate about, and what I'm currently building.
My goal was to build a place that feels like a home on the internet. I'll keep iterating over this. You can find the source code here if interested.
Anyways, these are just some late night thoughts—I'll look to explore these ideas further.