One Japanese word can change your life. It did for us, and it’s how we met Kumiko Sugiyama, a Japanese language coach, business Japanese trainer, and ICF Associate Certified Coach who blends language learning with coaching, communication skills, and a deep love of Japanese culture.

We talk through Kumiko’s real-world path across sales, parenting, startups, community work, and finally teaching Japanese to executives and engineers. Then we dig into her informal Ikigai survey of 100 people and what it reveals about how Japanese people experience purpose: not as a single “dream job,” but as something felt in daily life, relationships, hobbies, and contribution. We share examples that range from personal joy to family wellbeing to meaningful work, and we look at why Ikigai often sounds more practical and relational in Japan than it does online.

From there, we explore Ibasho, the “place to be” where you can show up as yourself and feel a sense of belonging. Kumiko explains how shared-interest communities build warmth, safety, and growth, and we connect it to positive psychology, strengths, and motivation. We also reflect on loneliness, social withdrawal, and why in-person community may become even more important as AI changes work and connection. Along the way we touch on beautiful Japanese concepts like ohitorisama and yutori, and how language can shape wellbeing.

Subscribe, share this with a friend who’s searching for meaning, and leave a review with the Japanese word that has colored your life.

On this episode of The Ikigai Podcast, I talk with Chie Sawa, founder of Thrive Life Design, about why all leaders need a sanctuary to pause and reconnect with themselves.

We also explore reverse culture shock, the power of co-reflection, and how structured tools like Tarot readings for reflection can create clarity without crossing into therapy.

We explore:

• Chie’s journey from Japan to the US and back
• Reverse culture shock and feeling out of place at home
• Why sociology and women’s rights shaped her path
• Building Thrive Life Design beyond psychotherapy
• What “thrive” means as steady life expansion
• Sanctuary as a space to pause, breathe, and renew
• Reflection vs naisei and why being heard matters
• Reflection as a tool with clear limits
• Rumination, resentment, and when therapy is the better path
• The Reflection Room as a flexible one-on-one space
• Soul Story Tarot as a reflective structure not fortune telling
• Utori as the felt sense of inner room
Book a session with Chia.

Caitlin Kight returns again to host the Ikigai Podcast to interview Nick on his new book, A Year of Ikigai.

In this episode, Nick shares how Japanese voices, careful cultural research and daily prompts, helped him write a book that the reader can actually use.

This epsidoe covers:

• A 365-day reflective journey built around roles, relationships, rituals, contribution, and belonging
• How this book differs from Western ikigai takes and why Japanese perspective matters
• What living in Japan and speaking Japanese changes about interpreting Japanese philosophy
• The messy reality of writing 365 short entries, scrapping drafts, and finding themes
• Fact-checking Japanese terms, tea ceremony concepts, and misquoted haiku
• Why prompts matter and how action turns reflection into felt ikigai
• Favorite entries including “What Matters Today” and the surprising “Ikigai Is Found In Revenge” reframed toward forgiveness
• The “four A’s” thread: awareness, affirmation, agency, and action
• Translation news and why one-word concepts reshape how we think
• Ikigai at work, workplace belonging, and healthier coping versus quick fixes