Estimated reading time: 2 minutes, 37 seconds.

TODAY’S IDEA: Kodawari

— From Awakening Your Ikigai: How the Japanese Wake Up to Joy and Purpose Every Day by Ken Mogi

I recently learned about the Japanese term kodawari (pronunciation) in Ken Mogi’s book Awakening Your Ikigai. Ikigai is loosely translated as your reason to live or the reason why you wake up every day, and kodawari is a concept that focuses on starting small and never losing sight of the details.

Kodawari per se is hard to translate into English, as it is a word that embodies attention to detail, commitment, insistence, excellence, and persistence.

Yet none of those ideas either alone or together make justice to the term. “Kodawari is a personal standard, to which the individual adheres in a steadfast manner. It is often, though not always, used in reference to a level of quality or professionalism to which the individual holds. It is an attitude, often maintained throughout one’s life, constituting a central element of [one’s reason to live or ikigai].”

“Kodawari is personal in nature, and it is a manifestation of a pride in what one does. [It] is an approach whereby you take extraordinary care of very small details […] without necessarily justifying the effort for any grandiose schemes.”

Kodawari is being the best you can be and doing the best you can do. It’s demanding a standard of excellence of yourself and others, and being committed to it passionately.

We can see examples of it all over Japan, such as in the “almost flawless operations of Shinkansen (‘bullet’) trains to the meticulously efficient and quick delivery of beef dishes in the fast-food chains.” The book tells of many more kodawari instances that range from the beautifully produced Japanese fruit,  to the perfecting of ramen noodles,  to the meticulous crafting of beautiful pottery for the tea ceremony.  Each one has a story of incredible attention to detail behind its making.

While there are indeed hiccups, kodawari is a mindset that will fix the hiccup, learn from it and come up with a new and improved service or product. The author says that “Steve Jobs had this kind of kodawari too, although he didn’t express his ethos in so many words, when he tried to perfect the features of the iPhone, for example. In fact, one may say that kodawari was Steve Jobs’ defining characteristic.”

Kodawari goes hand in hand with curiosity and passion for what you want to do or develop. How do you apply kodawari in your life?

ACTION

TODAY: What is something that you love or are passionate about? Are you truly focusing on giving it your best or could you apply more kodawari to it? Only you know the answer, but making kodawari a part of your mindset will help you get there.

FUTURE: Make kodawari a part of your life, just as the Japanese have made a habit out of it. Your projects will be better, your work and your life will be better, your relationships will be better… everything that you apply kodawari to will end up transformed into the best it can be and will be a source of satisfaction for you!

Please share the concept of kodawari with someone today, you can do so via email, Facebook or Twitter, thank you!