The Ikigai Podcast
The Ikigai Podcast
Beyond Engagement with Olesia Kyrylchuk
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On this episode of the Ikigai Podcast, we talk with Olesia Kyrylchuk about what happens to purpose when life gets disrupted, from relocating to Japan after the war in Ukraine to rebuilding belonging through community and work.
We connect the global engagement slide to a deeper meaning problem and lay out a practical path for HR leaders who want work to feel worth doing.
• Olesia’s move to Japan, cultural adaptation, and carrying home in her heart
• Building new ibasho through community, work, and a Ukrainian playback theatre group
• What playback theatre is and why stories create meaning and connection
• A 25-year HR path shaped by philosophy, burnout, and returning to the “calling”
• Why employee engagement is falling and how AI accelerates purpose questions
• The gap between job satisfaction and true engagement
• A three-layer view of workplace well-being: meaning, health, environment
• Beyond Engagement program for HR leaders using Ikigai, Ibasho, rolefulness, and kokorozashi
• Practical outcomes including a meaning and belonging heat map, diagnostics, and burnout tools
listeners, if you're interested in in this, if you work in HR, go to IkigaiTribe.com and then on the website you will see the a link to all the details. You can email us or you can reach out to us on LinkedIn if you have any questions.
A Magical Ikigai Connection
SPEAKER_01My guest today on the Iki Eye Podcast is Olycia Kayodichuk, Senior Director and Head of People for Asia East and Pacific EPAM Systems, a global IT company. For more than 25 years and people management and HR, including senior leadership roles in IT since 2004, Alicia has led an IT consulting startup and has worked with global organizations including IBM and EPAM Systems. Whereas a part of her HI scope, she has helped pioneer workplace well-being programs at global and local levels with a focus on creating a meaningful workplace. Alicia is also a certified coach and facilitator, creator of the Ikigai Coaching Cards, which is how we connected. And she holds master degrees in philosophy, economics, and personal management. She's been based in Japan since 2022 after having to relocate from her home country of Ukraine. Welcome to the podcast, Olycia.
SPEAKER_00Hi Nick. Thank you for welcoming me on your podcast. It's an honor and pleasure to be with you today.
SPEAKER_01Likewise, it's an honor for me and a pleasure. And we only connected really a few months ago, maybe four or five months ago. But um feels like we've been friends for a long time. We've always been very comfortable talking to each other and sharing. So I'm very glad I reached out to you in March on LinkedIn because I had noticed we had a connection to Ikigai, and you had created some Ikigai coaching cards. And I sent you a message, and to my surprise, in your reply, you mentioned you had read my book, Ikigai Khan. So that was a nice surprise.
SPEAKER_00It was magical, I would say. It was a magical connection.
SPEAKER_01I think so. Yeah, I appreciate it very much. Then we met in person in Tokyo. You invited my wife and me to your playback theater group, which is very special, and we'll we'll talk about that later. And you attended my Tokyo Masterclass, and now we are working on a pilot program to bring Ikigai into the workplace with an HR Ikigai program. We're already doing things together and it's very exciting.
Relocating From Ukraine To Japan
SPEAKER_01Let's dive into some background. Would you like to share your journey of moving to Japan?
SPEAKER_00Well, yes, thank you very much for offering me to talk about that part of my life as well, because it was a kind of a series of fortunate events. I have been with my company EPAM for over 14 years. And in 2020, I was appointed as a head of people or HR director for our APEC region offices, as it is a global company based in the US, but we have uh representative offices and uh locations all over the world. However, the pandemic disrupted my initial plans to relocate to the region, which was originally supposed to be Hong Kong, not Japan. Um but uh when the war started in Ukraine, the company offered me the opportunity to move to Japan, particularly since my son was already living there. So, as they mentioned, uh blessing for me, unfortunate events that happened, or I landed in Japan.
SPEAKER_01Very unique country, and you're living in Tokyo, which is an amazing city. How have the last four years been for you living in Japan?
SPEAKER_00Well, like many people who relocate, yeah, navigated the various stages of cultural adaptation. But my experience was also complex because I have arrived to Japan after spending two months in a bomb shelter as a full-scale war started in Ukraine. My parents, my siblings, all of them remained in Ukraine. My charity projects were in Ukraine, all my life was in Ukraine. So my body relocated to Tokyo, but my heart stayed in my home country. So psychologically, the initial three years were incredibly demanding. However, from the very beginning, I felt a deep sense of welcome from the people here, from the country, Tokyo especially. I have my mascot of Tokyo, which is Tokyo Tower, and whenever I see it, I feel welcomed by the country, by this uh beautiful city. So it helped me to not to be closed, but to be open to what is uh this country allows me to feel, what this country allows me to learn, what this country allows me to tell through the interaction with people on professional ground, on personal ground. So uh I found myself touched by the deep philosophy, which is reflected in Japanese daily life, which actually inspired me to develop the Ikigai coaching cards, and my Japanese colleagues helped me to develop them, and I launched it as a charity project in April 2023. In addition, I just wanted to add that you know when you relocate, you leave all your life behind, but your heart is with you, and they have a heartfelt hobby in Ukraine, which is playback theater. And uh having that theater and the group in Ukraine, I wanted to have some place like that here as well. So I managed to collect or gather people who were Ukrainian women evacuated to Japan, and we have a playback group here as well. This is why my life now, in four years in Japan, is better than it was at the beginning, as uh I have built this connection with um Japan, with the culture, with meaning of uh why I am here, and also people who supported me on my journey.
SPEAKER_01Thank you for sharing all that. As you know, I'm studying the concept of Ibashol, and so I I feel like you lost many, many Ibashol having to leave Ukraine, family, work, yeah, uh social groups, friends, your your playback theatre group in Kiev, and then moving to a new country, especially probably something very different to what you were used to. I think it can be overwhelming, confusing.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_01But it sounds like you've formed several ebashol with obviously the the playback theatre group where you work and your community. You can also maybe from time to time see your son. So that's probably a good thing.
SPEAKER_00He is the grown up already, but yes, yes, it's a pleasure, always a pleasure to be with him.
SPEAKER_01Yeah,
Playback Theatre And Shared Stories
SPEAKER_01do you want to touch on the playback theatre group now? Because it was very special for me and my wife to attend, and it was my first experience and my wife's first experience to be part of a playback theatre. And so we really didn't know what it was until we went there and basically you interviewed me about parts of my life, and then your your group of lovely women acted out uh what they interpreted of my life in a very fun and comical, yet also sometimes uh serious way. Would you like to talk about what playback theatre is?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's a special form of the improvisational theatre, uh, which was founded in 1975 by Jonathan Fox and Joe Salas in US, and then it spread all over the world. And actually it was a life-changing experience for me when I first uh attended uh um performance in Ukraine, it was in 2013, and then I joined a group and we grew together as actress because I'm not a professional actor at all. I am HR and I was in this role for many many years, and the other members of our group were from HR and marketing and we are from the corporate world, but we learned how we can stay connected to our life and how we can influence the corporate environment with our understanding of uh life better through the stories of other people. That's why I like this uh form of the theater, because people can tell their stories and we play them immediately on the stage. And we show by playing back why play back because we play back, by showing playing back, we show the value of their life. They may see a meaning of their life in connection with others, with the audience who is present uh at the performance. We never know what kind of story will be told, we never know how to play the story, but this is how life goes, right? We just open our heart to what may come and then we deal with what has come. This is why it's a very special place, very special part of my heart. And I was uh surprised to learn that in Japan every prefecture has a playback theatre. And uh School of Playback Theatre Japan, which was founded in 1998, they developed this connection to people through the art of playback, and now uh I can connect to that community as well, which is much broader than our group. It's and the value and meaning that all these people who are not professional actors at all that they bring to the Japanese society by uh letting people see the value of their life on stage is um profound, I would say.
SPEAKER_01Both myself and my wife uh got quite emotional. It was a very special experience, even though that was the first time we met. I mean in person.
SPEAKER_02Yes.
SPEAKER_01I'd spoken to you a few times, but it was also the first time for me and my wife to meet your community of Ukrainian women, and my wife was almost in tears. So uh very meaningful experience.
SPEAKER_00Thank you for being open to that. Thank you for that.
SPEAKER_01That was fun. I'm sure we'll do that again. So
HR Calling, Burnout, And Returning
SPEAKER_01let's get back to uh your your professional um life. You've been involved in HR for over 25 years. What attracted you to work in human resources?
SPEAKER_00Well, um, my academic path began with a master's degree in philosophy. For six years I was studying philosophy, and it provided me a foundation for my worldview. However, shortly after graduating, I recognized that I needed more practical application of my skills. And at that time I followed my calling, and it was a calling into human resources. So I entered the university again and obtained a second master's degree in economics and personnel management. And over the years my relationship with the profession has evolved through many cycles, including a period of intense burnout, uh, that led me to step away from the role and I thought I would never come back. And I started with my friends, we started startup, and I was a director of startup company. However, then my journey turned me back to my true professional calling, which is in HR. And now I feel I'm exactly where I meant to be.
SPEAKER_01Well, that's good to hear. But it is an interesting concept. You're in this role of HR looking after everyone in an organization. Who looks after you?
SPEAKER_02It's always a question.
SPEAKER_01Well, let's talk more about what you do now.
SPEAKER_03Yes.
SPEAKER_01Currently you are a senior director and head of people for Asia East and Pacific at a global provider of software engineering, uh, digital platform engineering consulting and product design services. So would you like to talk about that role?
SPEAKER_00Oh, it is quite demanding, uh, however, quite rewarding responsibility as I oversee people operations and people management across eight countries within the APEC region in our company. And it allowed me to understand cultures better here, to learn how to navigate between different cultures, as we cannot say that AIPEC has the only culture. You know, every country is different and it has its peculiarities to consider. Uh, and I feel a profound sense of gratitude towards the PAM, as it had allowed me to undertake uh different assignments within the HR function without seeking opportunities elsewhere. I think this is what makes a great company as well, when you can uh change the roles without changing the company. So I was HR director in Ukraine where we had around what 13,000 colleagues, then I was uh appointed as supervisor for Spain in HR, and then my role expanded to APEC, and now I am focused on APEC only. So uh considering that the mission of the people management function is to support and cultivate an environment that fosters individuals to open up their full potential. Also, we strive as people function, we strive to harmonize personal goals and values with the objectives of the company and we mitigate people related risks. We also empower our business leaders to fulfill organizations' collective mission. I find it quite rewarding to be in my role where I can add to the environment and where I can bring my wisdom, my understanding of the role, my understanding of the mission, and help companies succeed.
SPEAKER_01It's a very important role, and I think we'll talk about this a lot over the coming months and who knows, maybe years, about this idea that uh every workplace should be an e-bash all. And I guess tying the individual to the company mission is one of the challenges, and I I guess that's what we call engagement.
The Engagement Drop And AI Pressure
SPEAKER_01And I did a little bit of research, and according to the state of the Global Workplace 2026 report, in 2025, global employee engagement declined for a second year to its lowest level since 2020. The rate is only 20%, which is shocking. With 64 not engaged and 16% being actively disengaged. It's shocking to think that 80% of people are disengaged at work and only 20 are. I can't believe that. What have you been seeing in the past several years with engagement at work?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yeah. All these numbers we need to remember that it's very average one. So different industries would show different trades, just a disclaimer that it's not for every company or for every industry. However, overall the trend is uh downward, and it's quite a complex issue that could take us hours of detailed discussion, you know. But in essence, the shift is driven by transformation across, let's say, different levels: global political, economical, technological uh spheres, most notably through the integration of AI into diverse uh industries, and as a result, companies must reshape how they engage with their people when people have access to the knowledge of the world with the click of the mouse. And companies need to adjust their business models to maintain customers. So all these external disruptions they trigger a personal transformation. Personal transformation which prompts people to question their purpose. What is my exact objective in life? Why do I live my life? What is the meaning of my life? Does my role as a company provide a sense of meaning? So all these fundamental questions are where are the roots of workplace disengagement lie?
SPEAKER_01Several years ago, I I did a podcast episode talking about it's actually more than several years ago, it would be five years ago, before before ChatGPT came out, with someone talking about uh AI risks. And he also said I risks, meaning ichigai risks, and he's he's a researcher, like a real researcher on AI. And he was saying, you know, potentially in a few years, people will lose their roles to AI. Um, and now we're seeing that happen. If you enjoy your role, and your role is a source of Ikigai, you could imagine someone who enjoyed translating documents. They spent years studying another language and they love that language. Say someone studied Japanese for five years to become a professional, or maybe even ten years to become a professional translator or interpreter. Um, yeah, they're they're not really needed anymore. So that would be a significant loss. And as you say, things are so much easier. Everything's uh at a click of a button. So there seems to be an upside to it, but the reality seems to be showing this downside of a disengagement.
Why Meaning Drives Real Engagement
SPEAKER_01So why do you think people fall into disengagement at work?
SPEAKER_00It is my observation from my work in different companies and with different teams. Uh, if the company is focused only on achieving results, which is an integral part of business strategy and uh the goals that the why and the meaning why business was created, but at the same time the company does not balance it with explaining how these results add to the fulfillment of each individual beyond only monetary incentive. The company will be in a constant fight for engagement without hitting a root of disengagement. I'm talking not only about basic needs for respect, freedom, recognition, it's more about being able to create an environment where people can foster a meaning out of their work, have the excitement of living a part of their life hours with this employer, with a feeling of fulfillment and worthiness. If this environment is not created, people may feel disengaged.
SPEAKER_01This is so strange because I think being able to foster meaning through our work and in and having excitement about being part of a company and working together and having a sense of fulfillment and worthiness and what you do should be just normal. It should be normal. Like, why why isn't it normal? Um, I mean, I guess traditionally it's always been transactional. We give you a role, you do that role, we pay you. But we're talking eight hours, you know, five days a week of our life. Surely we should take care and and and put in effort to make each role meaningful. So I guess there is something missing in the workplace. I remember I shared with you a long time ago, almost what, I don't know, 15, 16 years ago, I quit a job and it was so horrible that I thought, I'm I'm never gonna work for someone again. I'm only gonna work for myself. Uh-huh. So, yeah, what's missing from the workplace and what do workers want now?
SPEAKER_00Uh there is important point that I would like to mention here because uh we need to differentiate between satisfaction from work and engagement. So people may like what they do, and then we would measure that they are satisfied. We measure satisfaction. However, uh they would not do more to make the company succeed. And this is where we start talking about engagement. That companies are fighting for engagement as the energy and focus that employees can generate being engaged and add more, it it it it can add more to the profit line, and studies prove it year on year. Uh but when does the energy and this focus come on stage? When people understand why, first of all, why they should do what they do, what impact they make on a broader scale. Uh this is where we start talking about the meaning, the senses, how this meaning contributes to engagement, and then at the end, how it helps company to achieve the goal. And also it's um Quite interconnected, right? But um yeah uh it's not easy uh to focus on these practical steps on how to make this environment where all these connections hit individual, you know.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. I mean I think people want to feel that what they do matters, it's useful, there's meaning, and they have some sense of significance. And I mean I I've had this personal experience of doing a job I thought was totally meaningless. Like there's absolutely no point in me doing most of the work I do. I was the fix-it guy, so if there's a problem, that just would move me to a different area, and I'd just go through the spreadsheet or you know, go through the social media posts and check them. And it's like, why am I doing this work? Like, it does not really help me, and I don't understand. So I think that's vital that from the individual to the company mission and all the I guess the relationships in between and how things are communicated and and people can see what they do today, you know, matters for I guess both short term and medium term and long term. Um as you said, yeah, I guess it's not easy. Like how do you how do you proactively manage that and have that message um hit the employees positively that's every week? Um, because yeah, we all most people tend to look to Friday, look forward to Friday, and then a lot of people don't like Sunday evening knowing they've got to start work on Monday. Um and I guess in an ideal world it would be the opposite, you know, you look you look forward to both the weekend and to working. So this relates to well-being. And you've been involved in developing workplace well-being programs for 20 years now. What are we talking about
Workplace Well-Being Three-Layer Model
SPEAKER_01when we're referring to workplace well-being? What does that really mean?
SPEAKER_00Good question, thank you, Nick. I would say that uh well-being in a corporate uh environment, it has three elements. First of all, we uh build a foundation with why. And this why starts from the individual, uh not the company, because it's individual who answers the question why I am here, why I want to be here, and why it matters. The second layer is health. So um taking care of physical or mental health, and they do not differentiate them because if your body is not healthy, what kind of mental health you may have, you know. If you are stressed, you do not want to get up in the morning, so your body is perfect. I mean, it's not sick, but you have a stressed uh environment, you don't want to get up, then it's about mental health, right? So we are talking about health as a holistic approach to health, so how to maintain it to be uh to feel this well-being, and then environment. So first layer, meaning, is where you start from and then you choose a company based on the resonance, resonance, right? Second is health. If you are healthy and you know what you can do and uh where you can do the best, you choose company based on that. But the element where company can contribute is environment. So this is where the uh company can influence your meaning and your health, and then overall your well-being. So this is why I think the most important in creating this well-being in the workplace is to work together, to work as partners, not to expect that company will do something for individual, but also not to expect that individual will do it by itself by himself or herself. So this is the collaboration because uh both company and individual influencing each other. So this is how I think the modern approach to well-being should be built. And this is by the way, uh why uh I am looking forward to uh delivering the message uh to HR professionals as much as possible based on my experience, based on my wisdom, and taking the philosophy from Japan about ikigai as a sense of meaning, or Hataraki guy, or yarigai, or Ibasho. Yes, yes, exactly. Ibasho as a place to belong.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that is crucial. Belonging in the workplace, I think, is one of the most important states to feel. And I also agree with you, it's it's not only the responsibility of the company or employer. It must be this collective process, I guess, to understand each other's needs and goals. And so I often think as much as work can be challenging and there can be difficult relationships, I think we have to remember that your employer is taking a risk with you. They're investing money, time, resources, education.
SPEAKER_02Yes.
SPEAKER_01And they're very dependent on you for the whole success of the company. So it is a two-way street, it is a a relationship. So I guess one of the most important things would be communication.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_01That's crucial. Like how how can everyone approach communicating? How can staff communicate to their managers or to upper management or to their boss without being afraid? Um, and how do leaders develop emotional intelligence to realize, oh, you know, we've when I'm talking to Nick, I talk this way. When I'm talking to Alicia, I talk in a a different approach. So I guess there's like emotional intelligence, social intelligence, all these things that probably aren't commonplace. And and this has inspired us to do something.
SPEAKER_03Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_02Yes, yes.
SPEAKER_01You and I have decided to collaborate to bring Ikigai into the workplace with the belief
Beyond Engagement Program Vision
SPEAKER_01that work should be a source of Ikigai. Work should be a source of Ikigai, it should be meaningful, it can be challenging, it can be hard, but it should be meaningful, rewarding, those kind of things. And obviously, we also believe that every workplace should be an ebashol, as you said, a place to belong, um, place of engagement, a place where you can grow, a place where you have a bright future. Uh so we're calling our program Beyond Engagement a meaningful workplace. So would you like to talk about that?
SPEAKER_00Yes. And um before I talk about the details of the program, uh I would like to start uh who is this program for? Because I do uh believe that uh people leaders, those who are leading teams, and those who are in people's perhaps people management responsibilities and uh working in HR mostly, uh then uh these are the people who define standards, who define direction, who define vision, and they need to educate themselves uh first of all if they would like the place to be Ibasho or the place to belong. So it's very much starts from them. This is why it would be our honor and pleasure to share the wisdom of Japanese philosophy uh related to uh meaning of life and connected connected uh elements of this meaning of life, uh to deliver it to the leaders who can then use this knowledge in order to create their programs with deep understanding of why they create it and how they can build it better. And uh what is also important is um not only consider the concepts, uh the beauty of Japanese language is that it can name some phenomenon which we do not uh have words to name in other languages. And when you name something, then you can understand it better. And if you already have the programs designed in order to increase engagement or to ensure that employees have uh well-being or consider workplace as a place to be, you can uh make it uh more structured, you can make it uh deeper, and it will help business to attract better talents at the end. So this is the meaning why we do this program and who can uh benefit from this program on personal level but also on team level and then on company level.
SPEAKER_01It is fascinating. So I looked into that, and there is that that process of encapsulating a philosophy or psychology into one word, it's I think it's called semantic encapsulation. And yeah, the Japanese language has many words that do this, and ikigai goes beyond well-being, it's it's broader and deeper. Yes, it goes beyond happiness, it's not just an emotion. Um and I'm even noticing now there's interest in Japan by Japanese companies thinking, oh yeah, ikigai can be incorporated into the workplace. I've been talking to Japan's biggest business school about this. And I guess to the foreigner, these words are unique, they're new, they're not really loaded with any perceived negativity. So some people might go, oh, you know, another wellness program, and they might roll their eyes. But if if we frame it as ikiguy, it seems quite positive and it's not loaded with any maybe negativity or um negative interpretation. And at the same time, it's very easy to articulate, like, oh, you know, Ibasho is your place to be, but there's a whole psychology behind it, there's all this research behind it, and the same with Ikiguy. Like, Ikigai is you know what makes your life worth living, and that obviously should be work. Like, if you're gonna spend eight hours of your life working every day, it should have meaning, it should give you a sense of purpose. Um, so I think that's the beauty of these words, is they're different, they're not preloaded with any kind of negativity, they're they're interesting, and there's actually decades of research behind both these concepts. And now, even in Japan, there are papers and studies of applying Ikigai and Ibashol uh to the workplace, so it's not like something where we're making up. Um, there are papers we can refer to, and I think it's this very unique and positive approach that's seems to be needed too by younger generations, like Gen Zs and millennials are wanting meaning more than you know, maybe you and I did when we just started working. We just wanted to get started to make money and contemplate meaning. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and you know, Nick, I would like to add one to understanding what the this program is about. It's um that we do not only uh uh show participants how to find it Igaga because it's not about finding. No, it's about recognizing what they already have, and then they can make some diagnostics on where it can be added as uh an element of well-being, and again how it may influence the company uh result at the end. So this is quite a practical program. What I want to say is that it's not only theory, but it's a very practical program because participants who will participate in uh uh how many uh five sessions we have, right? And uh then a reflection session that we will have, they uh will be able to learn the practical tools, how they can recognize uh the elements of uh Ikigai in their current workplace and how they can enrich with the knowledge that they will acquire during this program.
SPEAKER_01We should mention the program. It is a 16-hour executive program, five live online modules and one integration session.
Tools, Heat Map, Guests, And Takeaways
SPEAKER_01And as we talked about, we're we're looking at HR leaders, and these are leaders who want to move beyond standard well-being initiatives and build workplaces where people feel their work matters. So it's it's very logical and makes sense, but I guess to some degree this is you know a fairly ambitious idea we have, and it is a pilot program. Um, but there is evidence, there's theory, but we're we're making it practical with you know with frameworks, with maybe some indexes we'll come up with. Um, and a lot of it's very relatable to positive psychology too. So it's almost like injecting positive psychology into uh the workplace. Also introducing this amazing concept called rolefulness by uh Kato Sensei, Daiki Kato. And that's another area it's like, wow, this is really understanding your role, um, living into your role, feeling your role. But there's also this um approach to communicating that seems very common sense, but seems to be missing in the workplaces that we'll obviously share with people who take the program. But people might be thinking, okay, what do I walk away with? So what will participants walk away with?
SPEAKER_00What we offer them to walk away with is uh a kind of heat map uh across seven dimensions of meaning and belonging, inspired by Mieko Kamiya's work on Ikigai. It's the first uh researcher uh who uh described this Ikigai as a concept and explored the needs behind that so we can see how it can be applied in a corporate environment. Uh, as you mentioned earlier, there will be ideas for enriching the current well-being programs with Japanese concept and practices. Uh there will be diagnostic frameworks which can be used in a corporate environment. There will be a dedicated session related to burnout and mainly focused on participants, and then based on this experience that they will gain during the program, they can use it for managing burnout or mitigating risk with burnout with their teams as well. And uh value would add our invited guests, three people from the Japanese research and professors from the universities from educational background who researched on the Kigai. Japanese calligrapher would add this touch of understanding Japanese culture and how we can bring it to corporate environment, the meaning behind calligraphy, and the noising as a way to add meaning to uh work. We will have a special guest from Globis University where Melissa will talk about uh kokorosashi as a concept which helps uh leaders, those who are leading companies, to add this meaning to their business and align people around their kokorosashi. There are a lot of uh elements which are unique in this program, and I invite everyone who is um keen on how to become a better professional in HR field, a better people leader, better business leader, join this program as you would not find it anywhere else.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think this is quite an ambitious program on our behalf, but it's very exciting and it is it is unique and different, and it is a pilot program, so you'll be part of something special if you if you join this, because we'll be also wanting feedback from the participants and we'll improve it. Just to give a bit of context, this first one will be probably targeting people in Europe. We we obviously have to decide on a time zone uh with uh Alicia being in Japan and and me being in Melbourne and with our uh our networks, but this could be something we offer regularly. And if you want to learn more, you can go to my website, uh Ikigai Tribe, and then on the homepage there will be a hero section dedicated to this, and then you can go visit the information page. So very exciting, and as Alicia shared, we're having special guests who've introduced concepts such as rolefulness, uh, or which katosense, I should say, coined, and then we're having Naoko Mikami talk about uh denoising, and I guess that's a way to manage or prevent burnout. And then we have Melissa from Globus, and Globus is how I connected to this concept of kokorosashi, which we can relate to as company's mission, but it's infused with this idea, it's tied to your kokoro, which is your mind, heart, and spirit as one entity. It's often translated as the leader's mind in a modern context, but traditionally it's you know the heart of the samurai, and a samurai would give their life for their kokorozashi. So I guess in a modern context, you're dedicating a big part of your life for your kokorazashi in business. You're you're wanting to change society positively, which hopefully every company has the intention to do. So we're we're looking at a September start. We'll we'll have all the dates and times on the website. I'm really excited about this, Alicia, and I'm glad uh we've connected and we're doing this. So thank you for trusting me and uh suggesting this.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and Nick, uh you are a trainer of this program and the lead trainer of the program, and uh your experience of uh understanding and uh translating Japanese concept into the languages of people who are not in Japan, it's a valuable addition to the program. So I'm thankful that you um agreed to start it together. And with my passion for my profession in HR and people management, and your passion in uh uh understanding uh profoundly the meaning behind the words in Japanese and our common ikigai on why we do it, because we do want workplace to be more alive and uh has more meaning and adding more meaning to the uh every individual who is in the company. I think this is what makes this program even more um special.
SPEAKER_01I agree, and for quite a while I was thinking Ikigai needs to be in corporate, it needs to be in the workplace, and I realized I can't do this by myself. I'll have to wait or give it time, and then we cross paths, and I realized ah Alysia's the person who can help me. So with your your education, your lived experience, but also your your personality, your attitude, your kindness. I said, Oh yeah, I'd I'd love to partner with Alysia and learn from you how we can infuse Ikigai and how we can make workplaces on eBashol. So I'm very glad we um stumbled upon each other. LinkedIn's a great place to meet people, but I think it's it's also Ikigai. Like Ikigai's this gift that keeps on giving.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Friendships. We're creating a role now for each other. So very excited. So thank you too.
SPEAKER_00Thank you, likewise.
SPEAKER_01So I'd like to end. Uh you kindly gifted me, I believe, your last set of Ikigai coaching cards.
Ikigai Cards, Hope, Kizuna, And Closing
SPEAKER_01So, do you want to talk more about how they came about?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, thank you for mentioning about this uh project of my heart. Uh, I was developing in the state of my sorrow for all the events happening in Ukraine. And uh I am uh supporting until now since. 2018 I'm supporting wounded people in Ukraine so that they could rehabilitate and could come back to life. It's severely wounded people with uh injuries to say um uh brain to say spinal cords and it's long, long time they require to rehabilitate. And I decided that with my feeling and uh uh uh knowledge and uh with my colleagues, we can do something more to collect donations, and we created this coaching cards by coaching because the cards have questions and uh which help you to navigate your life and notice things which maybe you do not notice in your everyday routine, and also there are some elements of uh, for example, Japanese haiku, which also allow you to see a different um view on simple events in your life, but with this poetic touch of Japanese uh poetry. So do you want to draw a card now, Nick, to finalize our podcast? Okay, so wow. So I have drawn a card for you and it says hope or kibo. Which hope is alive within you today? And if it does not work out the way you hoped for, then what is your next step?
SPEAKER_01That's a great question. Well, my hope is for this new life I'm starting to create with my wife of moving back to Japan. And as you know, I I was I spent a month in Japan over uh May and June, intentionally staying at one spot. We weren't really traveling or playing tourists, we thought let's stay in one spot. I networked before the the trip and thought I'll I'll do a I'll do a masterclass, see if I can do that. And yeah, I was able to do that and you attended. So I thought, well, there is a market for workshops in Japan. Um my son's a young man now, so he's ready to do his own thing. So I felt Japan was really calling me, and I thought also to grow my business. So even just over the weekend, as timing would have it, we're having hard collection in our neighborhood, which only happens once a year, and you throw out you know large pieces of furniture or things you're not using anymore. So is the there is this sense like, oh, we've started, we've uh made a date, we're now cleaning up the house. So my my hope is I can return to Japan and create a whole new lifestyle, grow my business, and my wife and I will be closer to her family. And I I seem to have more friends and a larger network actually in Tokyo than I do in Melbourne. So that's my hope, which I'm really starting to create.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And I guess the second part, if it doesn't turn out uh like I hope, um, well, I think it will. So I I think I'll just keep trying. If I have any challenges, I'll reach out to people like you who are my friends.
SPEAKER_03Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_01I think last time when I lived in Japan, I was quite isolated because I lived in a very small town. I had my own small school and I'd I'd built a cage for myself. Uh so I'm I'm aware of what could go wrong. This is why we're you know moving to Tokyo, which has its own challenges, but that's where I think I can find community. And then eventually my wife and I will probably find a place outside of Tokyo, and that'll be another part of the journey. But yeah, I have a lot of hope for the future. And um, I mean that's one of the aspects of Ikigai is having a bright future, having many things to look forward to and to work on your goals. Um What about yourself? Why don't you pull a card out for yourself?
SPEAKER_00Wow, let me try. Iki Zuna. The unbreakable bond between people. Yes, what makes my bonds precious. Uh I like the thought of Professor Daiki Kato in his book, in his new book, he mentioned that uh you are more independent when you can lean on more people. And this this phrase touched my heart because uh it just changes the perspective on independence. You are as much independent as you can lean on as more people, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's a very Japanese uh way of thinking. And even the word jibun, which means self, means self-part. So it's inferred you're not just yourself, you're self-part of something bigger. Yeah. So that makes sense that you can lean in. And I I do think in the West we tend to value um independence and you know self-reliance, and I'm my own person. But Japan seems to recognize, well, you're very interdependent, and we're very reliant on each other, and that's not a bad thing. That's that's how we learn and grow and connect, and that's how communities formed, or Kizuna like ties. Um, I'm uh doing research on Ibasho, and I discovered Kizuna was the word of the year or the kanji of the year when the Fukushima disaster happened. Because people had lost so much. Uh obviously, you know, Japan responded, people responded by helping and volunteering and creating these new connections. And now we're connected, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02Yes, exactly.
SPEAKER_01Very grateful for that.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, likewise.
SPEAKER_01We we've already talked about your playback theatre group as a source of ikigai. What's something else that is a source of ikiguai for you, Alicia, as we end today?
SPEAKER_00Uh connection with nature when I am in the forest, for example. Uh earlier it was like me and forest. Now, when I am in the forest, I feel that I am the forest. And this feeling gives me a lot of uh joy and a lot of happiness and uh uh being not only a part but being uh this nature uh creates a lot of ikigai feeling for me.
SPEAKER_01Yes. I think there are these universal sources of ikigai, like everyone has, whether they know it or not. Food, friendship, um, music, and and definitely nature, where we spend so much time in uh artificial environments. So I think when we reconnect with nature, we feel whole again. Yeah. I think I need to spend some time in nature just before I move to Tokyo. Um but yeah, we we've been researching where we'll live and we've decided to live somewhere not too far from the center of Tokyo, but also close to to nature. It's been a joy to record this. I'm I'm also very hopeful about our program. So that's something I'm looking forward to creating with you and delivering.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, then let's do it, Nick. Let's do it. We put our heart into this program, right?
SPEAKER_01We are, we're putting our hearts and our kokoro. So, yes, listeners, if you're interested in in this, if you work in HR, go to KigGuideTribe.com and then on the website you will see the a link to all the details. You can email us or you can reach out to us on LinkedIn if you have any questions. Thank you very much for your time today, Alyssa. It's been a joy talking to you.
SPEAKER_00Thank you, Nick. Thank you.
SPEAKER_01My pleasure.