Hi, I’m Tamina.

I’m a former New Yorker who lives in Michigan with my husband, his two kids (the third is in college), a sassy cat, a gentle dog, and some fish. I have a BSE (Bachelor of Science in Engineering) in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan. My parents are from Japan and I am completely bilingual.

In October of 2019, I left my nine-year career of working as an engineer in the automotive industry. I realized that office work life was not for me. I also wanted to work closer to home. Despite having experienced great companies and coworkers, I could never shake the feeling that I was meant for something else. That is when I decided to return to my retail roots.

My first day of training at my new retail job completely validated my choice. Despite being an introvert, I thrive on helping other people. I felt that I was helping people and my community by doing the best job I could. My previous jobs were developing automobiles or components for them. Even so, I never felt that I was making a meaningful impact in my community.

Then COVID-19 hit and my company stayed open as an essential store. Now, more than ever, I feel that I am helping my community and the people who are a part of it. I felt an even stronger need to reach out to people beyond my community, and that is how Ikigai for Tamina came to life. (See my post here on how I started this blog)

Feeling purpose is a great source of motivation. Ikigai is Japanese for “reason for being,” or the answer to what drives you in your passion. What gives you purpose? What keeps you getting up out of bed every day? See my post here on what ikigai is and how it affects your life.

I know what it feels like to not know my purpose. It led to depression, loss of motivation, and feeling despair at every moment.

I feel that I am closer to finding my true ikigai and passion, and I wanted a way to follow my journey. This is my story, and I hope that by sharing it with you, I can help you find and nurture your ikigai too. Thank you for joining me at Ikigai for Tamina.