There comes a point in every journey when movement alone stops feeling like progress. I know; you’ve been going back to back since January; the meetings, deadlines, and achievements keep piling; yet a quiet question begins to whisper underneath it all:
“Is this still me?”
That whisper is not a sign of confusion. It’s an invitation: one to pause, reflect, reconnect with the person behind the progress.
Because sometimes, growth doesn’t mean pressing forward. It means turning inward.
Dr. Clement Obadimu once said, “To have a meaningful life, there’s need to discover yourself.”
Those words: so simple yet profound. They remind us that purpose isn’t a static goal we achieve once and for all; it’s a living conversation between who we are currently and who we are becoming based on our choices and beliefs.
Rediscovery and Self-Awareness
Self-awareness is the beginning of every meaningful transformation. Like Socrates said “Know Thyself”.
It’s the moment we stop moving on autopilot and begin asking deeper questions:
Am I still growing in the direction that matters?
Do my current pursuits still reflect my values?
What have I learned about myself that deserves a response?
Many people fear these questions because they often demand change. Yet ignoring them can lead to quiet stagnation: that subtle feeling of being busy yet no fulfillment.
Rediscovery doesn’t always mean quitting your job or changing everything. Sometimes, it means changing how you show up. It means infusing meaning back into routine. It means remembering why you started in the first place.
As Dr. Obadimu often teaches, “Repackage yourself to relevance for growth to occur.”
Growth requires not just effort, but evolution. It’s the willingness to refine your skills, your mindset, and your goals so they match the person you’ve become.
Think of Ada, a corporate banker who loved her job but felt a quiet pull toward something more impactful. After years of climbing the ladder, she started a small weekend mentorship program for young women in finance. That “side project” soon became her greatest source of fulfillment; the space where her experience met her passion.
Or Samuel, a teacher who left the classroom not because he was tired of teaching, but because he wanted to teach differently. He now leads a social innovation hub that empowers youth to design community-based solutions. “I didn’t leave education,” he told me. “I just changed my classroom.”
Their stories remind us that purpose doesn’t always require a grand reinvention sometimes, it’s a gentle recalibration.
Dr. Obadimu captures it perfectly: “Sometimes, the wrong job can open the right door.”
Every season, even the uncomfortable ones, carries clues about who we are becoming.
When you pause long enough to listen, you realize that purpose often grows quietly beneath the surface of your everyday experiences.
Reflections for Rediscovery
If you’re in a season of questioning or transition, know that it’s not a sign of weakness, it’s the start of wisdom.
Here are a few reflections that can guide you back to clarity:
1. Revisit your beginnings. What originally drew you to your field or calling? That spark still matters.
2. Identify your current energy. What activities make you feel alive and which drain you? Energy often reveals alignment.
3. Reframe your challenges. Instead of asking, “Why is this happening to me?” try, “What is this season trying to teach me?”
4. Take inventory of your growth. You may not be where you planned to be, but who you’ve become might be exactly who you needed to become.
5. Listen to feedback. Sometimes, the people around us see our strengths long before we do.
Rediscovery is not about reinventing yourself to impress the world; it’s about reintroducing yourself to yourself.
Mentorship: A Mirror for Growth
Rediscovery is deeply personal, but it doesn’t have to be solitary.
That’s where mentorship becomes invaluable.
A good mentor doesn’t tell you who to be, they hold up a mirror so you can see yourself more clearly.
They help you connect the dots between your story, your strengths, and your next steps.
Dr. Obadimu puts it beautifully: “The passing on of knowledge is the bedrock of effective mentorship.”
Mentorship is not just guidance; it’s reflection in motion. Through conversation, shared experience, and honest feedback, it helps us make sense of where we’ve been and where we’re going.
When we open ourselves to being mentored; and, in turn, to mentoring others, growth multiplies. What begins as self-awareness becomes shared wisdom. What starts as rediscovery becomes legacy.
The Growth That Begins Within
Every so often, life invites us to pause, not because we’re failing, but because we’re evolving.
Those pauses are sacred. They are where realignment happens.
The truth is, you can’t outgrow who or what you haven’t taken time to understand.
Purpose thrives in clarity, and clarity is born in stillness.
Even though the year is coming to an end, this is the best time for a retreat.
So take a moment. Reflect. Reconnect.
Ask yourself: Who am I becoming? What matters most to me now?
And remember: growth isn’t just about where you’re headed next.
It’s about how deeply you understand the person taking that journey.
Because the moment you look inward, everything outward begins to make sense.