Have you ever felt discontented with where you are in life? At one point, we all do. Nothing is more frustrating like not knowing how to define the difference between where you find yourself and where you need to be.

This is exactly how I felt towards the end of last year. And so I sought out my mentor and friend, and had a tough conversation. In Feb, before the world was brought to its knees by COVID-19, I could not recognize myself after I was asked this question “Of what use, will you be to yourself and to others?” I was angry with myself, for being angry at the question. The more I tried to wave it away, the more I could hear it ring in my ears again. Even into the night. As I started to ponder on this question more, I began to see that I was unable to curve out a path to my destiny. I didn’t like where I was, but I also didn’t know where I wanted to go. This is the moment it became clear I needed new and fresh moments of personal growth and development.

So I did what many millennials do – google this stuff – The process by which a person recognizes himself or herself and continually develops himself or herself to reach his or her full potential. And some more It is a process of physical, social and spiritual growth that lasts a lifetime. A Lifetime! So it was clear that if I start, I have to be in this process of active learning and developing new skills for a very long time.

I have been told that to learn a new habit, remove anything that would be a hindrance to the learning process. The beauty with personal growth is that the possibilities are endless – you can learn as much as you want, in as many fields as you want. But it became quickly clear, for me, that I have to be open to change and new opportunities. The research promises that as you continue to grow, you will be embarking on an extraordinary and meaningful path in life. For someone looking to redefine themselves, this didn’t sound so bad.

The second amazing thing I learned is that for personal growth, it’s never too late to start. The first time doesn’t have to be so big and so expensive. This is not an easy space to be in – but I had the fortunate experience of having 1 final ingredient – a coach who would not let me off the hook. So when did I start this journey of self rediscovery? I started on a Monday evening when my mentor offered me an opportunity to work under his leadership. I am a trained nurse. I love helping people get better. Never before had I imagined myself as a Marketing and business development associate in a management consulting firm. My job has required me to learn the essence of the coaching business, what developing people looked like from this angle. My experiences are so varied I have spent the last whole week working on this very blog – my first! Every day seems like I discover how much more I don’t know. The thing is, I can’t tell you what it’s called, but I have this feeling that tells me this should’ve been me some years back.

The most successful people place a great deal of importance on furthering their personal growth and development. They may be at the peak of their careers but are still taking time out of their busy schedules to push themselves to new insights, new networks and endlessly out of their comfort zone. These people seem to unleash more and more of their inner potential. If I can step into the unknown, only fueled by the vision to grow, why not you?

Trust me the process is not that simple and there can be no universal strategy for personal growth and development, as each person is an individual and every path is different. You don’t have to walk in my personal growth and development shoes – this stuff is individual. But the decision to start – this is simple – Ask yourself: Of what value do you want to be to yourself and the people around you?

My name is Bena Assimwe, and I still want to make people feel great – healthy and whole – and for the foreseeable future, I will have a few more experiences of growth and development in this work of management coaching before I can reach my value goal.