The Refining Process

To refine means to improve, fine-tune or tend towards perfection. To refine yourself, you must embrace the process of change, it is an intentional process. The personal refining process is cyclical in nature because we naturally outgrow our current level of success and yearn for something more.

According to Pilar Gerasimo, personal growth and development is not a linear process but a cyclical, continuous voyage through four evolving phases: assessment, commitment, feedback and follow-through – and then back to assessment one again.

At various stages in life, we need to evaluate, review and refine our goals and the processes to get to our desired destination. We are in a fast-paced era and staying fixed on the same roadmap sets us back in terms of achieving our long term goals.

To remain relevant in this dispensation, we must remain up-to-date with current trends and development processes by constantly reviewing our plans and methods of achieving set goals to meet the current demands of our environment.

The basic principles of personal refinement remain constant but can be tailored based on individual uniqueness. This can be accomplished using the following as a guideline;

Re-discover: To re-discover yourself is to find you. It involves identifying and recognising your innermost treasure. You need to seek out what gives you utmost sense of fulfilment and satisfaction.

Your sense of identity may have been lost or buried beneath a pile of distractions due to wrong associations, negative attitudes, low self-esteem and a host of other vices. Before you can change your life, you have to know where you are and what really matters to you. Re-define your core values and set goals that align uniquely with your passion.

Re-package: Re-packaging or rebranding yourself, is to establish your identity. Having set goals which align with your passion, it is important to identify situations and events that can pull you away from remaining focused on your ultimate goal.

Sticking to a new routine is an uphill task that requires a person to minimize activities that can easily cause one to derail. To successfully re-package yourself, you have to remain consistent in practicing new habits in order to gradually reduce and eliminate old habits that may jeopardize the entire refining process.

Re-position: Repositioning yourself is a strategic process that requires you to be visible and project your skills and value. Repositioning yourself moves you from a less visible position to a more visible place.

Make yourself visible by volunteering to add value to existing opportunities. If you do not properly position yourself, you risk missing out on opportunities that could foster you towards achieving your goals.

During the refining process, you retreat to gather momentum before you re-launch yourself or your career. Take advantage of new-age media to sell yourself. Build a network that encourages and challenges you to achieve your goals. Be flexible, remember to re-evaluate and review your goals occasionally.

Written by Hephzibah.