The document discusses the importance of self-discovery in understanding one's potential, gifts, and purpose, emphasizing that every individual is created with a unique purpose by God. It outlines key questions and stages in the self-discovery process, including personal and potential discovery, and highlights the role of understanding personality traits in making informed life choices. The author encourages individuals to seek a relationship with God to reveal their true purpose and to pursue excellence in all aspects of life.

1. SELF DISCOVERY
OLADIIPO Damilola

2. THE ESSENCE OF
SELF-DISCOVERY
ON YOUR
EXCELLENTIA
PURSUIT.

3. “Until you make the unconscious
conscious, it will direct your life and
you will call it fate”. C.G. Jung.
“Knowing yourself is the beginning of
all wisdom”- Aristotle.

4. INTRODUCTION
As every electronic gadget is created to meet a specific
need, so likewise is every human on the surface of the
earth.
God has created us to fill a particular spot, to dominate it
with something he has deposited in us (potential, gift).
Looking at the word potent- it means something that is
unused, an untapped resource. Potential means capable
of being, but not yet in existence, latent.

5. What I mean is this, God did not give us these potentials
for decoration, but it's for us to discover and use it for his
purpose and to benefit mankind.
That is why I will be taking you briefly on a journey of
self-discovery, and I believe that at the end short e-book,
you understand God’s original plan for you and you will
begin to see its manifestation in you life.
So please spare me few minutes out of your precious
time as we embark on this journey.

6. WHAT IS SELF DISCOVERY?
"True leadership (excellence)
is not a product of a course of
study but a course in selfdiscovery".

7. Self discovery is simply finding or uncovering your own
individuality.
You are created as an original product not a counterfeit.
You are created independently, as an entity and you need
to discover your originality.
In the pursuit of self-discovery, we often encounter the
challenge of identity crisis.
Identity refers to the stable, defining characteristics of a
person that makes them an individual.

8. Having a solid sense of identity requires a thorough
understanding of oneself, traits, thought pattern,
strength, weakness.

10. According to Erikson, an identity crisis is a time of
intensive analysis and exploration of different ways of
looking at oneself.
It is being experienced at various points throughout life,
particularly at a point of great change, e.g. beginning of a
new job, graduating from the tertiary institution, etc.
I have come to discover that most people that do not
understand themselves, their purpose and potential fall
for anything that comes their way.

11. ‘knowing yourself is the
beginning of wisdom'.
Aristotle

12. When they find their friends engaging in an activity
without knowing the reason, they also want to be
because they don't have their personal identity.
This knowledge will help you in most decisions you make
like career path, choice of friends, and choice of what you
read and listen to.
Before you can be excellent in anything you do, you
need to answer these 3 important questions.

13. Thee question of your Person, Potential and Purpose.
Who am I? - answers the question of your PERSON
What is my gift? - answers the question of POTENTIAL
How and whom can I serve? - answers the question of
PURPOSE

14. 3 P’s
3 P’s
PERSONAL
POTENTIAL
PURPOSE
DISCOVERY
DISCOVERY

16. The 1st point of call is to know God, an understanding and
relationship with him helps you understand who you are.
“Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew the; and before thou
came forth out of the womb I sanctified thee and I ordained
thee unto the nations” Jeremiah 1:5
“Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not
according to our own works, but according to his own purpose
and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world
began”
II timothy 1:9

17. No one is a mistake; God has specific purpose and plan
for every individual.
God has given unto every man a talent or potential
according to his or her ability, your ability to discover
them and put to proper use gives you fulfillment in life.
And unto one he gave five talents, to another two and to
another one: and unto every man according to his several
ability; and straightway took his journey. Matt:25:15

18. PERSONAL DISCOVERY
‘Who in the world am I? Ah! That's the
greatest puzzle'
Lewis Carroll.

20. This is about understanding your personal self. Most
people don't know who they really are, their personality
traits (introvert, extrovert), temperament (Choleric,
sanguine, melancholy, phlegmatic) etc.
When you have an understanding off these various traits,
it helps you in decision making about your life and future.
It helps you understand your Strength, weakness,
opportunities, and threats.

21. Your personality is the essence of who you are and how
you appear to other people. It lends continuity to your
identity over time, tying together your early childhood
and ongoing life experiences, your unique approach to
the people and events around you, and your aspirations
and apprehensions on how you may develop in the
future.
It affects, and is affected by how others perceive and
respond to you.
It is reflected in the things you say, the way you feel, and
the way you choose to lead your life.

22. It is also reflected in the way others perceive and respond
to you, as well as in your personal beliefs, goals and
expectations, hopes and fears, even the way you perceive
other people and interpret their behaviors. The more you
understand about your personality, the better you can
understand your actions, your feelings and your
relationships.
Briefly I will go deep into personality types using the
Berkeley Personality Profile which uses the big five
personality dimension.

23. EXAMPLE OF A PERSONALITY TEST RESULT
EXAMPLE OF A PERSONALITY TEST RESULT
23

24. The big five dimension captures an entire continuum of
individual differences, such that the behavioral
characteristics of people at one end of the dimension is
the opposite of the behavior at the other extreme.
We have different personality test you can conduct to
determine or have an idea of your personality.
Two of them would be mentioned in this material but you
can google to get the others and also conduct a
personality test.
24

25. MYERS BRIGGS PERSONALIYTY TEST
25

26. Berkeley Personality Profile
the big five personality dimension
the big five personality dimension
 Expressive style/ Extraversion
Ranges from being quiet, restrained, introverted TO being
energetic, enthusiastic, and extraverted or anywhere
in between.
 Interpersonal style/ Agreeableness
Ranges from being aloof (not friendly, cold, distant),
inconsiderate, or even cruel at one extreme TO being
warm, generous and even self-sacrificing at the other.
26

27.  Work style/ Conscientiousness
It concerns the extent to which an individual focuses on
tasks and meets responsibilities ranging from
preferring to procrastinate and take it easy TO
working hard with intense dedication to
commitments.
 Emotional style/ Neuroticism
Concerns an individual's temperament and typical way of
dealing with stress, ranging from being calm, relaxed,
and even-tempered TO being moody and emotionally
intense.
27

28.  Intellectual style/ Openness
It reflects the extent to which you are geared towards
new experiences and ideas. Refers to the extent to
which a person favors familiar and traditional ideas
and experiences or prefers to question the norms,
taking an original, creative, or analytical approach
towards life.
Knowing your personality will help you understand and
control recurrent patterns in your own life
experiences. It might be leading you to repeatedly
make the same type of life choices, seek out the same
type of personal
28

29. relationships, drift into the same type of work situation,
and experience the same types of worries, delights, or
frustrations.
You need to understand that your personality doesn't out
rightly determine Gods purpose for your life. It's just a
way of realizing your status as human.
What I mean by this is, its very easy for you to conclude
that because you are an introvert, cool, calm and reserve;
you might not find yourself functioning in any leadership
position in the future.
29

30. Moses wasn’t eloquent, after God made his purpose
known to him, he was still conscious of his personality
(weakness). The book of Exodus chapter three and four in
the holy bible covers the story.
Then Moses said to the Lord, “o my lord, I am not eloquent,
neither before nor since you have spoken to your servant; but
I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” Exodus:4:10
God uses the foolish things of this world to confound the
wise so that his glory will be made known.
You might possess some character that does
30

31. not incline or support what you envisage of becoming in
life and you are almost getting confused and asking
yourself if this was the
purpose you were created to fulfil?
My admonition to you this day is that you should ask God
for help. He has sufficient grace to help you fulfill your
ministry. In our weakness, his strength is made perfect.
That is why we have the Holy Spirit, and it's important
that every Christian is filled with this spirit.
A good example is Apostle Peter, as a disciple,
31

32. he was timid to identify with Christ when he was about to
die, but after he received the Holy spirit in the upper
room, the confidence came to face the crowd and preach
the gospel and also fulfil the essence of his apostleship.
You need to come to a point of realization that we are
weak and insufficient of our own then God will be ready
to stretch out his helping to as many as are sincere.
32

33. PEOTENTIAL DISCOVERY
“The potential of an average person is like a
huge ocean un-sailed, a new continent
unexplored, a world of possibilities waiting to
be released and channeled towards some
great good” -Brain Tracy

34. POTENTIAL DISCOVERY

35. Potential discovery is about discovering talents/ gifts
God has imbedded in you during creation that are meant
to create solutions to problems.
Potentials could be in form of gifts/ talents which is
innate. Its inborn, all you need to do is discover it and
Skills which could be acquired through formal or informal
training.
You discover the talents by asking yourself, what are
those things you do with ease without a formal training
or education?

36. Things You are just good at naturally e.g. (painting,
writing, speaking, sports etc.
Briefly, here are 10 questions to help you discover your
potential:
Think about each of these questions carefully and answer
them honestly. Record your responses.
What is my deepest desire?
What are the things you want most in life?

37. What is my passion?
What is the thing you simply must do? What animates or
energizes you/ what makes you forget to eat or sleep?
What makes me angry?
What do you wish you could change about the world?
What are the things you consider un-just, inadequate or
inferior in quality?
What ideas are persistent?
What ideas, inventions, or innovations keep coming back
to you?

38. What do I constantly imagine?
What is your vision for your life or others' life?
What do I want to do for humanity?
What problem would you like to solve? What need would
you fill?
What are my recurring dreams?
What do you daydream about doing or accomplishing?
What do you wish you could do if you could do anything?

39. What brings me the greatest fulfillment?
What activities, project, courses, jobs, and hobbies have
brought you the most fulfillments?
What could I do forever even if there was no monetary
compensation?
What would you do most of the time even if you never
earned any money for it?
What would I rather be doing?
What would you prefer to be doing right now? What
would you do today if you had the day off to do anything
you wanted?

40. Review your answers, highlight recurring themes and
noting how your answer fits into the picture of who you
are and what you enjoy doing.
Answering these questions will give you an understanding
of your potentials and how you can channel them to
achieving Gods purpose for your life.

41. There are 4 basic stages in Potential discovery:
Understanding stage: this is the stage of understanding
that there is something we call potential and you have a
measure of it in you.
Realization stage: this is where you realize that God has
deposited something inside of you and it takes you to
discover it. The potential in you will only come to reality
if only you accept that you are full of potentials.
“Realization begets actualization”.

42. Developing stage: this stages comes up after you have an
understanding and realization of your potentials. You
have to develop or refine it. Education alone cannot give
you a gift; it can help you refine a gift. Gold is a good
example. In its crude state, its not attractive therefore it
needs refinement to give you the desired gold.
To develop or refine your gifts, you have to:
Spend time alone in thought.
Write down your desires and visions.
Read books relating to your potential.

43. Identify people who can help you.
Take advantages of the opportunity to learn.
Volunteer your services.
Your gift might be music, you are naturally gifted, you
have perfect pitch, you play by ear or sing like a
nightingale; but to use this gift effectively, to perform
at a professional level, to compose music others can
reproduce, or to teach people in church or in a college,
you will need to study music formally, that is the
process of development. It is very essential to having a
refined output.

44. Actualization stage: this is the stage where the outcome
of the refined gift is being used to achieve Gods purpose
for your life. Before actualization, the experience may not
be pleasing, friends and family may antagonize you, you
might even have to change your circle of influence to
actualize your potential.
After actualization you can use the refined gift to serve
humanity or make it a source of income.

45. PURPOSE DISCOVERY
If you can’t figure out your purpose,
figure out your passion, for your passion will
lead you right into your purposeBishop T.D Jakes.

47. God has created you for a particular purpose, and you
must discover it. Purpose is just something you have
been destined and designed to do per time.
It's something that anytime you are around it, you feel a
sensation burning within you, you feel there is a way you
can make this better, you feel an eagle calling on to the
eaglet in you, the passion is just there-that is your
purpose calling out to you.

48. Passion is a very strong enthusiastic feeling about a
person or thing. It can cause you act in a dangerous way.
Passion is motivated by a vision, birthed from a
conviction, and produced by a sense of purpose- Myles
Munroe.
Look at the account of of Jesus critically in John: 4:6-35,
even though he was hungry his passion made him forget
the hunger and pursue his purpose on earth
John Knox of Scotland said something- give me Scotland
lest I die.

49. These are few examples of men who were passionate
about something.
Is there something you can lay down your life for that
even when people are seeing the negative, when all hope
is lost you can still stand for?
Purpose is original intent for your life and it must be
found. It is the reason for which we exist, the thing the
creator sent us to do.
The bible speaks of the children of Issachar who had an
understanding of time and who knows what Israel ought to
do.

50. They understood purpose.
Every experience you go through in life is preparing you
for that great purpose God has planned for you. Personal
and potential discovery helps you discover your purpose.
Purpose changes per time that is why you have to be
spiritually inclined to know Gods purpose for you per
time and until you fulfil the purpose for a particular phase
of your life, you can’t move to the next.
A specific purpose at different times accumulates to a
future purpose you have

51. been designed to fulfill.
God can reveal to you what he wants you to do with your
life, and also give to you a step by step approach to
achieving it.
Purpose is different from your career or course of study,
for some it is attached to it, for some it's not. What's your
purpose for being in school? What the purpose for the
situation you find yourself in now? When you find
purpose at every stage and phase of your life, fulfilling
destiny won't be a difficult task and like I earlier
mentioned.

52. God is a major factor in whatever discovery you are
making
“Those that know their God shall be strong and do exploit”
Dan 11:32
To discover Gods purpose, you will also need his manualthe bible.
Before you make plans for your life, consult God for his
purpose for your life. Plans should be an outcome of
purpose.
“There are many plans in a mans heart, nevertheless the
Lord’s counsel- that will stand” Proverbs 19:21.

53. In the book of Myles Munroe- ‘in charge’ he says that:
The creator will reveal your purpose only if you have a
passion to know it.
The creator will only tell you what you want to know.
The creator will only show you what you want to see.
The creator will only take you as far as you want to go.
When you discover your purpose, you become immune
to opposition; you push through

54. anything or go around any obstacle to pursue your vision.
No matter what people do to hold you down, they cannot
because you have a purpose. It's your driving force. In I
Tim:2:7, you will see that Paul understood his purpose.
The reason for your present position is not because God
isn't ready to make his plans known to you, but because
you are not interested in knowing.
The scripture makes us understand that God is able to do
exceedingly above all you could ever

55. think or ask for according to the power that works in you.
My people perish because they lack proper knowledge.
Knowledge is key in taking a mastery of yourself and a full
delivery of your potentials and Gods purpose for your life.
Excellence is a virtue every true child of God must aspire
to attain, and as God has opened your eyes to
understand who you are and why you are created, you
will begin to manifest excellence in all you do in the
precious name of Jesus.

56. REFERENCES
• Wikipedia
• In charge- Myles Munroe
• Who do you think you are?- Keith Harary, PH.D.,
Eileen Donahue, PH.D>
and

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