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Motivational Speaker Justin Constantine Is Thriving in the Face (No Pun Intended!) of Change
Even a Motivational Speaker Can Continue To Learn About Change Management
As a motivational speaker, I often talk about thriving in the face of change. It is a concept I take very seriously, and believe that we are all capable of doing exactly that.
However, very recently I had major oral reconstructive surgery, which hopefully is the last surgery related to my war injury from 2006. The upside is that now I finally have upper dentures that ultimately will work as well as regular teeth (I lost most of my teeth when I was shot in the head in Iraq), and although have had bottom dentures since about 2008, I haven’t had upper teeth this whole time). The downside is that it has been quite an adjustment, and I feel like I am taking a step backwards so that I can move forwards.
My wife has really stepped up and makes food that not only is consistent with the special diet I am on because of my cancer diagnosis from 2020, but is also soft enough so that (for now) I really don’t have to chew it much while my mouth recovers. And, it also tastes delicious! But it is hard for me to pronounce some words, and the dentures cause more drooling than before.
So, I am going through significant change right now myself, and in the face of that, I still feel like I am thriving. The doctors were actually able to do a lot more during my surgery than they originally anticipated (it lasted 4.5 hours), and they were very happy after my first post-op appointment a couple of weeks ago. Of course, my mouth is not the same as it was before I was injured, and never will be. But that is not how I measure success. More importantly, I can eat, speak, smile, and my mouth is adapting every day.
If you look around, you are likely going through some sort of change yourself right now. I suggest that get to decide what success looks like, and what it will take to get there. For me, it isn’t being exactly how I was before, but a different version of myself that can still accomplish everything I need to do. Different doesn’t mean bad, worse or problematic. It just means different. Which is fine with me as I work through this change and end up in a better place!
Justin Constantine is an inspirational and motivational speaker who speaks (live and virtually) to companies, nonprofit organizations and universities of all shapes and sizes. He focuses on thriving in the face of change, resilience, that it’s okay to ask for help, and that you are stronger than you think you are.
