How to Turn Challenges Into Opportunities with Cassandra Worthy

Mar 7

Written By Adia Gooden

— EPISODE 72 —

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Cassandra Worthy [00:00:00] And I truly feel we can't embrace our full authenticity unless we get bold and daring to come to know ourselves. I think the true authenticity happens when you know you. And it's been a huge journey of self-understanding, self-discovery through sobriety that I think has really brought me into my true, authentic light.
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Dr. Adia Gooden [00:00:27] Welcome to the Unconditionally Worthy Podcast. In this podcast, I will guide you on your journey to connect with the true source of your self-worth. Each week we'll discuss barriers to unconditional self-worth, the connection between self-worth and relationships, self-worth practices you can apply to your life, and how to use self-worth as a foundation for living courageously. I'm your host, Dr. Adia Gooden, a licensed clinical psychologist, dance enthusiast, and a dark chocolate lover who believes deeply that you are worthy unconditionally.
Hello and welcome to another episode of the Unconditionally Worthy Podcast. I'm so excited that you're listening that you're here. I am recording this at the very, very end of January, the last day of January. So you're probably listening to it a few months later. But I've just come back from an amazing summit called the ROI Summit in Puerto Rico, and it was re-energizing, invigorating, inspiring, empowering. And so I got so much out of that summit, and I'm really excited to sort of be bringing that energy back with me. And I also got some sunshine, which is good because y'all, if you've been listening for a while, you don't want the Cali girl at heart. And I need the sun, and it's in the middle of Chicago winter, and it is very cold. So anyway, I am feeling energized and reinvigorated and just really good.
And then I just recorded an episode of the podcast with Cassandra Worthy, who's our guest for this episode. And she's incredible. She has such dynamic energy, it just radiates off of her over miles through my computer screen. And so this was an awesome conversation. It was another one of those conversations where we are in different worlds, right? Like she is a chemical engineer by training, but she has sort of created this program, this framework of Change Enthusiasm. And she's built a multimillion-dollar consulting company, speaking company, where she goes into companies and helps them with change. And her insights are valuable, not only for companies but also for us as individuals. And it was so cool and excited to talk with her and see where there's alignment and parallels between what I talk about and what she talks about. So it is an incredible episode if you're looking for some energy and some inspiration and a new way of thinking about how do you manage your own energy in your own life. This is going to give you so many gems. And also she has such a model for transitioning out of a 9 - 5, a very successful corporate career into something that felt even more powerful and expansive and creative for her, and building this multimillion-dollar company. So let's get into the show.
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Okay. I am so excited to welcome Cassandra Worthy to the podcast. Cassandra Worthy is the leading expert in Change Enthusiasm. She is lighting the world on fire with her refreshingly unique take on not just managing, but growing through change. Through her consulting firm, Change Enthusiasm Global, she has shared this revolutionary approach for not only embracing change but using it to propel you to heights you never imagined. With thousands all over the world. She is trusted by clients around the globe, including Google, Bank of America, Johnson & Johnson, CVS Pharmacy, and Cisco. After spending nearly 15 years working as an executive with both Procter & Gamble and Berkshire Hathaway, thriving through some of the biggest acquisitions ever recorded in the consumer package goods industry, Cassandra decided to cultivate the mindset and tools she had practiced to grow through these disruptions in a way that inspires, invigorates and motivates others to grow through their change challenges. Welcome to the podcast, Cassandra. I am so excited to have you here.
Cassandra Worthy [00:04:34] What it do? Thank you so much. I'm so excited to be here. Because I feel like this podcast was meant for me.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:04:42] It was, you had the last name Worthy like you were meant to be on this podcast, I love it.
Cassandra Worthy [00:04:48] I'm telling you, where you've been, where you've been all my life.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:04:51] I love it. Well, I'd love to kind of start our conversation where I start all my conversations with guests, which is by asking you to share about your own self-worth journey.
Cassandra Worthy [00:05:03] Sure, yeah, absolutely. So I have always had an insatiable curiosity. I have always been a very curious person, that child, asking all the questions, the what, the wheres, the what fors. Even if I wasn't voicing them, I was always thinking them. And then I feel that the disciplines of science and math kind of found me because they armed me with these tools to answer all these questions in the mysteries of life. And so I ended up getting into chemical engineering-
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:05:28] Interesting.
Cassandra Worthy [00:05:29] … at Georgia Tech. And just loved it. Because it helped me solve really complex problems. That's what you learn in an engineering degree. You learn how to solve problems, how to think. And so I ended up taking that degree into the consumer packaged goods industry. And I spent 12 years at Procter & Gamble doing really cool stuff. I'll geek out just for a minute on you.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:05:55] Sure.
Cassandra Worthy [00:05:56] But I really enjoyed like shampoo formulations, shampoo, scale up, blades and razors technology, battery innovation. And it also let me travel the world. So I got to experience a lot of different cultures, lot of technologies, and again, solving problems. And then I spent about three and a half, four years at Berkshire as a part of the Duracell business. Because Duracell got acquired by Berkshire. It was once a part of Procter & Gamble. But then those last several years working in corporate probably the biggest part of my journey, and what I call a pivot point for me is when I chose sobriety, is when I chose to say yes to my alcoholism. And when I stepped into sobriety, no longer numbing emotions, no longer living in a haze, in a fall, I was able to hear that intuition that I had been hearing for many, many years, that there's something bigger, there's something better, that I should be doing some talents with the world to make it a better place. And that intuition just got louder and louder and louder, not numbed out by drugs or alcohol. And so I started following curiosity, what could that be? I got to listen to this whisper voice. And eventually, I found myself on a stage talking about something that I actually cared about that I was very passionate about, and Change Enthusiasm. And I ended up sunsetting my corporate career in 2019. And I've been off to the races ever since.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:07:18] Wow.
Cassandra Worthy [00:07:19] Bringing Change Enthusiasm to the world through my consulting company.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:07:23] You gave me chills, right? When you said I decided to choose sobriety, and that opened up your ability to really listen to your intuition, your internal wisdom, your gut. And I think that's so powerful for a number of reasons. One is you clearly had a successful career before that, right? You clearly, right? Like you were a whiz, a science whiz. Like not many people say, oh, I loved chemical engineering, right? But you, right? That's not a common thing. But for you to succeed, right? You succeeded in that, you had this successful career and then you still recognize that you were not listening to a part of yourself that could take you to even greater heights, right? And that the alcohol for you, or the substance use was what was kind of like covering over numbing. And I think so many people do that, right? So many people sort of numb or dull their internal voice. Because it's inconvenient. Give up this six-figure salary. Give up this security, give up this W-2, give up this relationship. Like whatever it is, right? It's scary, it's inconvenient. So you better dull it. Maybe it's shopping, maybe it's eating, maybe it's substance use. Maybe it's overexercise. Really, there's a lot of ways that we can sort of tune out or disconnect from this truth. And when you stopped using substances, that was what you couldn't ignore it anymore.
Cassandra Worthy [00:09:01] I'm telling you.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:09:02] And then, yeah.
Cassandra Worthy [00:09:03] And there was something,
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:09:04] Go ahead.
Cassandra Worthy [00:09:04] You go.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:09:05] I was going to say-
Cassandra Worthy [00:09:06] There was something-
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:09:07] … tell us about what life has felt. So answer what you were going to say and then share like how life has opened up for you once you've sort of listened to your internal voice.
Cassandra Worthy [00:09:20] Absolutely. So there was a mantra. There's something that I continued to repeat to myself when I started to hear that doubt. Starting to hear, Cassandra, what are you thinking? As you said, why are you going to leave a six-figure salary? Why are you going to leave a career that you are really like kicking butt in? Why are you going to leave something that ultimately you're really enjoying? Get to solve complex problems. You get to deliver this innovation to the market and take your friends to the grocery store and say, yo, I helped design that. I helped scale that up. It was really a lot of fun. And I always had that sense, that thought, why are you going to leave? Why are you going to leave into this world of unknown? And then I decided to rest on the trust that if I was working in a position giving a lot of my time, energy, and talent to a work plan that was maybe 20 or 25% of work that used my natural gifts and talents, and really lit me up about 20, 25%.
If the universe, if the world paid me as much as it did, just at 25%, what if I go to 90? What if I go to 95%? What could that look like? And so I removed that self-limiting belief that I was leaving this really healthy salary into this unknown where maybe I'll never ever get to that amount. I'm like no, I'm going to trust, if I'm doing three times as much of work that lights me up and that shares my gifts and passions, I'm going to trust that I'm going to be taken care of. And honestly, when I left, my goal was to just match the salary that I left. And now I've built a multimillion-dollar consulting company. So I've-
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:10:57] Have exceeded.
Cassandra Worthy [00:10:58] … gone many times over. Yeah. And I'll tell you, when you walk on that path when you share your light when you identify what those gifts are, and I feel that the purpose and I forget who did this quote originally, but that purpose is to understand your gifts and then share it with the world as freely and as openly as you can.
So when I started doing that, you talking about doors opening, you talking about people coming into my life at a time exactly when I needed them. And it's been magical. And I tell people now, every single day, I'm in awe. I'm in awe of what I have co-created in this life of mine. Continuing striving to live the mission of nurturing the world's resiliency and adaptability through data-driven insights. Building leadership capability through change with research-backed tools and strategies, and doing that all over the world. And then of course, living my individual purpose, which I have come to find is to enable that light, this joy, this energy, this effervescence that I feel within myself to enable that within another. And when I get off a stage and I get out of a meeting, when I leave an interaction at Walmart and I feel that light through somebody's face, through their eyes, through their smile, that's magic to me, that is a magic moment. And that's what I feel is my true purpose here in life. So, it's been incredible, incredible journey.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:12:21] So inspiring. And it radiates from you. Your energy radiates, and most people are listening to this, just so you all know. We also put these videos on YouTube so you could see what Cassandra looks like or you can look her up, but you have a very unique, cool style. And so I think that also it seems like you come into the world as fully yourself, right? You're going into these corporations, not with like.
Cassandra Worthy [00:12:49] I do. But I will tell you that has been a journey. That has really been a journey. And I feel like in order to live authentically, and I know we're hearing that word a lot, it's been tossed around a lot. It's something that's very important to me. And for me, I see authenticity as fluid. I see it as it grows. It changes as you grow. But I think there's an essence within you that when you strive to discover that, when you strive to understand that you can maintain that essence moving through every stage of life, and maybe what resonates with you, what lights you up, it might be different from when you were 15 than when like I'm sitting out at 41. But there's still a certain essence about me that I continue to let shine. And I truly feel we can't embrace our full authenticity unless we get bold and daring to come to know ourselves. I think the true authenticity happens when you know you. And it's been a huge journey of self-understanding, self-discovery through sobriety that I think has really brought me into my true authentic light. And I'm so happy to share that with the world. And I think it's been one of the key drivers, the engines of growth for my speaking business and for the consultancy.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:14:09] Yeah. It comes from the inside out, right? We have to be authentic with ourselves, know ourselves deeply in order to share that with the world. And I also like what you're saying about it evolving over time, right? There may be some ways you want to express yourself, some things that you enjoy or want to do when you're in one phase or stage of life, that change and transition. And that doesn't necessarily mean that you were being inauthentic. It just means you're an evolving human. And as long as you're breathing, you're probably evolving.
Cassandra Worthy [00:14:41] Yeah, totally. And again, if y'all go watch the YouTube or watch wherever it's posted on video, check out Dr. Adia as well, because I see you and I see what looks like a beautiful authentic spirit as well.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:14:52] Thank you.
Cassandra Worthy [00:14:53] So I always like to ask people and listen, I'm going to get selfish right quick, y'all, please excuse me. But how would you define authenticity? It's just because we're hearing it so often, and so I'm curious, for people that I meet, what is your definition? How do you think of it?
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:15:09] I love that question. I think of one of the words that comes to mind is like alignment, right? So sort of feeling aligned with kind of the inside and the outside feeling in alignment, right? So being like what you feel inside mirroring sort of what you express outside. And now, certainly, right? Like we are not always going to express exactly what we feel on the inside because sometimes it's not appropriate, right? Like sometimes it's not the right place. A small example might be if you're feeling really unhappy and then somebody asks you how you are and you're like, I'm fine, I'm great, I'm good, right? That's not an alignment, right? You know what I mean? And that doesn't mean you tell every random person, I'm having an awful day and things suck and whatever.
But it may be that you're like, I'm okay. You know? Like there's some stuff I'm not getting into it, but I'm okay, right? So there's a sense of like things on the inside are aligned with the outside. And I also agree with you that it's an inner knowing, right? Like knowing truly what is it that you feel that you want? Because if you don't know what's going on internally, you can't align externally. And I think often we are so external focused, what do people want from me to make me feel accepted, worthy, loved? And then I will just then sort of do that. I will act that, I will play the part instead of what do I need in this moment? What do I want from me in this moment? What do I need to kind of show up in the best way? And then how do I do that? And know that some people will honor that and support that. Some people are not going to like it, but that's okay. Because my worth is not dependent on every single person liking what I do. Because every single person will never like what you do.
Cassandra Worthy [00:17:02] Yes. You are taking me to school right now and you're making me realize something that I've actually never really embraced until this very moment. And that's the fact that in the practice of Change Enthusiasm, I think that it invites your authenticity. So just real quick, I will break it down.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:17:20] Please, please.
Cassandra Worthy [00:17:22] Change Mindset, it's a growth mindset and I've leveraged my very pragmatic engineering mind to create a step process to actually experience and allow growth when you're going through your toughest change challenges. Three steps, I call them the signal, the opportunity, and the choice. The signal are these really difficult emotions. Like when you said, when you're having a tough day, when you're feeling frustration, when you feel an anxiety or fear, those difficult emotions don't suppress, don't ignore them because they're gifts. They're a natural inheritance of our species. And in the practice of Change Enthusiasm, they signal us into our greatest moments of opportunity to learn, to grow, to connect, to evolve. And then once we're in that opportunity, understanding what are my options in this moment as I'm feeling this energy, what can I choose in this moment to be better, to learn, to grow, to learn about myself, to learn about someone around me.
And then the third step, the choice. What can I choose from those options to show up, to navigate, to move forward? And sometimes that choice looks like you know what? I need to take a day. I need to take a day for myself. I need to refill my tank. And that's what I need to do to choose me. Sometime that choice is, you know what? I'm going to step into this uncomfortable conversation. I'm going to strive to find understanding and create an authentic connection with one of my coworkers. But by practicing this mindset, having that awareness of those difficult emotions, and then creating really rewiring your pathways, the synapses in your brain, you're actually going to be more and more resilient. Because when the change hits, difficulty emotions come, Ooh, I'm in a moment of opportunity. I feel it. Because the hair is standing up on the back of my neck, my mouth is gone dry.
And my feet keep tapping. I know. I'm feeling the emotion. That means I'm in an opportunity. What am I going to do? It's my choice. How do I show up? How do I lead, how I navigate? How do I inspire? And I realize in your words when you're in touch with that inner, when you're in touch with that emotional energy, that's also your authentic essence.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:19:20] Yes.
Cassandra Worthy [00:19:21] Right? That's your authentic self. And you're allowing that, you're listening to that, using that as guidepost and then sitting in that opportunity and choosing how you move forward. So I love that. And I'm going to use it.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:19:32] Yes.
Cassandra Worthy [00:19:35] That is your definition. That is huge.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:19:40] Well, I love that. And I love you breaking down Change Enthusiasm because it does feel like there's so many parallels between the work that you do and some of what I teach as well. Because, the way I sort of conceptualize it as, in the brain of a psychologist, is when you accept and allow your emotions, as you're saying, you lower reactivity. Because so often we're trying to suppress our emotions, our amygdala, right? Like our emotional brain is activated. It's like fight, flight, freeze, right? What are we doing here? And when we try to suppress that, we either end up reacting in a way that is not intentional or thoughtful or in line with our values, or we suppress it and we bottle it in our bodies, right? And we get sick, or I'm sure organizationally the organization gets sick because there's not an acknowledgement that it's a tough time. People are upset, right? So you get some sickness in your body, in your physical body, in your organizational body. And then I also love the treating emotions and the challenging situation. Not as a problem, but as an opportunity. Yes, it doesn't feel good, but can you listen to the wisdom within the emotional experience or the challenging experience? And then can you reconnect with your values to what's important and then make a conscious, intentional choice about what you want to do, how you want to move forward, how you want to address that?
Cassandra Worthy [00:21:06] Yes. Listen, I love that we've connected. I love that I'm having this conversation and sharing with your listeners, but we got to stay connected.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:21:15] That's the same thing. I'm thinking hopefully I can email her.
Cassandra Worthy [00:21:23] I am telling you so much of what you are saying is lightening me up, lightening up my brain thinking about conservation of energy. And as an engineer, I often think about emotion as that energy. And if you think of ourselves like a closed system, the third law of thermodynamics says that energy can either be created or destroyed. It can either be transferred. And if we are the closed system and emotion is the energy when we transfer that it's like venting. And now we vent. And I think that's a kind of a natural kind of go-to for most of us, I want to just let the energy go. But that's not as productive. Because if you ever notice, when you vent, it seems like all you want to do is vent. Because it's just like you're moving the energy around and all of you sitting there on that downward spiral about how horrible things are.
Or you can conserve the energy and that's what looks like having health problems, having sleepless nights, restless nights. Or you can transform. You can transform that energy. And that's the promise of Change Enthusiasm. When you feel that signal emotion, it is your choice to take action to begin transforming that emotional energy. Transforming anxiety into anticipation. Transforming fear into hope. And the more that you can rewire that brain practice this mindset, you'll spend more time in what I call growth-sustaining emotions of change, one of which is enthusiasm. You'll spend more time there than in those signaling motions, paralyzed thinking that this is the worst. And then continuing to move into that downward spiral. But it's in that transformation that we all have the power to do that, that really Change Enthusiasm sings. And I just feel I'd be remiss if I didn't make mention of that.
Because when I tell people that I teach Change Enthusiasm, and of course, I'm very upbeat, I'm very optimistic, glass-half-full kind of person. And they're like come on Cassandra, I don't need to hear all this enthusiasm. I'm struggling, I'm struggling right now. But you have like no, no, it's not just about toxic positivity. It's about recognizing the very real emotions of change and then understanding how do you use that energy. How do you see that energy as a gift? How do you trust it's there to serve you? Then how do you transform it? Transform it to move you forward, to fuel you forward as opposed to propelling you back.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:23:43] I love that. I mean, it's just so many parts. One, the fact that you're sort of putting it into this scientific framework around energy, right? Like what we know about energy. So, because then people can't argue against it, right? Often when I'm talking to people about accept your emotions and allow yourself to feel them, they're like waste of time. What's that going to do, right?
But when you're like, hey, this is a lot of thermodynamics, right? Like this is, you cannot argue against this, right? You've got a choice. How do you want to deal with this energy? I love that. And I think it's also helpful because it makes emotions more neutral. They're information, right? This is how the energy is manifesting in this moment. What do you want to do with it?
Cassandra Worthy [00:24:31] Where have you been? We are changing spirits. I am telling you.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:24:32] I love it.
Cassandra Worthy [00:24:33] So often I say we do ourselves a disservice when we claim emotion to be negative or positive? Emotion just is, I don't think there's this binary. Yes, some emotions are much more difficult to hold. Some emotion are a much more difficult to understand what to do with, and they impact our bodies in different ways. But that energy just is what do you do with it? How do you use it? How do you allow yourself to use that energy as opposed to that energy using you? And so I love the idea of emotion being neutral and it's up to us to put meaning on it. It's up to us to put our lens, our perspective, how we perceive that emotion. That's our choice.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:25:25] Exactly. And the challenge that happens, I think especially in a psychological sense is when people start holding on, doing the conservation, holding on and identifying with the negative emotion. I'm a sad person. I'm an anxious person. I'm a this type of person. Because what that does is it says, I don't have a choice, right? I have no choice. I can't choose anymore. This energy has come to me. There's nothing I can do about it. And that's who I am. So I'm sitting here and I'm just going to conserve, conserve, conserve, and maybe vet sometimes, push it off a little bit. But there's nothing else I can choose to do. And this doesn't mean that you're not as Cassandra saying it, you may have hard days, you may have challenging times, but if you can treat the emotions, the energy as more neutral and believe that you always have a choice, right?
Like you can always choose something different. That is when we tap into our power, right? Because when we feel like there's nothing we can do, then we feel disempowered. When we feel like we're the effect of this energy, it's happening to us, then we're stuck, right? And I imagine that certainly happens with organizations, right? Like we have to lay off these people. I mean, I was just listening to an article this morning about all the layoffs, right? And I'm sure there's a lot of companies, people who are staying at the company, people who have been laid off, who are now in this space of feeling a lot of emotions and being faced with this change. Some expected, some unexpected, some scary, some, right? And so we can identify with it or we can say, okay, how is this an opportunity? And I'd love to hear like how you might coach people through this as they're sort of navigating a challenge and change.
Cassandra Worthy [00:27:24] Yeah, for sure. First off, strive to practice Change Enthusiasm as best you can. And I'd say one of the very first really important ingredients in the practice of this is grace, is granting yourself grace. Whether you're in a laid off, you just got laid off. Whether you're having to lay employees off as a leader, whether you've remaining in a company where so many of your colleagues, your colleagues, your friends will just let go. And yet you remain. So maybe you're feeling some of that survivor's guilt if you're feeling it. Trust and know that's okay and you're not alone. And grant yourself that grace to be with those emotions, to let them be with you. And if that means you need to take a day, if you need to take a beat, then do so. Give yourself that grace. And then the other ingredient that's really probably one of the most critical to get yourself from the signal, from just having the embodiment of so many of those difficult emotions and moving into the opportunity, seeing how you can have these changes work for you instead of against you is trust.
Trusting that if this is happening, it's happening for a reason. There is something here for you to help you learn, to help you grow, to help you evolve. And I don't know if that means learning more about yourself, your likes, your dislikes, learning about your company, learning about the organization, your peers, the industry. Maybe thinking about some other way that you can contribute to the world. This is the opportunity and you need to use that ingredient of trust. It's so important because when we begin to trust that there's something good in store, that there's opportunity, there's a chance for progress in this moment, you begin transforming that emotional energy into hope. Into hope. And hope is a growth-sustaining emotion. Hope moves us forward. Hope helps us put that one foot over the other, hope can do that. And so when you can find that trust, you can find that glimmer of hope to move you through the day.
So I would say grace, trust. And then the final ingredient, the one that I hate is patience. Patience. Because it all ain't going to happen at once, something will happen to you but it may not come tomorrow, so you got to have that patience and rest in that trust. But yeah, I feel like today, the world, it just continues to evolve at an increasingly rapid pace. And it demands of us to see where the opportunity lies in all this change because it's not going away. If anything, it's becoming more prevalent. I think that's what we've learned through the pandemic and over these past several years.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:30:04] Yeah. I love, I love that so much. And I came back to what you started us with, which is talking about how curious you are, right? And some of it is, can you practice curiosity about how this challenging experience could be for you, not against you, not being a victim of it, right? Because it's very easy to get into that mode. So part of what I talk about, and I think this is very aligned with what you're talking about is, feel the emotion without making up a story about yourself, right? So feel the disappointment, feel the frustration, feel the anger, feel any of those emotions that might be coming up with a challenging situation. Maybe even feel the relief, feel all the things without making up a story, right? Because the way we make up stories is, I was one of the worst employees there.
I knew I was always an imposter and it was just a matter of time before I got laid off. I'm never going to find another job. I don't know, da da, right? Like those are stories that cause you to conserve and hold on to that energy, right? And they keep you stuck. If you can say, okay, this is all I'm feeling. I don't need to take a day, a week, a month to regroup and see how I can process through these feelings, find the wisdom in them, and then get curious. How might this be for me? Every Monday I was feeling stressed, frustrated, anxious because I didn't want to start another week. So maybe that job wasn't lighting me up, right? I kept thinking I wanted to spend more time traveling or more time with my family or to do this.
Or I kept wishing I would have more time to make art. Maybe this is my opportunity, right? Can you get curious about the opportunity as you talk about, Cassandra, like the opportunity for a choice, right? Because that is the space of empowerment. And it doesn't mean the emotions go away right away, but then you start to get like huh, wow. Like what if I use some of this severance time to make that music I've been saying I wanted to make? And what if that lights me up? And part of what people talk about in the like spiritual manifesting abundance world is when you are in a higher vibration energy, you attract higher vibration, right? Like you attract high-vibe things, right? And so the more you can get in that hopeful space as you're talking about, the more you're going to attract opportunities, attract the right things and get those opportunities. And that actually is going to happen better with the cultivating positive energy and feeling good and moving through your emotions. Than the like, oh gosh, I'm so terrified and I'm not going to buy a house. Can I find a job? Like that's really not going to get you to the next sort of space and place where your next evolution is going to unfold.
Cassandra Worthy [00:33:08] So true. Yeah. I mean, and we all have been there, right? Some of us are going through it right now. Some of us can remember a time five, 10 years ago. But for me it was probably, well definitely when I was going through those acquisitions in my corporate life, I can remember the second big acquisition that I was a part of. And it was just a very uncertain time because right after the acquisition closed, they started reducing headcount. I was executive at that point knowing that my head could be on the chopping block. And I can remember I was sitting down with a new manager, right? He'd just come in from the acquiring company. He didn't know me. He didn't know kind of, where I came from, my values, what I brought to the table. He was like, Cassandra I like you, but I just don't see value in having you around in a couple years.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:33:55] Wow.
Cassandra Worthy [00:33:56] Exactly. That's exactly the face that I made. And you talk about signaling emotions, the depth, the frustration, the anger, the anxiety, and fear. And the shame. Oh my goodness, I'm about to lose my job. My career is about to be in shambles. And then I, in using Change Enthusiasm, and this is before I had language for it, but I was already practicing it because it was helping me to grow. I was able to view that happening, that potential as outside of that narrative, right? And I could see it objectively. This is what had just happened. He's given me two years and I could actually look for another job and what could be an actual better job. And I started thinking about the wealth of experience that I now had that I can pull into a new resume. I started thinking about all the connections that I had still internal to that company, just not in that individual's organization.
I was like, I have options here. And then I also thought about the fact that I was already following a path of curiosity, building something of my own on the side. And I thought you know what? I can use this to exemplify Change Enthusiasm. So how am I going to step into this seeing my opportunity choosing as I move forward? And so I'm so grateful to that individual because not only did it give me the opportunity to strengthen my resilience muscle, to practice Change Enthusiasm, I ended up getting myself a different job in four months. Starting my company, one that I cared more about that I think better aligned with my purpose and my natural talents and gifts. And I was able to create something that was going to help me convey Change Enthusiasm to the world. And so I'm so grateful that it happened and I trust now that it happened for that reason. And so as best you can put that trust in there, this is happening for a reason. See it as a thing, this objective thing, and curious, that curiosity. How am I going to have this work for me and not against me? This is not happening to me, it's happening for me and I'm about to figure out how.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:35:54] I love that. And one of the things that I love about what you just shared is that you did not make your career about proving that man wrong. Because so many people get a chip on their shoulder because somebody underestimated them because somebody didn't see their value. And they say, I'm going to prove you wrong. I'm going to work twice as hard, I'm going to do, and it then becomes not about you and what do I want to share with this world. What do I want to do? What lights me up? But about what title, what amount of money, what A, B, C, X, Y, Z is going to make him feel bad or silly or whatever for firing me and telling me that. So like we kind of get, again, it's like suddenly that person is the holder of my worthiness and I better prove to them that I deserve it and they better give it to me, right?
And then you can go off on a path and for some people that was their first-grade teacher, right? And it sucks, right? Because no first-grade teacher should ever say to someone, you're not smart enough. But it happens. But then the challenge is your whole life becomes about proving that person wrong instead of proving yourself right. Where instead of living fully and embodying the world and the life that you want to embody and creating that for yourself. And so I love that you were able to practice curiosity and then still center yourself and center the way you want to live, the way you want to work, what you want to do, not centering the opinion of someone who really doesn't know you.
Cassandra Worthy [00:37:29] Yeah. And let me not pass myself off as the most enlightened individual ever because there was a couple days after that conversation where I did sit down in that spiral and wanted to prove that individual wrong. I'm not going to act like I didn't. But again, bringing in that Change Enthusiasm, oh my goodness, I'm in this spiral. I'm in this depth of emotion and I'm going to let this work for me, not against me. And again, I'm going to revisit, know my worth, my value. I know that I can continue to deliver to this business. I'm enjoying delivering to this business. And I got the goods to do that. I know that. So let me work with my network to figure out how I can go and share these talents and this energy. Because I know that can move the business forward. And so it took a couple days for me to get to that place, but yeah.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:38:19] Yeah. Yeah. And I think, right, we all have our days, right? I think about the fact that when you know that you're worthy, it's easier to practice Change Enthusiasm, right? I often think of this sort of like back and forth, right? I think there's something about practicing Change Enthusiasm that supports and affirms people's worthiness. Because it's like, okay, I'm not stuck. Okay, I can choose. Okay, I did navigate that situation, right? It sort of reminds people of their truth. And when you're caught up in needing to prove to the world that you're worthy or feeling like any mistake or anything challenging happening means that you're unworthy, it is so much harder to move through the challenging situations. It's harder to adopt the growth mindset. It's harder to make a choice because we start again making up a story that this is about me and me being wrong and me being unworthy.
And so I think that when you have the foundation of self-worth, people often worry, well, if I feel that I'm unconditionally worthy, does that mean I'll never grow and change? And I say, no, it actually is the best foundation for growth and change. Because then you're like okay, that knocked me on my butt. I'm going to get up, right? Like it's not, oh, now I'm somebody who's been knocked down and I'm unworthy and it's okay that hurt. I'm going to dust myself off. I may take a moment, set out a player two, but then put me back in coach, right? That's the energy when your worth is not dependent on everything that's happening in the world.
Cassandra Worthy [00:39:57] Yes. Drop the mic. Yes. So good. Agree. Completely aligned, everything you just said. Absolutely.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:40:07] I Love it. I love it. So one of the things you touched on when you were sort of sharing your own story is about how you tapped into what really lights you up, what makes you passionate. And I'd love for you to share a little bit more about this transition you made from corporate to building your own multimillion-dollar business, right? And, what was that like? What helped you to trust in your gifts? How did you follow that? Because I think that's something people are going to be really curious about, what that looked like and how you navigated that change, all of those sorts of things.
Cassandra Worthy [00:40:49] Sure. Yeah. So again, it started in sobriety because that intuition I had been hearing just got louder and louder. And then it was literally following curiosity trying to understand what did that whisper mean, what was it trying to tell me? And I remember there was a point where I wrote down all the compliments, all of the things that I had heard in the past several weeks from those around me, my colleagues, my friends, my loved ones. And it started to paint a very different picture than leading innovation, research development in corporate America. A lot of it about charisma, energy, the light, the enthusiasm, the way you inspire, the way you can lead a team. And so at first, I thought I would just be a non-fiction book writer. I was going to write a self-help book and invite people a journey on how to find their bliss. And how to share that bliss with the world. And so I ended up going to a conference that Hay House put on. And Hay House is actually now my publisher.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:41:46] Cool.
Cassandra Worthy [00:41:47] And so I went to that conference, Movers & Shakers Conference, thinking that I would learn how to get a book deal, what is it like to write a non-fiction book? And they also talked about speaking as part of that conference. And during the event, they had an opportunity for participants to come up and share with them what their passions were, what they wanted to do. I ended up getting selected to go up and talk about what I wanted to bring to the world. And after I wrap up, one of the facilitators said, you need to be on a stage. You need to be on a stage sharing this energy with the world. That's what you need to do. And I had always known that motivational speakers exist, that that's a thing. But I don't think I quite embrace the fact that it's actually a profession, that it can be a career.
And so it was through that that I discovered that that's possible for me and something that I was maybe perfectly suited for. And by going to that conference, you could submit a video to be mentored by one of the facilitators, and Reid Tracy, the president, and CEO of Hay House. I submitted a video and I was selected. And so for the better half of 2017, I was mentored by these individuals, learning about the speaking industry, the importance of carving out a niche, bringing my pain, my experience, my talents, and gifts to the world in a way that it solves a problem. That it presents a gift to a corporation, to a business, to the individuals in that corporation. And so that's how I created the niche of change and emotion and ultimately Change Enthusiasm, which I've built my company around.
But yeah, I spent a year and a half building the consulting company on the side while still leading innovation at Duracell. And then I had set up some success metrics because that's what engineers do.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:43:23] Love it.
Cassandra Worthy [00:43:24] And all of the sunset corporate. And I reached them. I got to the point where I had more bookings than I had vacation days. And the next step, I had just been moving one foot to the other, the next step was sun setting corporate. And now it's just been a whirlwind of learning, of growing, and of sharing and nurturing the world.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:43:50] That’s incredible. I mean yeah, that's really incredible and powerful and I hope that it inspires someone to kind start taking steps on what their dream is because I think sometimes it feels like well, you just got to leave your job if you're going to do, right? And it's well, no. Take one step, take another step. Get me mentorship. You don't have to know everything right at once. You can learn and grow as you do it. You can evolve, you can sort of trust the process, and work through the process. And I think that's such an inspiring way to kind of talk about it. Like you sought mentorship, you had your metrics, you did things at, like you were doing both things and you were tracking, okay, when is the time to leave? And I'm sure it was still a leap of faith and you had set yourself up very well. So by the time you were leaving, you knew you could sustain or exceed, right? Financially and professionally what you started.
Cassandra Worthy [00:44:45] At least for a year.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:44:46] At least for a year.
Cassandra Worthy [00:44:47] At least for a year. I was good for a year. And then after that, while we go, we would see what happened, I was going to give it my all for that year.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:44:57] And it worked quite well. It worked very, very well.
Cassandra Worthy [00:44:58] It worked it out.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:44:57] I love it. I love it. Well, as we sort of wind down this interview, I would love to just ask you, because your last name is Worthy. What is one way that you're sort of claiming your worth and owning your worthiness these days?
Cassandra Worthy [00:45:11] I do that from the stage. I do that when I'm engaging with senior-level executives, when I'm engaging with CEOs, when I am the only one in the room that looks like me. And I step into that room recognizing there's a spotlight on me because I'm the only one who looks like me and I step into that spotlight and I shine my light right back. And I trust that I'm in that room for a reason. And so I sit very firmly in my worth and in my authenticity and in sharing this light. And I know that I'm meant to be in every room that I'm in. And I share that very openly from the stage, engineer, Black, queer, female. And I have found that they're attendees, so many that come up to me afterwards. Thank you. Thank you for sharing yourself. It has been many years since I've seen someone who looks like me on that stage. And so stepping into that light has become a part of the mission. And just knowing my worth and acting accordingly. Knowing my worth and acting accordingly and sharing that with as many people as I can to inspire that same sentiment in everyone.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:46:25] I love that so much. I love that. I love that. Thank you so much for sharing your energy, sharing your time, sharing your wisdom. This has been such an amazing and dynamic, energizing conversation. And I know that people are going to get so much out of it. I also know that people are going to be like, wait, let me look her up. When can I see her speak? Where is she? Can I bring her to my company? So let people know how they can kind of connect with you further and see what you're up to.
Cassandra Worthy [00:46:51] Sure, sure. Check me out at cassandraworthy.com. I'm also all over social, so Cassandra Worthy on LinkedIn. I'm probably most active on that one. Although my marketing team posts all over the outlets, cassandra_worthy_speaker on Instagram. And then we have a community of almost 15,000 on Facebook, We Are Change Enthusiasts. And then if you would like to inquire about me coming to your company, email info@speakersoffice.com.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:47:23] I love it.
Cassandra Worthy [00:47:24] So yeah, I just gave a lot.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:47:26] I love it. We'll put all the links in the show notes, so if you heard that and you're like wait, just look in the show notes. And they'll be able to find it. Thank you so much. This has been just a lovely start to the day.
Cassandra Worthy [00:47:36] Thank you. And thank you for what you're doing and shining your authentic light. Because you're moving millions.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:47:43] Thank you.
Cassandra Worthy [00:47:44] And I see you and I really, really appreciate it.
Dr. Adia Gooden [00:47:48] Thank you. I appreciate that. I really do.
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Thanks for joining me this week on the Unconditionally Worthy Podcast. Make sure to visit my website, dradiagooden.com and subscribe to the show on iTunes so you'll never miss an episode. You can also follow me on social media at Dr. Adia Gooden. If you loved the show, please leave a review on iTunes so we can continue to bring you amazing episodes. Lastly, if you found this episode helpful and know someone who might benefit from hearing it, please share it. Thanks for listening and see you next episode.
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This episode was produced by Crys & Tiana and the music is by Wataboi.
Cali by Wataboi https://soundcloud.com/wataboi
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Looking for a new way to process your emotions? Ready to turn life’s challenges into incredible opportunities for growth? You’re in the right place because we have just the thing for you! It’s a little growth hack called Change Enthusiasm, created by one of the most invigorating and inspiring guests we’ve had to date.

In this episode, I welcome Cassandra Worthy, an Author, Speaker, and Founder and CEO of Change Enthusiasm Global. Cassandra is the world’s leading expert on Change Enthusiasm®. She is lighting the world on fire with her refreshingly unique take on not just ‘managing’ change but growing through it.

Listen in as Cassandra and I talk about how to turn challenges into opportunities with the Change Enthusiasm mindset. After sharing her journey with self-worth as an entrepreneur and engineer, Cassandra breaks down the three steps of Change Enthusiasm so you can apply it to any challenge in your life. Then, we discuss the important connection between Change Enthusiasm and self-worth.

“I truly feel we can’t embrace our full authenticity unless we get bold and daring to come to know ourselves. I think true authenticity happens when you know you.” - Cassandra Worthy

What is Change Enthusiasm?

The practice of Change Enthusiasm is a 3-step process, or growth mindset, that allows growth during your toughest challenges. The three steps of Change Enthusiasm are signal, opportunity, and choice.

The Signal - Difficult or unpleasant emotions signal us into our greatest moments of opportunity. Become aware of the emotions that are signaling you, then get ready to see the options you have.
The Opportunity - After recognizing the challenge or the emotion, what are my options? To learn, to grow, to connect, to forgive, to evolve, etc.
The Choice - When you’re faced with an opportunity, the choice comes from asking yourself: What can I choose in this moment to be better, to learn, to grow, to show up, to move forward? How can I make this opportunity a reality?

Change Enthusiasm invites authenticity, understanding, and resilience. It allows you the space to acknowledge and accept your emotions, which lowers your reactivity, making it easier to see the opportunities and choices you have in front of you. When you use the Change Enthusiasm framework, you can treat the challenge and the emotions you’re facing not as a problem, but as an opportunity to transform them. Of course, it may not feel good to embrace those emotions, but can you listen to the wisdom within the emotional experience and reconnect with your values so you can make an intentional choice for how you want to move forward? That’s the golden question. That’s where change is born.

This isn’t a form of blind or toxic positivity. It’s about recognizing your emotions of change and understanding how to use that energy, see it as a gift, trust that it will serve you, and transform it to propel you forward. It helps you get unstuck, so you can create a new path forward.

Change Enthusiasm and Self-Worth:

Change Enthusiasm and self-worth go hand in hand. This practice supports and affirms your worthiness because it allows you to see how many options you truly have and it reminds you of your truth. On the flip side, when you know you’re worthy, it’s much easier to practice Change Enthusiasm and turn your challenges into opportunities. Strong self-worth is the best way to initiate growth and change in your life because it’s easier to get back up when you fall.

Cassandra says it takes grace, trust, hope, and patience.

About Cassandra Worthy (she/her):

Cassandra Worthy is the world’s leading expert on Change Enthusiasm®. She is lighting the world on fire with her refreshingly unique take on not just ‘managing’ but growing through change. Through her consulting firm Change Enthusiasm Global, she has shared this revolutionary approach for not only embracing change but using it to propel you to heights you never imagined with thousands all over the world. She is trusted by clients around the globe including Google, Bank of America, Johnson & Johnson, CVS Pharmacy, and Cisco.

After spending nearly 15 years working as an executive within both Procter & Gamble and Berkshire Hathaway thriving through some of the biggest acquisitions ever recorded in the consumer packaged goods industry, Cassandra decided to cultivate the mindset and tools she had practiced to grow through these disruptions in a way that inspires, invigorates, and motivates others to grow through their change challenges.

To connect further with Cassandra Worthy:

Visit her website: https://cassandraworthy.com

Follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cassandra_worthy_speaker

Connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassandra-worthy-802ab623

Join the We Are Change Enthusiasts Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/wearechangeenthusiasts

This episode was produced by Crys & Tiana.

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