to take the Dental Admissions Test. Having taken just one biology and chemistry course prior to taking the admissions exam, I had to teach myself general and organic chemistry, anatomy and physiology, physics, basic and complex math, and improve my fourth grade reading level.


I finally made it to dental school, but the challenges were not over. Now with three children, I spent many days juggling studies, family and church duties. Most days I ran on less than four hours sleep. Certainly, at times, it all seemed impossible and overbearing.


So … why do I share this extensive back- ground of my personal journey with you? Because whether you’ve been through the negative effects of divorced parents, expe- rienced financial hardships or had other setbacks, perhaps like mine, we all have it in us to overcome the challenges of our past to set a future path of success.


But how? We hear motivational stories all the time but what is the mechanism we can use in our personal and professional lives? There are three main principles I’d like to share. I have used these time and again to accomplish success and overcome whatever challenges I have faced.


LET YOUR PAST BECOME A STRENGTH


When talking to my older brother on the phone after an interview at an AEGD residency program, I mentioned feeling inadequate compared to many of the other applicants because of their vastly different upbringing and traditional lifestyles I always wished I had. His response is something that caused me to refocus my vision, something I continue to try to live by. He said, “Trent, stop looking at your past as a crutch. Use it as a strength. You’ve been through things many have not and never will go through. You’ve conquered many challenges. Embrace this and use it to prove to yourself and others nothing is impossible.”


His words have made it easier for me to embrace my unique upbringing to inspire others. Going through these first few years of starting my career as a dentist has been anything but easy and comfortable. But when we look back at our lives during trying times


This mentality has been key in my life. As a child I battled major depression. As a teenager with no vision or perceived worth, thoughts of suicide often flooded my mind. I was a whirlwind of emotions which resulted in bad choices. It wasn’t until I entered the path of Christian discipleship that I started understanding my own personal value and what kind of influence I could have on oth- ers by changing the direction my life was heading. By setting my vision and mission to become the best version of myself, I have blinders on that keep me from competing with and comparing myself to others. With this vision, I have found peace. I have discov- ered my strengths and my personal value as a young kid who came from nothing and made a life for myself, my wife and three wonderful children.


STAY TEACHABLE


This last principle is key among those who wish to learn and grow. One of the great


and see what we already have accomplished or conquered, we can have a mindset that the challenges awaiting us will only be speed bumps along the path to success and these obstacles will develop us into who we’re meant to become.


Wellness Resources A


ccording to a survey conducted this past spring by the ADA New Dentist Committee, dentists


reported the pandemic has impacted their mental and emotional health. In response, the ADA is developing new programs or enhancing current offerings to support the financial, physical and mental wellness of dentists and their teams. Read more about this effort at bit. ly/newddswell and visit ADA.org/wellness for ADA resources to assist dentists at all career stages.


ALWAYS TRY TO GET BETTER


Ever since I was a teenager, I have been inspired by stories of people who came from nothing and accomplished their dreams through hard work and perseverance. Among those is Kobe Bryant, a star athlete who made becoming the best basketball player his lifestyle. He had said, “I wanted to be one of the best basketball players to ever play and anything else that was outside of that lane, I didn’t have time for.” He focused his whole life on a mindset he coined called the “Mamba Mentality”—a constant quest to try to be better today than you were yesterday.


motivational leaders, Tony Robbins, says, “Progress equals happiness. While achieve- ments and material things may excite you for the moment, the only thing that’s going to make you happy long-term is knowing that you’re making progress.”


Since I was young, I tried to remember I knew very little and have always strived to learn from people I admire. This attitude stayed with me throughout dental school as I realized even though I may have been a top- notch student in college among my peers, by entering a professional program where the “cream of the crop” resided, I quickly felt inadequate. This kept me hungry, however, to learn and grow to achieve the same level of skill and confidence of my dental peers. Even upon graduating from dental school and my recently completed general practice resi- dency, I have come to the realization of how little I know compared to the vast amount of knowledge there is to learn from. But, unlike my mindset of depression I had in the past where such a realization would have put me in a state of feeling overwhelmed, causing me to shut down and give up, it now has become the primary motivator behind my reason to continue to educate myself and improve my skills every day.


CONCLUSION


Life is difficult. For some of us—and perhaps never more so than in the challenges of this pandemic—it becomes a challenge just to get up in the morning and begin again each day. But by harnessing the power of the mistakes and failures you have made in your past, always striving to improve yourself and staying teachable, you can find happiness and peace in your life. Like many of you, I have felt the struggle of feeling overwhelmed and inadequate. But as we continue to chart our progress on our path, we can look back and discover how far we have come in life’s journey. By doing so, we can find value in ourselves and inspire others along the way. f


Dr. Finley received his dental degree from the UMKC School of Dentistry in 2020 and completed his GPR from Truman Hospital Lakewood in 2021— thus making him an MDA new dentist member. He practices in the Kansas City area. Email him at trent.finley. ctr@gmail.com.


ISSUE 5 | SEP/OCT 2021 | focus 25


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