In the webinar training Nurse Road Maps I shared a quote from Ellen Glasgow
All change is not growth, as all movement is not forward.
This was a bit of hard love. We are all guilty of wanting change so badly in our current situations, positions, or salaries but that change does not always lead to growth. Sometimes we need our current situations to help make that next season in our nursing careers hit on another level.
What this commonly results in is wanting change so badly, that we are desperate and not too specific about the change we actually want. Then what ends up happening is that we take whatever change comes our way. Next comes burnout, because we then absolutely hate the change because it didn't come with the growth we were hoping for. Welp that birds eye view is what Nursing Road Maps was designed to help you with.
Let's give it a little more of a nursing perspective
We've talked a lot about Bad shifts in my previous webinar trainings. These type of shifts are not unheard of to any nurse. Whether you have been a nurse for a day or a decade, you should be pretty familiar with a bad shift or worse a toxic work environment. How many bad shifts have you had under your belt before you first said to yourself "I quit"? How many bad shifts have you had before you started looking for new positions ? How many bad shifts before you actually decided you were going to take action and reach for change ?
The hack is to have the discipline to desire change but go after growth
Very similar to the toxicity & tolerance ratio discussed in the bad shift webinar, we have to know when to hold them and essentially know when to fold. Going after a change that isn't fueled by anything other than a build up of your last bad shift, will not lead to growth. It is almost a set up for accepting a step above "not so bad" but still not quite "great". We have to learn to look deeper than the surface and truly go after what we want. This change should move the needle and change direction to which you are traveling.
Let's make intentional changes
So you've had a few bad nursing shifts under your belt. You have quit in your head, started looking for new positions, and finally landed an interview for something/anywhere but here ! Let's then get intentional about making sure this next position is going to not just be a change but growth. 83% of my polled nurse friends agreed low staffing is the #1 ingredient in cooking up a bad shift. Welp that makes about 3 million of us. So if that's your number one pain point, let's make sure your next position solves this problem. How ?
Research nursing positions where the nurse workload offsets the staffing needs
- Smaller Facility / fixed ratios
Creative staffing plans
-Staffing agencies, robust float pool, multi-disciplinary professionals employed
Identify this as a pain point in your interview
- Inquire how this challenge is handled at this prospective facility
If this new position is able to deliver on this pain point that ultimately drove you away from your last position, then my Nurse friend you have met your desired growth. If it has failed to deliver on this pain point, then my nurse friend you have changed your role/title/facility but this change did not lead to growth.
Make your next move your best move and hopefully that is forward
This and more is what we are discussing over at Nurse Road Maps. Send me a message if this resonates and you would like to sign up for 1:1 coaching. If you are ready for a transition in nursing but want to do so thoughtfully and without the burnout, this is your program.
Whether its clinical, non-clinical, or leadership there is a Nurse Road Map for you. Let me help you get to your next Nursing mile marker without all the burnout.
Do take care,
Megs
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