3 Tips to Nursing Career Advancement

by | Jul 16, 2014 | 2 comments

My colleague, Jamie Davis from the popular podcast ‘The Nursing Show’, shared a blog post last week that touched on the nursing shortage (see Jamie’s article here). Jamie had read an article from a blogger who wrote about the recent ramping up of nursing schools in an effort to turn out more nurses in response to the nursing shortage.

After reading both of these articles, I was left with my own thoughts:

  • If we educate and graduate a gluttony of nurses, how will they find nursing jobs?
  • Are nursing careers in high demand and if so, what alternatives do nurses have?
  • How can we be sure that all of our nurses are finding career options that they enjoy?

This led me to reflect on my own nursing career and the steps I have taken to advance my role along the way. [Tweet “Here are my top three tips to nursing career advancement”]:

  • Create a clear vision. If you are planning to take a trip to a place you have never been, how do you get there? Often, we have to look up the directions to the new places we want to go to. If you are looking to advance your nursing career, you need to create a plan. Picture the ideal setting for your career alternative in nursing. What would that look like? Who would you interact with? Where would it be? What types of tasks would you do? Get extremely clear on what you want your new role to look like so that you can visualize it each day.
  • Balance action with inaction. Taking the necessary action steps to advance your nursing career is absolutely necessary. And so is doing nothing. Now I know that sounds counter-productive and, as nurses we want to do, do and do some more. Yet sometimes the ‘doing’ becomes inefficient as we are doing so in a desperate way. What type of energy do you want to bring to your action? How will you continue to move forward if you are too exhausted to get things done? Taking some breaks and allowing for non-doing helps balance out the energy and makes you that much more productive in the long run.
  • Feel confident in yourself. Knowing that you can advance your nursing career and believing in yourself go a very long way. People can feel when you are doubting yourself. They receive the vibes that you are unsure. When you clearly know what nursing role it is that you want and trust that you can get yourself there, you will be that much more productive in advancing your nursing career. Confidence goes a very long way.

What would you add to this list? Share a tip below that has helped you advance your nursing career. Thank you for reading and enjoy the day.

2 Comments

  1. Renate Ilse

    Good advice. I would add “Find some good travelling companions!” When things aren’t going well, you need people on the same path to help you keep pace. True in running and career advancement..

    Reply
    • Elizabeth Scala

      So true. Keeping with uplifting, positive and encouraging people helps us grow. We can learn from them and teach as well. Great additions! Enjoy the day, Elizabeth

      Reply

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  1. Why Can't I Get a Job? 3 Tips to Getting Hired as a Nurse - […] success. When you do what’s suggested in tip one (take a break), you can use this time to practice…

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