Your organization is not only experiencing a hiring freeze, but because of the financial environment, has also cut out staff development time. While you’re encouraged to get certified in your specialty- you also know that keeping up a professional certification takes time, money, and effort. Resources you just don’t get from your employer.

Or is it that your employer doesn’t have these resources to give?

Picture your manager, supervisor, or the person that you directly report to. Put yourself in his or her shoes. She/He wants you to develop, grow, and learn. She/He knows you need time off to take the training; understands it would be nice to give financial incentive for education. It’s just not in the budget.

It feels very ‘broken’. The system creates deprivation, demoralization, and ultimately depression.

No one likes to work in a role that doesn’t allow you to exhale. You don’t like the exhaustion, pressure, and guilt that is placed upon you to at work. Your manager doesn’t enjoy playing middle man. And I hope, I really hope, that upper leadership isn’t trying to make things difficult- ‘just because’.

There are very real stresses in our environment. Stresses that may never go away.

In fact, I bet things won’t get better any time soon. Why am I so confident about that? How can I say this with emphatic confidence that things will stay the same or even worsen before they improve? It’s simple universal law.

What we focus on becomes our reality.

We don’t have adequate staffing numbers. We’re always pushed to work longer. There isn’t any money. Leadership doesn’t support us. Ancillary departments don’t function properly. I never have supplies. I can’t get a break. I’m tired all of the time. It’s everyone else’s fault…

I hear you. Work IS stressful. That much is fact.

But if it isn’t going to change, how will we go on?

Here’s how: shift your inner world to impact your outer environment. Understand that ‘things’ won’t change. There are many, many factors going into the environment of nursing. Some we can control. But some ‘things’ are beyond our control. Instead of complaining- let’s do something about it!

What can be done?

Here’s 3 shifts for you to contemplate that will help you feel more empowered in the work place:

• Focus on what you want. This sounds ‘simple’ but is very difficult for us as human beings to do. We are SO used to focusing on what we don’t want, don’t like, or don’t agree with. It’s just natural to answer any question with what’s going wrong for us. There is camaraderie in complaining. If others are down and we all pool our misery, we think we’ll feel better. Instead of focusing on what you don’t want- make a conscious choice to focus on what you do want.
• Hold yourself accountable. Guess what? You can’t get into another person’s mental mind. There is never, ever going to be a way to know for certain what someone else is thinking. It’s just impossible. Since you can’t change their mind; you can’t change their actions or behaviors. People will do bad things to you. They will upset you. You won’t agree with them. That’s just life. Instead of ruminating on how ‘that person’ hurt you, offended you, or let you down pay attention to your own thoughts, feelings, and actions. Show up as you and bring your core values to your work. You are only responsible for yourself.
• Channel your energy. Can you try something for me? When you wake up in the morning, what’s the first thing you do? Are you already going through the list of ‘irritations’ for the day? Is your mind focused on the things you aren’t looking forward to with respect to work? Can you try a shift? When you wake up, while you are getting ready for work, can you focus your energy on gratitude? Even if you have nothing to be grateful for- can you find one thing? And then with that gratitude can you channel a feeling? How does being grateful for breathing right now make you feel? How does gratitude around your loved ones make you feel inside? Start your day with a new intention and bring that focus to the work place.

I’d love to hear from you below. What’s helped you shift yourself to empower you at work? How can you let go of the external environment and spend your energy on your internal transformation? In what ways can you enjoy your work life just a little bit more?