The Ambitious Nurse | RN, Nursing Career, Nursing Job Opportunities
Are you feeling stuck in your current clinical environment? Maybe you want a change because you're too exhausted, burned out, or ready for different leadership. Do you want to make a change in your clinical career, but you're not sure what to do next?
You're in the right place. This podcast will help you get the clarity you need to grow so you can have the flexibility and autonomy you want while leveraging your voice and expertise.
I'm Bonnie Meadows a Board Certified Clinical Nurse Specialist, Influential Leader, Career Coach & Well-Being Coach. Since being in the nursing & healthcare profession since 2004, I have found myself ready to make the next step but felt stuck.
I got to a place where I dreaded going to work. I felt burnt out and unmotivated. I knew deep down I always wanted something else. But I had no clue how to even with the hope of a graduate degree to advance me.
I finally realized that growing in nursing is about the journey and not the destination. I finally stopped looking for a specific job to fill my cup.
I developed a framework I frequently implemented to get the clarity I needed for my career and catapulted me into areas of nursing and healthcare I never imagined. I am sharing it all with you.
If you are ready to find career strategies crafted as an experienced nurse using your gifts and abilities,
A guide to help you get clear on your next career steps,
Contentment and joy in your work-this podcast is for you!!
So get ready to kick off those Crocs, pop in those earbuds, and let's chat!!
The Ambitious Nurse | RN, Nursing Career, Nursing Job Opportunities
32// 2 TRUTHS About Nursing Career Transitions & Why Just Doing a Job Search Isn't Helping.
Discover how to identify that 'stirring' feeling of the need for a shift and navigate uncertainty with ease.
I share invaluable insights from a recent coaching session, showcasing practical tools like SWOT analysis to align job opportunities with your core values. We'll also walk through the process of waiting for the right position that aligns with your long-term goals.
In this episode, I delve into the emotional and practical aspects of making career moves. With actionable insights and personal stories, I aim to empower you to pursue the nursing career you deserve.
Want to continue the conversation? Send me a text right here.
Ready to take the next step in your nursing career with confidence?
The Nursing Growth Starter Guide gives you proven strategies to move past uncertainty and advance with clarity.
Grab your free guide today! Click Here
Join me for a **1:1 Nurse Career Clarity Coaching Call**—a 1:1 coaching session where we’ll get you unstuck and find clarity to make the next move in your career.
When making decisions about our careers especially those of us who have master's degrees and doctorate degrees we get very uncomfortable with where we are in our jobs. Many of us do. We wrestle with it for a long time because more than likely it's the job we've always wanted and for a while we couldn't see ourselves doing anything else. Then the stirring starts to happen. We don't listen, or we do listen and possibly step our foot out there, but we don't really know, and so today I am going to address what does it really look like to make that decision of stepping out? What does that really mean? What does that stirring mean? I want to put a name to it. This was kind of one of those episodes that came up in a shower thought it came about after reflecting on a coaching session that I had with another nurse. I'm very excited to touch on this subject. I really hope that it blesses someone and really meets you where you are in your decision making process, so you'll be able to just put a label on it. Are you feeling stuck in your current clinical environment? Do you want to make a change in your nursing career, but not sure what to do next, exhausted, burnt out and maybe even ready for different leadership. I'm Bonnie Meadows, a board certified clinical nurse, specialist, influential leader, career coach and well-being coach. Being in the nursing and healthcare profession since 2004, I have felt stuck and unsure about what was next for me. I wanted to be fulfilled in my purpose, to have a voice at the table and to be a resource for others. I kept telling myself I wanted more, but didn't have the direction I needed, until I found clarity and career growth strategies for experienced nurses like me. In this podcast, you will find simple, tactical steps that allow you to gain the clarity you need, solutions for how to grow even without supportive leadership, and guidelines for setting boundaries at work, so that you can grow purposefully in your career as a nurse with a graduate degree who makes a huge impact in the profession. So get ready to trade your scrubs for yoga pants, pop in those earbuds and let's chat. Do you love your patients and the work that you do, but you have an itch to do something more and you have no clue what more looks like. I've been there.
Speaker 1:My work in the CTICU was very meaningful. There was much prestige in working in the ICU, but after seven years at the bedside, it was time I walked into work not always giving it my all. I did not enjoy coming to work. I was frustrated with the constant changes. I knew I had more to give but had no clue of what I wanted to do. Then I decided it was time to step out of my comfort zone and take a chance on where I could go in my career. Through those steps I was able to grow my career with more confidence and clarity. You don't have to be uncertain about your next steps.
Speaker 1:Another moment I invite you to one-on-one nurse career clarity coaching so you can learn how to get clear on your career steps and pivot when it's time. Since I stepped away from the bedside, I've been able to obtain two master's degrees in nursing. Grow as an advanced practice provider within work and grow outside of work as a leader, building an influence in a professional organization, rubbing shoulders with vice presidents, presidents, cnes and deans of colleges. Come right now to bitly slash nurse career clarity and see if this is the right fit for you. Again, it's bitly slash nurse career clarity. I look forward to seeing you soon. Clarity, I look forward to seeing you soon.
Speaker 1:So I was coaching a nurse recently, as I said earlier, through a SWOT analysis and even on core values and beliefs. So we went through that whole structure. That's one of the initial practices that I do in my coaching sessions, because we have to get a baseline assessment. Let's go through the nursing process. We have to get an assessment of where you are, where you want to go, and then how do your core beliefs and values intertwine into that? Because there's no need for you to make these elaborate plans on what you think you should be doing, but they don't match up with your core values, or the area in which that work might lead you to doesn't match up with your core values and beliefs. So we have to make sure those things match up. That's how we get that good combination of joy in work, and so it also helps us to make sure we establish what we're working towards.
Speaker 1:So then we landed into the next segment that I usually go into, which is exploring job opportunities. I had an earlier episode about what does it look like to explore job opportunities once you have developed your and worked through and reflected on your SWOT analysis. And so then there was another crux that I considered and have been thinking about in the midst of that coaching, because once you start exploring job opportunities. It's a sit and wait. It's a hurry up and wait type of game, and it could turn around very quickly or it could turn around very slowly, depending on what you're looking for, because what you may be looking for it might be a little bit of a unicorn, and it's not that it's not possible.
Speaker 1:I will tell you that the jobs that were available 20 years ago are not the same jobs that are available now. There's many more jobs that are available now, more jobs available for those with master's degrees and doctorate degrees than like. The supply is there. We just have to go for it. And so we set up a call to discuss some of those job opportunities. So she had seen a few that she wanted to apply to, or had went on ahead and pursued the opportunity of applying, and we went through some of the options which she applied, and the thing that she said that was very, very important as we started to talk through those options is that she recognized that some jobs may not meet her long-term goal or may not lead her to her long-term goal. That really got me thinking about when we're at this crux of making a decision on what job opportunities we are going to explore.
Speaker 1:How does one really know when, or how can I help someone to really understand the difference between when to leave just to get to a soft landing place before you get to that next role that might be a long-term role, role that might be a long-term role, or when do you stay until you find that long-term role? What do you believe is the long-term role? That's usually a conversation that we have and you might not have the answer to that, and that's okay. Nobody's asking you to have the answer, shucks. I don't even have the answer to what my long-term role is. However, I will say that I have shifted from what is the job or the long-term role that I'm looking for versus what is the mission I am trying to carry out. I believe I've said this before, but I will say something over and over again, because sometimes in different contexts it just clicks a little bit differently, and so I've been open. Now it still has to meet the standards of my SWOT analysis, my core beliefs, my core values, but my shift.
Speaker 1:I've noticed in my coaching that when I start off with many nurses, they already have an idea of what they think they want to move towards. That boxes you in. I'm just going to tell you right now that boxes you in, especially if you are someone who wants to make an impact, because sometimes you get there and we're at this crux. You get to that role and you're like, okay, I got here and I'm doing it, but there's more. There's more. You have to start to think about and match up with what is it, long term, that I want to do and is this job going to lead me into what I'd like to work on long term?
Speaker 1:When you are making a decision on where you want to go next, much of it is really dependent on what is your current working circumstance is really dependent on what is your current working circumstance. Are you jumping out of a frying pan and into a soft landing place so you can cool off before you take off and go in another direction for another job? Or, which I sometimes call that leaving and just dibbling and dabbling into a job until you can figure out what your next step is? When you are in that situation, you're running from something. When you are jumping out of a frying pan of, oh God, this job is not it, it is getting on my last nerves and I need to move on. You're jumping out of a frying pan and into some cool water. You want a long-term role but for your sanity, you want something that will just kind of hold you in place until you can figure out what your next clear direction is. So you're running from something versus running to something. Like running to something is, I see the goal and I see a bit of the steps that it takes to get to that particular role, because I like what that person is doing, which is great, and when you are in a role where you like what you're doing, then you can run to something. So running from is I don't like this job that I'm doing. It is getting on my last nerves. And then running to something is. That looks very intriguing and I know I can do more. I think I want to aim for that. It wasn't in my trajectory. It wasn't in my trajectory. It wasn't in my vision before, but it's in my vision now.
Speaker 1:If you're running from something, that means that where you are is not going to help you to grow Not one bit and it's making you miserable and more miserable and stealing your joy. Every day you walk in the door. That is when you need to leave and it could be a decent situation, a great situation, but it's stealing your joy, it's bothering you and you're getting more and more irritated. That is when you need to leave to just find a soft landing place and you can figure out what your next long-term move is, which is usually a hard crux. But sometimes that is when someone is in school to go back to get a degree and what they're currently doing just doesn't match up with what they are looking to do with that degree, or your current job just doesn't align with your long-term goals and dreams. You're starting to be out of alignment with the work that you do every day and it doesn't allow you the space and the time to work on your career outside of work. You've got blinders on because you're so consumed by what you don't like about what you do every day and it doesn't allow you to grow outside of work ie going back to school, out those things until you can wrap that up and then move on to what you believe your next long-term position will be, or something that's more so connected to your long-term goal.
Speaker 1:I've been in a position where I'm running to something, running to something. So my clear example is when I was working in risk management and I was good Like. The job was probably and I say this to this day outside of the current job that I'm in that job was probably the most autonomous job that I'd ever had in my career. The boss was great, hours were good. I would be on call like every 10 weeks out of the year, but it was such a job to where you had doctors calling you about what to write to the medical board when they got a complaint from the medical board or you know when there needed to be a response to the nursing board. Then you would help. You would help leaders, presidents, vice presidents, cnes to work through those conversations and to write a letter back to the nursing board. Or if there was an incident within the hospital, they're asking your opinion on what we should do, chief medical officers, medical directors calling you and getting advice on what they should do in order to decrease the risk to themselves and to the hospital.
Speaker 1:Your job as the risk manager is to protect the reputation of the organization. Now, that does not mean cover things up Absolutely not. We were a very morally upright group and any group of risk managers, clinical risk managers their morals go before them. I was good, the only thing that bothered me about the position was that it was starting to get a little monotonous and there was no room to grow. Like you could become a senior risk manager. But that came through longevity, so I probably would have had to been there at least another 10 years before I could get the status of senior risk manager. And then there was just the AVP like there was no levels to it.
Speaker 1:I was in my early thirties and I wanted to grow. I just finished my master's degree in nursing. I felt like that master's degree didn't necessarily match up with the work that I was doing. However, I was good with where I was, so I started looking, and specifically looking, for a job that I'd had my eye on for a while and I applied to that position. And when I went into that situation, I was running to something because I'd had my eye on that position for a while. Oh, it's a great opportunity for me to grow. Working in quality is an area that I've wanted to work in for a long time. I kept saying to myself as I went through the process I'm good, right where I am. So if I don went through the process, I'm good, right where I am. So if I don't get the job, I'm good. I did get the job and then that ended up being the dream job that I left because I hated it, but I grew a lot. But that is a good example of I am in a good position but I have a stirring and I want to check out something just a little bit different. When I say all of that, I don't want to discourage you from making a move like that, because it was not a regretful move.
Speaker 1:That move into that job caused me to learn so much more. I got much more exposure to how things worked on the hospital business side and within hospital operations and quality and metrics and Medicare and Medicaid Like. It opened my eyes to a whole nother level of what the C-suite talks about, what the C-suite talks about. And because of those valuable lessons, I am able to have the confidence to sit in conversations, understand and know what the hospital is working towards when they make certain decisions. And many people are very afraid to step out when they're in something good, when they have this stirring, because they're afraid it won't work out. Well, it still worked out.
Speaker 1:I had to move on, but it forced me to figure out what is my next, because once I got to that role, I didn't know what my next was going to be. But that's where I developed the formula for understanding what are your non-negotiables of what you need to grow your career, to have joy in your career, to have joy in your work. What are those non-negotiables that you need? And so that is an example again of running to something. I've had examples of when I'm running from something. The job that I had in quality. I had to get out and I needed a soft landing place and I couldn't take my time doing it. Now God blessed during that time helped me to develop the framework that I have now and that I use now with other nurses when I coach, and it was, it was a very clear like pivot. And that's when I applied and went to school to be a clinical nurse specialist. So I was very open and knew very quickly OK, this is the next trajectory of where I need to go. So thank God for that clarity. But I have been in positions to where I just needed a soft landing place and that is what I just came out of and where I am now Not to say that the job that I do now doesn't attribute to my long-term goals. It continues to plant seeds into my long-term goals.
Speaker 1:But I made a lateral move because I was growing outside of the organization and I needed to run from my clinical nurse specialist position. I loved it, hated giving it up, but I understood that my growth outside of the organization was going to be limited if I stayed in that position, just because of the nature of our structure. From a clinical nurse specialist standpoint, I had to find a soft landing place and that soft landing place was back in the same title that I'd had before, but it was different. I say all of that to say sometimes the soft landing place is the best place and my soft landing place is not going to be short term, it's going to be a little longer term because my growth is within my professional organizations right now. That's where my growth is for my career. So I ran from something into a soft landing place and it has been the best decision that I have made in this season.
Speaker 1:There is joy in this place, there is peace in this place and it opens the door for me to have these conversations with you, to put out podcasts, to be able to grow a business on the side, do coaching so that I can teach you the lessons that I've learned and coach you through your process and even grow in professional organizations, which is where the majority of the impact happens. When you're looking to make local, state, national impact, when you're looking to put your name out there and put a stamp on something, it's within a professional organization. Yes, it can happen within your organization and you can do that because of a lot of the work. But you're promoting that work at professional organizations, whether it be nursing organizations, whether it be the American College of Cardiology or the American Heart Association or the Oncology Nursing Society. Like you're. That's how you elevate. When you're showcasing your work, as in the last episode, episode 31, when you are showcasing your work in those areas, that's how you elevate your practice, elevate your leadership, elevate your impact.
Speaker 1:So I hope this was helpful in helping you to really understand where you might be in the process. You might be in a place of I'm good where I am, but I have this stirring and you might be holding yourself back because I did that. I did that for a whole year before I decided it was time for me to leave and go to this soft landing place. Or you might be at a place where you are irritated. You need to do something different, and you still might be holding yourself back and mad at everybody else. Leave, find your soft landing place. It might not be the glorious, prestigious thing that you want to do, or you feel like is the glamorous thing, but it might be just a good lateral move to get you to a place where you can clear your mind and make better decisions about where your next path will be.
Speaker 1:So I leave you with this question Are you running from something or are you running to something? And once you recognize which path you're on or you might be just good, but once you recognize which path that you're on, I caution you to be very careful when you're running from something, because that is when we trip up, we make mistakes and we go into roles that don't necessarily meet our lifestyle. I've been there too, and we don't do the vetting that we need to do before we go into the next place. When we're running from something, take a chance, but make sure you do your homework before you do that. The next place, when we're running from something, take a chance, but make sure you do your homework before you do that. See you next time.
Speaker 1:I hope you enjoyed today's episode. If so, would you take 30 seconds and share it with another nurse who may be unsure of where to go next in their career or maybe need some career clarity? Also, please leave a quick review for the show on Apple Podcast. It brings me so much joy and so much encouragement to know this podcast is helping you. Now go get the career you want and not the one you settle for, and I'll meet you back here next Thursday for another episode. See you soon.
