Is Nursing Sustainable?

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Who You’ll Hear

Kati Kleber, MSN RN – Nurse educator, former cardiac med-surg/stepdown and neurocritical care nurse, author, and speaker.

What You’ll Learn

• Is nursing sustainable or not?
• How it’s not just about earning more money – it’s about how you SPEND the money you earn
• The importance of being intentional with your career
• Practical ways you can craft your dream career while balancing home and work

Is Nursing Sustainable? Show Notes

• Ask yourself, can I do this for 30 years? Some may be able to, while others won’t desire to do nights for decades, or would like holidays off eventually.
• Be intentional about how you structure your career
• It’s not just about making more money
  • People tend to assume the only way to optimize their career is to climb the income ladder, however how you spend your money is just as important
  • Some people who earn a lot spend it poorly or in ways that are not advantageous in the long run
  • Consider how many hours you work, how much you take home, your fixed costs, and how much workable income you’ve got left after
  • Some people with high income levels (and longer work hours) have large unnecessary costs that leave them with similar amounts of left over cash
• Don’t look at nursing through the lens of making the most money possible
• How to successfully sustain being a nurse:
  • Leverage your position as a tool; not this uncompromising aspect of your identity
  • A nursing job is a position that provides joy and an income
  • If you don’t realize that you will always say “yes” to things even if it’s not in your best interest
    • Repeatedly doing this leads to burnout
    • Your needs will not be met, but the hospital’s will be – make sure you’re advocating for yourself
• How long can I do this?
  • If you’re complacent, make sure you’re keeping yourself challenged
  • Join committees, look for different ways to keep yourself interesting and engaged – no one will do that for you
• When you want to explore beyond a full time bedside position
  • Go part-time or PRN; supplement income with a side hustle or be PRN in another facility
  • Move to outpatient care
  • Become a school nurse
  • Tele-health
  • Insurance companies
  • Expert witnesses for nurses – more info in resources section
  • Biometric clinic
  • Immunization clinic 
  • Cardiac Rehab
  • Public Health
• You don’t have to wait till you retire to enjoy life!
  • A nursing degree and license is a VALUABLE tool that you can use to craft your own dream career
  • It does NOT have to be 30 years at the bedside, or taking on a mountain of debt to move up income levels
• Action steps:
  • Analyze your finances to see where you can optimize, cut wasteful spending, etc. This book has a great 6-week blueprint to overhaul and optimize your finances
  • Consider if you want to stay in your job, and what it would take to make it worth it (negotiating a raise, getting creating with hours and committees to decrease bedside time and make it more sustainable)
  • Check out Crafting your Dream Career for even more tips!

Video on this Episode

More Resources for Is Nursing Sustainable:

• I Will Teach You to Be Rich – a book that I love with actionable steps to optimize finances
• Expert Witness Nurses – a great side gig for nurses
• Crafting your Dream Career – the ULTIMATE resource for people looking to get creative with their nursing degree to maximize it for your unique needs. Community support, able to post and discuss anonymously, content on top questions (what about insurance and retirement?) and so much more.