Managing Your Career

It’s late fall, the holidays are upon us, and the old year is winding down. Time for reflection on the past and resolutions for the future. This coming year, take some time to consider your career accomplishments and next steps. A successful career, no matter how it’s defined, requires managing. Far too many nurses put far too little thoughtful consideration into determining goals, setting priorities, seeking opportunities, and achieving milestones. Whether a novice or experienced clinical nurse specialist, here are some points to consider in managing a next career phase. Develop and mature expertise in a focused area. Clinical nurse specialists are certified as advanced practice nurses at the level of a population – neonate, pediatric, or adult/gerontology. These are broad areas, especially adult/gerontology, which includes every age and every condition from adolescent to the end of the human life span. There may be some merit in being a “jack of all trades and master of none,” dabbling in many areas rather than gaining expertise in one but it is not necessarily a good choice for building career success. Everyone has limited time and energy. Focusing on building expertise in a delimited clinical area maximizes the investment of time and energy. Build a network of colleagues. Start with colleagues in the work setting including nurses and other professionals. Seek opportunities to serve on interprofessional committees related to your focused clinical area. Expand beyond your employment setting and mingle by attending local conferences and serving on committees for local groups and organizations. For example, should a particular disease be your focus area, get connected with any local associations that advocate for persons with the disease such as local chapters of the American Diabetes Association, American Cancer Society or American Heart Association. Public associations dedicated to health problems are a good network resource for nurses. Never underestimate what can be accomplished through networking. Years ago, when oncology services were expanding, each of several hospitals in a large metropolitan area offered similar oncology orientation programs for newly hired nurses. Working collaboratively through the local chapter of the Oncology Nursing Society, a network of oncology nurses created one shared all-hospital orientation program. To avoid the appearance of favor, the program was provided at the office of the local cancer society. When the program outgrew that conference room, the Cancer Society’s manager negotiated for space with the manager of the building next door, a regional office of a fast-food chain. Networking! Get involved in professional organizations. Join at least one but preferably several nursing organizations. Select organizations that advocate for your specialty and role. Attend meetings and conferences. Volunteer to serve on a committee. Demonstrate progressive leadership by moving from committee member to co-chair, to chair. Serve on the board of directors. Start local and move to the national level. Be judicious. Being a member of more than one organization is important, serving on committees or in leadership roles for multiple organizations at the same time can be overwhelming. Timing is important. Select opportunities that fit within the confines of your family life and employment responsibilities. Disseminate your scholarly work. The first step in dissemination is to frame your work as scholarly. Projects, initiatives, and innovations that foster best practices, enhance quality and safety, impact cost and revenue, and improve patient outcomes are scholarly activities worthy of sharing. As your clinical expertise develops, the time comes for submitting abstracts for presentation at local, regional, and national conferences. The second step in dissemination is to turn to the network for a mentor. Having a mentor who understands the process greatly increases the probability of a successful submission. Should the first abstract submission not be accepted, try again. For every success there is a graveyard of failures, also known as learning experiences. Once an abstract is completed, move to the next level and publish the work. An abstract is a great first draft outline of a manuscript. Dissemination of work through juried abstract presentations and peer reviewed publications establishes your credibility as an expert. And dissemination further expands the network as you enter a conversation with others of like interest. A first-time author recently shared her surprise and delight when a nurse she did not know and had never met called for advice about a problem situation based on her published article. Apply for professional awards and honors. Awards are professional peer recognitions of performance excellence. Professional organizations offer awards recognizing excellence in areas such as teaching, leading, precepting, innovating, or publishing. The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists annually recognizes outstanding clinical nurse specialists with awards in many different areas, which can be found on their website. Nursing also has honorific recognitions. For example, Sigma Theta Tau International, a global honor society based on academic and professional achievement, accepts members from many countries. The American Academy of Nursing recognizes through a Fellowship designation nurses who are accomplished leaders in policy, research, administration, practice, and academia. The Clinical Nurse Specialist Institute (CNSI) recognizes as CNSI Fellows clinical nurse specialists who make outstanding contributions to clinical practice and advancement of the clinical nurse specialist role. Awards signify performance excellence for an individual and reflect positively on their role and employer. Consider applying or being nominated for an award. Budget a monetary investment in your career. A successful career costs money. Nurses have a long history of being employees, which has resulted in a level of complacency about individual responsibility for career success. Employers, especially hospitals, supported continuing education, conference travel, certification fees, and academic tuition to name a few. As a profession, nurses are grateful for the support. However, health care is under a financial microscope, and these generous benefits are becoming scarce. As a rule of thumb, a clinical nurse specialist should plan to invest at least 3-4% of an annual net salary in career development. Becoming a clinical nurse specialist was a huge investment on your part and on the part of your family and friends who supported you through the trials and tribulations of graduate school. You owe it to yourself and to them to make the most of your career. You are a nurse, a licensed professional healthcare provider and a free agent. Invest in yourself! Keep your curriculum vita (CV) up to date. The CV is a summary of your career successes and should include education, employment, licenses, certifications, presentations, publications, awards and honors, professional memberships, and leadership roles in professional organizations and associations. Find a format that works for you and provide complete information. The internet is awash in CV formats. Make it concise, readable, and complete. The CV is a reflection on you. Neatness counts! At least annually review the CV and consider opportunities and challenges for the next steps in your career. Every clinical nurse specialist starts out poised for a successful career. Opportunities abound. Be thoughtful, judicious, and brave. Try a road less traveled. A career is a journey. Make it a good one.