Fine tuning your decision on profession.

Dear Coach:


I’ve been thinking about nursing, but I’m concerned about the shift work and demands of the job. I can’t imagine working 12 hour days – even if I get 4 days off in a row. Yet I’m really drawn to a profession that lets me help others and I that gives me lots of choices of where to live. How do I figure this out?

Yeah or nay?

Dear Yeah:

This is a major decision so it’s no wonder you’re finding sifting through the pluses and minuses difficult. Some of my coaching clients find it helps to look at your career choices using three perspectives:

1. Listen to your heart.
2. Listen to your head.
3. Listen to others.

First, your heart. Think of a time when you were fully engaged by something. So engaged that you actually lost track of time. It doesn’t have to be work – it could be a sport, a hobby or a school experience. What were the elements that gave you the experience of being in your zone? List them. If you had the peak experience of a runner’s high maybe you’d say that you felt confidence in your body, challenged by doing something hard, and the chance to be alone with your thoughts. See if you can come up with at least two of these engaging experiences. Now, look at the lists you created and try to see what core values pop out. Maybe all your peak experiences had to do with being with others. Maybe you value independence. Maybe all your experiences had some element of challenge in them. Now go back to nursing and see how many of your core values can be addressed by being a nurse. Ideally, you want to choose a profession that aligns as closely as possible with what gets you excited to get up for in the morning.
Now listen to your head. You’ve already started to make a list of the pluses and minuses of nursing. Now really get into it. In one column give yourself 20 minutes to list absolutely everything that’s great about nursing as a career. Now do the same for the negatives. Don’t censure. Just write. Give yourself a little break, then, return to your list. Highlight the items that seem really important in making your decision. Consider your core values here too. If your core value is that you need serenity, hospital nursing may be a mismatch you want to consider.
Finally, listen to others. Okay, say that you’re still on the fence. Time to draw on outside resources. For example, you can imagine yourself as a nurse, but can’t imagine coping happily with the shift work and you want to work independently. If these are your only deal-breakers, some research or discussions with practicing nurses might open up possibilities that would work for you. Could you think about nurse practitioner or health educator, for example? Or how about working in medical research?