Is it possible to actually LIKE my job in nursing?

BSNbeauty, BSN, RN · Dec 3, 2014

I work in post partum and Love my job.

ArtClassRN, ADN, RN · Dec 3, 2014

Yes, it is very possible to like your job in nursing. However, most nurses who like their job tend to just enjoy living their lives. Ones who don't come here and drone on about it for decades.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Dec 3, 2014

I previously mentioned that loving our jobs anecdotally follows a normal distribution pattern that looks much like a statistical bell curve.

About 20 percent of all workers love their jobs and wouldn't dream of doing anything else; these people fall to the right of the curve. Then we have the 20 percent of employees situated to the left of the curve who absolutely hate their jobs. Preconceived notions regarding work often influence our attitudes about the workplace.

The majority of people fall somewhere in between the two extremes. In other words, they don't dislike their jobs but would eagerly resign if a more alluring opportunity presented itself.

I admit that I fall squarely in the middle category. Although my current workplace is tolerable, I view it as nothing more than a means to an end. Moreover, I would resign without guilt if I perceived that the grass was greener on the other side. To be totally honest, I have never loved any job I have ever held. This is due to my personality.

Libby1987 · Dec 3, 2014

I've liked my last several jobs, and loved aspects of them. I was miserable when first out of nursing school, again when I tried SNF and lasted 3 mos and finally when I initially got into home health and worked for a company that had major issues such as bouncing payroll checks.

I've since like my different roles in home health and a short time working for an insurance company doing onsite UR (I would have stayed with that one had the timing been better but as it was my kids were so young and I ended taking another 7 yrs as a SAHM).

i like to work in general and am well suited personality wise for home care.

DaughteroftheKing · Dec 3, 2014

Yea maybe I just need to find my niche. And @ArtClass, I love my life very much even at my job, I just would highly rather not be THERE, thats the problem.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Dec 3, 2014

Yes, it is very possible to like your job in nursing. However, most nurses who like their job tend to just enjoy living their lives. Ones who don't come here and drone on about it for decades.

I still enjoyed living my life when I hated my hospital job towards the end of my time there. I just didn't enjoy it as much 36 hrs/week. But, since I believe one should not spend the majority of their waking hours miserable, I found a new job and quit.

LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN · Dec 3, 2014

Yes, it is very possible to like your job in nursing. However, most nurses who like their job tend to just enjoy living their lives. Ones who don't come here and drone on about it for decades.

I agree with this...to a point.

I enjoy being a nurse; I have worked in a couple of dumps in order to gain experience; I have worked in other places that have been palatable to work in; meaning, there some places I dreaded working at, others I just went in and did my job-I can't recall having an adrenaline rush of excitement or enjoyment going to work; I more have an adrenaline rush or excitement that what I was doing was enjoyable, but that's it.

OP, continue to cast you net wide; get some certs and look into CEUs that will make you marketable; be persistent and emphasize you want a change in your career-it worked for me.

Best wishes.

sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN · Dec 3, 2014

yes it is possible, i have had a few I did not care for, but for the most part its good :)

Ruby Vee, BSN · Dec 9, 2014

There are plenty of people who like their jobs. People who like their jobs tend to be positive people who like their lives as well. People who absolutely HATE their jobs are usually either burned out or chronically unhappy people who fill find something to be unhappy about no matter what.

Aurora77 · Dec 9, 2014

I'm in the middle range as described by The Commuter. Some days I love my job, some days I hate it. I have more good days than bad and I enjoy my coworkers so I stay.

What's helped for me is realizing this is just a job. I've worked hard at leaving work at work, especially mentally.

Cricket183, BSN, RN · Dec 9, 2014

I have only worked for one hospital (there's only one major hospital in town) since I graduated from nursing school in 2003. However, I have held multiple positions (all in oncology) in that facility.

I started out out as a staff nurse on night shift. Loved it! Then I was promoted to charge nurse on days. Loved it even more. After I received my OCN, I was again promoted to a newly created position of Breast Health Navigator to create a program to help promote breast cancer screening and to help breast cancer patients navigate the complicated health care system. There were aspects of the job that I enjoyed greatly but there were also aspects I really disliked. I loved the creativity of starting a new program. I loved providing patient education and doing health fairs/health promotion/staff training, etc. I did not like the lack of patient interaction during the start up stage. I enjoyed the autonomy but struggled with certain aspects of it. I am very much a self starter and very self motivated. I usually excell in things like independent studies and such but I found the lack of feedback in that particular situation very frustrating. There was really no one there telling me whether I was doing the job right or if I was going in the right direction with the program. There were not clear goals and tasks to accomplish.

I was also dealing with major health issues at the time so I really wasn't at my best. I eventually ended up going on FMLA, then short-term disability and the position was given to someone else because it was uncertain when/if I would be able to return. The program was just really getting going good and it was hard to watch someone else step in. I eventually returned to the hospital after several surgeries during a 6 month period. I returned to the oncology unit working as both staff nurse and charge nurse. It really suited me better than the Breast Health Navigator position. (I eventually ended up going on permanent disability and miss nursing greatly. My health is slowly improving and I hope to return in the next 1-2 years.)

I think it is entirely possible to like, and even love, what you do. Some of it is finding your niche. Some of it is having a conducive work environment. Some of it is attitude. One of the great things about nursing is the diversity within the profession. If you don't care for one aspect of it, there are other areas to explore.