For those who have been called shy or quiet by your instructors

[mereship]

For those of you who have been called shy or quiet by your instructors:

I have seen quite a few people post about these situation, so I thought I would address it.

In nursing school, not one, but two of my instructors told me I was too quiet and didn't ask enough questions. I asked them to give me examples, yet they failed to do so. I felt like they were attacking my character and my personality What exactly is too quiet? As long as my patients are tended to, and I'm learning the material that should have been all they were concerned with. Instead they were concerned with aspects of my personality that did not and would not relate to my future performance as a nurse. Being "quiet" makes me a great listener, an efficient and productive worker, and gives me the ability to empathize with others. These nursing instructors were Type-A, aggressive personalities and they just didn't see that someone could be different from them and still be a good nurse. Well, I am a great nurse! I did not ask questions, but I did not have any. I knew my material without needing to ask additional questions. I graduated a 16 month BSN program with a 4.0! I have been a RN for 4 years and will be attending a nurse practitioner program in the fall. Do not let those instructors get you down! They are not doing their job as a teacher by saying those things. There is room in the field of nursing and this world for many different personality types, not just pushy ones. ;-) You will be a great nurse, not matter what those insecure instructors say!

[Betty 1]

I just want to say Thank you! :) I am only a Nursing Assistant, but in all classes I have ever taken. I have always heard you are too quiet or you are too shy. In my nursing assistant class I heard it from the instructor and students. I listen in class, do my homework, and got a good grade. I talk to my residents just fine, and more important I listen to them. I like and agree with this especially "Being "quiet" makes me a great listener, an efficient and productive worker, and gives me the ability to empathize with others." I think the same thing and seeing how far you have gone gives me great hope. So yet again Thank you! :)

[MaggieMaggie]

THANK YOU for posting this!! I feel like I could have written it myself (except you made it more coherent than anything I ever type up ).

Very inspirational and I think it will really help some people. I know this is an old post but I have been in the same situation. I think a majority of nurses are extroverts. For some of them, different makes them uncomfortable and concerned that quiet people can't do their job. But different does not equal bad; some people are too small minded to realize this. You will encounter these people.

A lot of people confuse quiet and shy even though those are very different things (and nothing is wrong with either in my opinion). I am quiet but not shy. In an emergency I am just as loud as the next person. My being quiet has never negatively affected my patients. Susan Cain actually has a book about being an introvert which is excellent reading and I would highly recommend it in addition to that ted talk.

[pixiestudent2]

I ran into huge problems with being quiet in nursing school....