A Creative Outlet

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I've been struggling with nurse burnout for a while now and I've been pondering my next step. I attending NNBA Conference in Florida last year and was really inspired to create a blog. I think it will be a great creative outlet aside from my day job (or night job since I work nights.)

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Awesome! I've been thinking pretty seriously for a while about making a NICU nursing blog (although soon I'll be starting in a new specialty, so it may be a pipe dream at this point).

One book that I found quite handy was 'The Nurse's Guide to Blogging,' written by the nurses who created the blogs/sites Nurse Eyeroll and The Nerdy Nurse. The Nurse's Guide to Blogging: Building a Brand and a Profitable Business as a Nurse Influencer: Brittney R Wilson BSN RN, Kati L Kleber BSN RN: 9781546566823: Amazon.com: Books

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Yes I have it that book! I actually met them in person too they are awesome!

Do you have a blog? I recommend starting one anyway, because I found that I always just put it on the back burner!

Let me know =]

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Yes I have it that book! I actually met them in person too they are awesome!

Do you have a blog? I recommend starting one anyway, because I found that I always just put it on the back burner!

Let me know =]

It's so cool that you met them! I've been keeping an eye on their blogs for several years, and it's amazing how much they've grown and changed over time.

I have a whole WordPress site set up and about 15 half-written articles on my desktop, but I haven't pulled the trigger and gone live. I guess I've been worried that once I start, I'll feel obligated to keep producing content and it will become more stressful than therapeutic. One of the things I love about AN is that I can contribute when I feel like it, and totally fall off the grid when I don't.

My whole site premise is based around NICU, so it also feels a bit disingenuous to write about NICU when I'm leaving the specialty (granted, to switch to a closely related specialty). Changing my focus would cause me to have to change the whole brand, so I'm doing some soul-searching. I also worry that I'll be a bit busy and stressed out orienting to a new, higher-acuity specialty (peds cardiac ICU); I don't know if I want to take on any other projects right now. I keep telling myself I'll revisit the idea later, but I've been putting it off for a couple of years now.

One thing I found incredibly surprising and powerful about the book was the notion of becoming an 'influencer.' Simply by putting in the effort, it seems that you have the capacity to create a personal brand and really make a name for yourself. It's a fascinating idea, although it does take a lot of hard work, time, and investment.

I'll have to keep an eye on your blog. Keep us updated on how it's going!

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

We have an Innovator's Hub where bloggers, writers and other entrepreneurs gather. I have moved your post.

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Specializes in Peds, Med-Surg, Disaster Nsg, Parish Nsg.

Hello and welcome to allnurses.com.

Nurse Beth and I attended the NNBA Conference last year and were at the allnurses.com booth. Let me know if you came by and spoke to us. We will be there again this year and will be having a session on how to go from being a nurse to a nurse influencer. Are you planning to go this year? If so, Beth and I would love to meet you. As you know, there are so many at that conference who, just like you, have a dream and want to turn it into reality.

allnurses is a good resource to obtain information about blogging from some of the many bloggers who post here. This is also a great place to develop your writing skills. Many of our articles are written by those who have off-site blogs. They come to allnurses to get exposure and share their writing skills and experiences as they continue to grow and learn.

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Specializes in Tele, ICU, Staff Development.
I've been struggling with nurse burnout for a while now and I've been pondering my next step. I attending NNBA Conference in Florida last year and was really inspired to create a blog. I think it will be a great creative outlet aside from my day job (or night job since I work nights.)

Hi there! I hope you'll come again this year to NNBA in Las Vegas, we can talk :) Starting a blog is a great creative outlet as you say. I blog at nursecode.com and it's been an amazing journey. You never know where writing will take you once you get started.

I wrote about my writing path here. Starting a blog is something I'm glad I acted on when I was inspired.

Keep us posted! and let me know how I can help you. Best wishes, Nurse Beth

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Wow thank you for the advice! The whole paragraph on what you said about have the articles and not pulling the trigger is exactly where I am! I have been agonizing over it for 2 years, but finally decided to step into action. I'm going to try to be more active here on AN. Thank you for the insight, and I wish you the best in your path and career!

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Your blog has been an inspiration to me! I did have a chat with you at last years NNBA, and I am sure I will be going to the one in Vegas!

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Hi! I'm not sure if I spoke to you, but I definitely did pass by the booth to have a chat with you! I'm interested in contributing unique articles to allnurses!

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Where is the innovators hub?

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Under Career on the yellow navigation bar. Best wishes

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