Please Give ME any Good Reason to Stay in the Nursing Field

lharberRNbsn · Sep 18, 2018

It's not that simple only because it's a huge decision in my life. I can lose a lot by pulling out AGAIN on a nursing program I'm already accepted into but then again I could just be wasting time and money if I stay for little return. I'm really looking for a good reason to stay, I'm hoping wishing and praying for a good return on this investment.
Someone I know outside of nursing makes 6 figures and basically implied that what I do as a LPN and what my father does as a RN is comparable to a rat race where you're not making a lot and told me I could be making more. I actually felt bad and offended. But the more I think about it, it has me wondering if it's true. I argued that I could be a DNP but they pointed out the additional schooling and money to be spent when I could still work on making more that through business ventures.
Like I said, I am REALLY loving and caring and would go above and beyond in anything I do but if my goal is to make a great amount and not feel overworked is nursing a good route...

Let me tell you, nurses are WAY underpaid. And WAY over worked. Yes, we only work about 3 days a week, but they're 12 hour shifts. And those 12 hour shift consist of many patients. And those patients have multiple doctors, physical therapists, tests to be done, and family members. I will tell you, that I very often feel stressed out. However, that being said, I cannot explain the feeling I get when a patient tells me I have touched their life or when they start to feel better after they thought they were going to die.

SaltineQueen · Sep 18, 2018

When you figure out how to make 6 figures without feeling a slave to your job, please share. Your youthful optimism is refreshing.

Just a little nugget of information for you... My husband got his MBA after several years in the business world & feels like it's done nothing to help him. If he could do it over again he'd get a masters in accounting or finance.

djh123 · Sep 18, 2018

You've got to come up with your own reasons. They're probably often similar, but sometimes not, for nurses. Both in nursing school and while actually working as a nurse, I've had to think about & adjust my reasons.

Have Nurse, ADN, RN · Sep 18, 2018

Get out. Now. You'll feel better because deep down, that's what you want. You just needed someone else to validate it.

Nothing wrong with being honest with yourself. Your nursing wasn't wasted....Now go forward.

Golden_RN, MSN · Sep 18, 2018

Come to California and you can definitely make 6 figures as an RN. But if you aren't happy, then what is the point. I work with people that have MBAs and still have to start in entry level jobs making far less than nurses. I think you should find your focus and follow that.

/username, BSN, RN · Sep 18, 2018

My goal is to make 6 figures and not feel like I am a slave to a system to do so. I love to create and I want to own businesses.

Although the troll post was low effort, it was nevertheless entertaining.

Golden_RN, MSN · Sep 18, 2018

California

Hoosier_RN, MSN · Sep 18, 2018

California

Cost of living though, makes it equal to other states without 6 figures and lower cost of living

Golden_RN, MSN · Sep 18, 2018

Cost of living though, makes it equal to other states without 6 figures and lower cost of living

This is often true. However, some people live in lower cost of living cities and commute into higher paying cities per diem to make fairly big bucks on the side. There are several posts saying that RNs are underpaid and I just don't think we are underpaid in CA.

Chrispy11, ASN, RN · Sep 18, 2018

Hello ToNurseOrNot! OK... I'll tell you my story... I have a Bachelors in Business Admin and an MBA. I was at one job half my life, got laid off. I took a job for the sake of having one when the unemployment ran out at half the money. Eventually, found something that paid what I was previously earning and three and a half years later got laid off again. I had a clue after my first lay off. I kept running into people I worked with over the years going on various job interviews and thought since it happened again, it was time for a change.

Instead of investing a huge sum of money I went to a CNA course after the second lay off. I did this to decide which way I wanted to go. I researched industries and found that the large amount of baby boomers coming of age was going to create a large opportunity. I got my first paycheck and pretty much decided I had better find something else. I found I loved working with the Residents in Assisted Living. Spoke with some of my co-workers decided to go into nursing. I went back to school for my ADN and wondered at times why I did it to myself. It wasn't easy, but it felt better going into something I knew was growing because two layoffs in four years was enough. I had interviewed for a few jobs in my old field while I was in CNA school. A former co-worker got one of those jobs and was laid off by the time I finished my probation period in my first CNA job. Co-worker went back to school for something health care related.

I now have a job that I love. It will pay for my BSN, which I put off for a few months so I can learn the job. The way the business operates, with my previous experience and business degrees, I can go into area of the company, which will pay the salary you desire. Right now, I'm not that far off from what I used to earn.

Why did I go into nursing... Job security! Best of luck in whatever you decide to do! :)

shiftingtides · Sep 18, 2018

I would suggest that you finish your BSN, or at the very least maintain your LPN licensing. Many times, the grass isn't always greener on the other side.

My first career path was the business degree and MBA route, and I spent over 10 years working in corporate finance for some of the biggest companies in the world. The pay was decent (unless you are in a high-paying area like San Diego or whatnot, nonmanagement jobs will cap out a little under 6 figures), and the job wasn't terrible. I will forever keep my CPA license simply because I worked my butt off for it and it's a good backup.

After about 12 years, I got burned out on finance, and especially burned out on my long, big city commute. I quit to do my own business, from home. One thing to keep in mind about running your own business, you will ALWAYS put in far more hours than you would working for someone else. Especially in the first 5-10 years, and possibly forever. Luckily, most entrepreneurs that do well tend to be workaholics, so that's not always horrible. But after 7 years of working hard in a creative field for myself, I'm sick of this being my way-more-than-full-time job.

I'm now going back to school for my LPN, with the intent of eventually bridging to my RN and BSN. Why? Because I'm tired of finance, and there are no finance jobs that pay well in the areas I want to live now (I'm sick of living in Chicago/Phoenix/etc., and want to live somewhere rural). Nurses can work anywhere. And my love of the creative field I went into for my own business is still there, but relying on that income to pay bills month after month means that I'm always stressed about bills, because owning your own business is never as guaranteed as employment. Plus, needing every dime to pay bills is killing my love of this creative field. I'd much rather do it as a side gig while nursing full time.

Anyway, this is just a long winded way to say that breaking into higher income brackets is possible no matter what you decide to do, but that there is something to be said for a field where you can get a job most places. There's nothing to say that you can't work as an RN or LPN while starting your business on the side (and in fact, that employment to fall back on can make you far more likely to succeed).

And I'd caution you against an MBA. I only got mine to fulfill the credits required for my CPA license. You can transition into a business job without one, and really, they aren't that helpful until you are ready for a management position. Even then, I'd only get one if your employer at that time will pay for it (many will). MBAs are a dime a dozen now, and it doesn't do anything for your resume until you have at least 5 years of experience in business.

shiftingtides · Sep 18, 2018

I will add that business jobs (for large companies that pay well, especially), are not 40 hour per week positions, and while you will have to work 50-60+ hours a week, you will NOT be paid overtime. These jobs are exempt from overtime as you are paid a yearly salary, not an hourly amount. Even when you can easily get all your work done in 40 (or fewer) hours, you are looked at as a slacker if you don't at least pretend to be working harder and stay late. Playing the game and keeping up appearances is very important.

Really your actual job in business is only 70% of your work. The rest is networking, politicking, and coming up with ways to add value to your position (figuring out ways to give yourself more work) to benefit the company.