Promotion advice?

Published

Specializes in ICU, Home Health and Hospice.

Hi fellow nurses,

Just looking for some tips. I am working in home health and have just interviewed for a Clinical Coordinator position overseeing a team of nurses in a few different zip codes. I am going to be starting my MSN in Leadership in January.

I have never been in a supervisor position before, and while I have no trouble with communication, I am concerned that because of my age, I may have to fight for respect. I have been a nurse for four years and I will be 25 next month. I'm perfectly qualified for the position, but I'm just not sure how some of the nurses will take it if they have someone so young overseeing them.

Does anyone have any tips on how to be a good supervisor and gain respect from nurses who have double the experience and age advantage?

Thanks!

1
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Geriatrics, Dialysis.

You've already overcome the first and biggest hurdle by recognizing that your age might even be an issue. Assuming you are offered the position as long as you are good at the job and support your staff as well as you can you should be fine.

My DON is some 20+ years younger than many of the nurses she works with, her age hasn't ever been a factor because she's darn good at the job. It probably helps that none of the nurses had the slightest bit of interest in the job so there where no hurt feelings when she was hired.

That's the one thing I can see you potentially having some issues with. It sounds like this position is a promotion with your current employer. If other nurses you'll be supervising also applied those nurses might not be so supportive, especially if they have more experience as well as more seniority in the company than you.

4
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ER OR LTC Code Blue Trauma Dog.

What will gain the respect of your peers is what you do, not what you say.

7
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in BMT.

When I was a nursing student I shadowed a manager on a floor that was clearly well liked, every nurse on the floor told me I was lucky to shadow her and how much they liked her when she wasn’t around. She was much younger than all of the nurses. She was well liked because she was fair, she advocated strongly for them and their patients, she was considerate of life circumstances outside of work, but most importantly good at her job and always willing to help. A patient calling out to use the bed pan? If the nurse wasn’t at the station she would answer the call light. That reason is also why a lot of my coworkers aren’t a fan of their manager- they forget what it’s like to be a nurse and don’t help out.

5
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU, Home Health and Hospice.

Thank you all for your input. I certainly would be willing to do anything to help the staff out, as those are always the managers that stick out most in my mind. I have been told that no other internal employees have applied so I don’t think that it will necessarily be an issue with seniority or anything like that. I had a stint in the office while I was on light duty and I got a lot of positive feedback from the staff I was managing. It’s looking like I’ll get it because they all but said the interview was a formality since they already know and trust me!

3
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

Starting reading/listening to books about mentorship and leadership. Start following trailblazers on social media. Think about the people in charge of you in the past - everyone from charge nurses to instructors to actual managers - and begin to define those things that made you motivated and made you feel well represented.

3
Up Vote Up Vote ×
20 hours ago, Emm_RN said:

Hi fellow nurses,

Just looking for some tips. I am working in home health and have just interviewed for a Clinical Coordinator position overseeing a team of nurses in a few different zip codes. I am going to be starting my MSN in Leadership in January.

I have never been in a supervisor position before, and while I have no trouble with communication, I am concerned that because of my age, I may have to fight for respect. I have been a nurse for four years and I will be 25 next month. I'm perfectly qualified for the position, but I'm just not sure how some of the nurses will take it if they have someone so young overseeing them.

Does anyone have any tips on how to be a good supervisor and gain respect from nurses who have double the experience and age advantage?

Thanks!

I am curious why you would believe problems would arise in relation to your age as opposed to your relative lack of experience in nursing and your complete lack of experience in supervisory positions? Your experience in nursing/supervision may in fact, at your age, be solely a function of your age (you haven't even had time to gain a great deal of experience), but that doesn't mean that your age in and of itself is the thing people would be opposed to if they were going to have difficulty accepting you.

To play devil's advocate for a second ?, you may not want your (relative) lack of experience to cause you any difficulty, but as it stands right now that is a factor involved in your decision-making; it's impossible for it not to be. [Hear me out...] You are not "perfectly qualified," although you may be an excellent candidate for less tangible reasons, and you may do an amazing job. I am not criticizing your years of experience, I am trying to get you to think about this a little differently so that you can focus on things that you can do something about, rather than worrying about something you can't change (your age). ?

It is your ideas, your execution of those ideas, and your relationships with others that will make or break you; not your age independently. That's why some younger people do amazing things, and some older people let everything fall apart. The age isn't the main thing.

Gaining trust should be one of your first goals, IMO. Be level with people and treat them with the regard you would like to have shown to you.

Should you get the position: Best of luck! ?

4
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU, Home Health and Hospice.

I should have added that I have stepped in as interim manager a handful of times in the exact position that I applied for and the interviewing managers have been impressed and asked me to apply.

I recognize the lack of experience however most of our issues arise with home health specific problems and I have often precepted in our agency so they are happy with my knowledge base. I’m aware I do not have a ton of nursing experience but I am always taking any opportunity I can to strengthen my knowledge.

Thank you for the helpful input, it has certainly given me a lot to think about!

3
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Tele, ICU, Staff Development.

It is a challenge to be young and a young nurse.

To gain respect of older nurses, do not rush in with guns blazing. Ask their opinions and ask what happened before- what's the history? Be inclusive.

Remember that influence is relational. Best wishes to you.

2
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU, Home Health and Hospice.
On 9/16/2019 at 9:40 AM, Nurse Beth said:

It is a challenge to be young and a young nurse.

To gain respect of older nurses, do not rush in with guns blazing. Ask their opinions and ask what happened before- what's the history? Be inclusive.

Remember that influence is relational. Best wishes to you.

Thank you! I want to do the best job possible if I am given the opportunity.

1
Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment