Truth? or Pollyanna version

That is an interesting question. I think presenting your audience with the truth is paramount.

The amount of time, money and effort required to obtain a nursing degree is nothing to take lightly. Although, I do not believe nursing is all consuming; I believe that everyone has to find the right balance of work, recreation and family time. In many cases, a new nurse will try many different specialities prior to finding a niche in the profession. Every work environment has its own set of problems; the trick is finding the set of problems you deal with best. I believe that the career of a nurse is made up of a lot of little wins and some epic fails. Our future students should be informed in regards to good and the not so good aspects of our profession. Knowledge of what can and will be encountered is the only way to enable them to make an informed decision. I wish you the best in your presentation.

Any job can be "all consuming" if you allow it to be.

It may help to step back and realize either 1) you have accepted a particular job which requires greater than what are generally considered to be full-time hours (40-ish hours/week) ... or 2) your particular financial situation/financial priorities require greater than full-time hours in order to earn the amount of income necessary.

Maybe this isn't the best time for you to be giving a career-related presentation.

Hope it gets better.

I think I would go with the "hardest job you just might love" route. Give them the truth about the challenges of the profession while also giving them the flip side, the benefits of a nursing career. I would recommend to them testing the waters by perhaps seeking employment as a tech or aide and getting some exposure to the healthcare environment before taking the full plunge into RN or LVN school. Or volunteer work, perhaps at a nursing home since hospital volunteers often are manning the reception desk or gift shop.

Basically I would not sugar coat it, but regardless of the challenges in nursing there are many benefits to it as well. I do believe that when the economy turns around, nursing jobs will come back around as well, but I would let them know that right now jobs are hard to find in every sector, and nursing is not immune to this.

Nursing is stressful and also rewarding. I believe it takes a special kind of person to be a good nurse and many people who do not like it simply are not good at it or had some clues along the way, well before graduating nursing school that this would not be for them. I cannot imagine doing anything other than nursing in some form. Direct patient care or management or helping other nurses in some way there are many options out there. It does start with a certian skill set that takes time and effort to obtain.

That is true Tricia Nursing is the only job I can imagine really LOVING like I do, it is very very rewarding. It is also very very frusterating...always running, always FIGHTING for patient rights or NURSING rights..many ,many complaints but also many many compliments and much love from fellow nurses and patients and families....some days/weeks/months better than others.