What would you do?

[Hunt er]

I feel like I am stuck in between a rock and a hard place and I am not really sure what to do.

I am a 28 year old male, a retail manager and I make about 80K a year. I am really big on Finance and the FIRE (Financial Independence retire early) Movement and I would describe myself as a super saver. I am on track that by the time I am 40 I will be financially secure and theoretically wouldn't have to work again. I have no intentions to stop working once I hit 40 but it's a goal of mine to have the option.

So here is the thing... I love the money I am making and I am comfortable in my position but I'm not happy in my job because I don't bring Value to the world in my position and I am not making a difference in anyone's life.

I have strongly considered going into Nursing for years, when I was younger I wanted to be a CRNA but also Emergency Room Nursing interests me a lot as well. I think I could find happiness, purpose and meaning in either of those different roles.

So I guess what I am asking is if you were in my shoes what would you do? Should I wait until I am 40 (12 years) to start nursing? or Should I start the Nursing journey now and start off with a pursuit of the ADN?

Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

- Hunter

[Davey Do]

6 hours ago, Hunt er said:

I appreciate the honesty in responses and am noticing a lot of them touch on the lack of Job Satisfaction for nurses.

What is the primary cause of this?

SourLemon's "unrealistic expectations" is spot on.

I feel as though I've been blessed and finally found my niche 17 years ago in geriatric psych. If you look at my "specializes in" line, you'll note that I've worked in several areas. At this point in my career, it feels almost like those other areas of nursing were meant so I could do well in this area of nursing.

Geriatric psych has just about everything from basically babysitting to some relatively intense medical interventions. And, unlike the more intense areas of nursing from the ER to med/surge to the critical care units, you do have time to talk with the patients.

I truly still enjoy my job, and working 12 hour MN shifts is a large portion of that enjoyment.

Good luck, Hunter!

[jobellestarr]

5 hours ago, JKL33 said:

Excellent post. Thank you

I feel it isn't an isolated thing like wage, hours, customers/patients or any of the rest of that, etc., etc. I was raised below the poverty line (though never lacking for love and support) and worked plenty hard before I was even old enough to become a nurse so I feel I have at least some perspective to not complain about things like hard work or whether I should make as much as so-and-so. Rather, the overall problem with nursing is the ethical conflict; the idea of reconciling ethical practice (our Code of Ethics is a published multi-page document which declares our ethical responsibility for just about everything despite what others choose to do) + legalities + high individual responsibility + low individual autonomy, and currently we're riding a big business-driven train that has gone off the tracks. Practically every other major nursing problem someone might commonly bring up (wages, N:P ratios, toxic behaviors, workload, time constraints, resource constraints, customer service, poor treatment of nurses, significant problems with nursing education, etc.) has these underlying conflicts and/or issues as an underpinning.

For this reason I think anyone who can satisfy their desire to do genuine good separately from earning their paycheck should keep it that way and not primarily try to combine altruism with earning a paycheck (arguably that latter combo isn't even technically possible).

Nice to see I have at least a little company in the aforementioned survey results: I am glad I became a nurse but pretty sure I wouldn't do it again.

[designerRN]

If you already have a Bachelors level degree--consider a fast track nursing program, as others of mentioned. It's never wrong to change careers if that's what is in your heart. I know someone who was a trained chef for many years. He decided to go to nursing school and worked his way up to a CRNA degree. Investigate, shadow if you can, and go for it.

[2BS Nurse, BSN]

If you're all about saving money, complete the ADN so you can start working as a RN (I too had a previous bachelor's degree). Have your employer pay for the online BSN. I'm doing the same job as some of my coworkers who went to expensive universities and are still in debt (In my area, having a BSN does not = higher pay). Personally, I'd rather go to school a little longer to end up debt free.

[BSN-to-MSN, ADN, BSN, RN]

On 2/23/2020 at 11:20 PM, Hunt er said:

What is the primary cause of this?

Stuck between advocating for patients and doing what management wants me to do, sometimes I feel like I have two layers at work.

[BSN-to-MSN, ADN, BSN, RN]

On 2/24/2020 at 9:39 PM, 2BS Nurse said:

If you're all about saving money, complete the ADN so you can start working as a RN (I too had a previous bachelor's degree). Have your employer pay for the online BSN. I'm doing the same job as some of my coworkers who went to expensive universities and are still in debt (In my area, having a BSN does not = higher pay). Personally, I'd rather go to school a little longer to end up debt free.

Hi,

Same, a BSN does not mean higher pay in my area, just makes a next job hunt easier. My employer is going to pay about 60 percent of my online BSN by he middle of next year. No debt here!

[Psychnursehopeful, ASN, RN]

It would be helpful to know what part of the country you're in. If you live in California you very well could see an increase in pay.

[Pairmyhair]

I am a new grad but I suggest you wait until you retired. Also shadow a nurse for a day. There are so many other ways to give back. You have a plan in mind and starting nursing now can steer you in a different way that may hinder your goal/plan.