2 yrs experience, now what?

[pittnurse09]

i am a nurse that is coming up fast on two years of icu experience, unsure of what to do with my life, during school i was set on crna, but now unsure of if this is what i want to do for the rest of my life, some other thoughts have been traveling, getting an mba or going for healthcare technology (example: computerized charting), regardless i feel like i might need a change but unsure/afraid of what i want to do...money is also an issue as i feel that i am underpaid when compared to other nursing positions in the area

[westieluv]

If I was younger and single with no strings (which you don't say that you are, but if you are), I would definitely try travel nursing. I can't even imagine how much fun it would be to get paid to try out various cities and states with no long term commitment if you find that you don't like them. And if you do like them and you are a good nurse and a good employee, chances are you could find long term employment at the facility where you are working as a travel nurse, since those places are paying through the nose for travel nurses and probably need regular employees that don't cost them $80/hr.!

[llg, PhD, RN]

What you are experiencing is a natural and common phenomenon. You have reached the "competent" phase in your current role and are looking ahead, wanting to continue to develop in your career, and asking, "What next?" Do you want to stay in your current field, build on what you have learned, and become a true expert in that field or do you want to branch out, become a beginner again, and try something very different?

As someone who has done a little nursing career counseling over the years, here are a few thoughts off the top of my head. Hopefully, other people will add to this thread and give you additional ideas.

1. Don't make the mistake of jumpting too quickly into something that requires a big risk or investment without fully investigating it first. Sometimes, people get "antsy" to move and jump ... then realize they made a mistake and find themselves unemployed. Be careful in this economy. Do some homework first (as you are doing by coming here and looking for ideas.)

2. What types of tasks/work do you enjoy? What do you seem to be good at? For example: Do you like teaching? Have a even tried being a preceptor yet to find out if you like teaching or not? Do you like being in charge? Do you like things that are technical/mechanical ... or do you gravitate more towards the psycho-social side of things? What aspects of nursing come easily for you and what types of activities do other people say that you are good at? What aspects of nursing do not come naturally to you and/or seem to be your weaker areas? Do you want to work mostly with patients directly (and if so, what type of patients)? Or do you want to focus mostly on meeting the needs of other nurses or the health care system in general?

These are the kinds of questions you should be doing some deep thinking about. Getting a really good sense of your likes/dislikes, strengths/weakness, etc. will help you choose which area of nursing might be the best fit for you. If you really like working directly with patients and can't imagine not doing that as your career --- then a career in informatics, administration, or education would not be a good fit. etc. etc. etc.

3. There are some books on nursing careers and nursing career planning that you might want to check out. Many are available through Amazon.com. (No, I don't work for Amazon or anything. You can find the books other places. I just know they have several there.) Reading some of them might help you think through some of the issues you now face at this point of your career.

4. Do some networking and exploring -- such as what you are doing with this thread. Explore some of the journals in other specialties and see if the topics they discuss interest you. Explore some of the specialty boards here on allnurses and see what nurses in that specialty say about that specialty ... what do they like ... what are their problems ... etc.

5. Would your current employer help pay for any additional education that might help you move on? It might be worth it to stay where you are for another year or two if they will pay for education that would be useful to you.

6. Would getting certified in your current specialty help you get a better job in the same field elsewhere ... or in a related field?

I hope these questions give you some things to think about. As you think them through, you will probably find yourself gravitating towards some possibilities and less attracted to others. That's how you start narrowing the possibilities down.

At the 2-year mark of my career, I decided to go back to school and got an MSN and develop more expertise in my original specialty.

Good luck!