Transitioning from employment to entrepreneurship can be difficult for nurses. The path to entrepreneurship often is strewn
with obstacles—some of which are unique mindsets developed throughout a nurse's education and practice. They can cause anxiety
and fear that lead to procrastination or even outright rejection of the idea of entrepreneurship.
Here are just three of the mindsets unique to nurses:
» The instant response mindset
» The "I can do it myself" mindset
» The desire for perfection mindset
Instant response. Nurses are used to seeing rapid responses: Pop a nitro and the chest pain goes away; give a diuretic and the patient's breathing
improves; or administer IV morphine and the pain quickly subsides. A nurse entrepreneur in Seattle likens a small business
to counseling a 400-pound patient back to a healthy weight. She says starting a small business is more like long-term care
than acute care. In business, there is no pharmacological magic. You have to go slowly, and be vigilant and flexible in your
approach.
"I can do it myself." Nurses can be sharply criticized if their team reports do not meet the approval of the team members. Nurses often try to
gather all the information and put it into a certain arrangement (get their ducks in a row, so to speak) before involving
another team member, such as a physician. This leads to delay in seeking help. In business, you need to involve business support
team members early in the startup process, long before all those ducks are in a row. Desire for perfection. Nurses are taught (and rightfully so) that one deviation from perfection can mean a patient's life. Consequently, striving
for perfection can rule a nurse's practice. In business, there is no perfect business name, logo, location, or type of business
entity. In business, this mindset leads nurses to overlook opportunities that arise while seeking that elusive perfection.
OBSTACLE BUSTERS
During research for my book, Self-Employed RN: Choices, Business Aspects, and Marketing Strategies, I talked with many nurse entrepreneurs. They described their major obstacle to starting their businesses simply as fear.
They related the fear to being out of their comfort zones, and to the risk of losing their incomes and security. One nurse
entrepreneur told me that, in her opinion, nursing traditionally was a profession in which nurses take orders; therefore,
nurses are not comfortable asking for what they want and need. She believes that a shift in thinking must occur before nurses
can truly recognize and appreciate all the valuable assets and talents they can bring to the world of business.
Nurse entrepreneurship is not for everyone. It is not better or worse than employment. It is just a different way to practice
nursing. The journey to nurse entrepreneurship is filled with risks, fear, and obstacles. To lessen the risk, nurses are in
an ideal position to begin entrepreneurship part time while continuing their employment part time. To overcome the fear and
obstacles encountered, learn more about best business practices. The Small Business Administration ( http://www.sba.gov/services/training/onlinecourses/index.html) offers free online training. And, as always, the National Nurses in Business Association ( http://www.nnba.net/) is ready to help with free business information.
Please e-mail me your questions about nurse entrepreneurship. You can reach me through smullett@advanstar.com
.
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