Nursing is a fulfilling career that allows you to care for people every single day, but it is not for everyone. There are many responsibilities and stresses that come with being a nurse, and it takes a certain kind of person to manage that while giving patients the best care possible.
If you are curious about whether or not you would be a successful nurse, then read on for 20 signs a nursing role is right for you.
- You Are Highly Ambitious
Ambition comes in many forms; some people strive to earn the most money, some to know the most people, and others to excel in a career they love. Nursing requires ambition to perform well every single day.
There are plenty of options to climb the ladder within nursing, so if you are an ambitious type, this would suit you well. After becoming a registered nurse, you could then aim for a leadership role such as a family nurse practitioner by acquiring your FNP qualifications. The end goal doesn’t have to be a registered nurse – there are plenty of places you could take your nursing skills.
- You Avoid Boredom Like the Plague
Nursing isn’t for someone who likes to sit around and do nothing. It’s a fast-paced, exciting role that suits someone who hates being bored. When you are tending to a variety of patients and dealing with paperwork, you won’t have time to be bored. If you enjoy being on your feet and having lots of tasks to complete, then nursing could be for you.
- You Are Anything but Squeamish
It should go without saying that if you are squeamish, then nursing isn’t a career path you should take. Nurses must deal with bodily fluids every day, including blood. This means you must have a strong stomach – you can’t start feeling faint in the middle of seeing a patient!
Nurses are strong people. They deal with a variety of issues each day, and bodily fluids that most people turn their noses up at don’t phase them. If you think you could handle that, then you might have what it takes to become a nurse.
- You are Compassionate
You won’t get far as a nurse without a little compassion. On the more stressful days, it will drive you. Nursing isn’t always easy, but the patients require care no matter how your day has gone, so you must be able to find the compassion within you.
Compassion can’t just stretch to the wonderful, kind patients, either – you must be able to give it to the more difficult ones. If you are naturally empathetic, then you could make an excellent nurse.
- Your Energy Levels are High
As previously mentioned, nurses are on their feet an awful lot. They walk from room to room, checking on many different patients, and keeping on top of their daily duties. This means it’s crucial to have high energy levels.
If the idea of a desk job scares you and you love the idea of bustling around all day, then you would enjoy nursing. No matter how energetic you think you are, after a long night shift on a busy night, you’ll crash in bed as soon as you get home and fall asleep within minutes.
- Conversation comes Second Nature
The care that nurses provide isn’t just medical – they talk to patients, making them feel relaxed and more comfortable. You might be the world’s best when it comes to healthcare, but if you can’t hold a warm conversation, then your nursing skills will fall short.
Think about the times you required medical attention. When were your experiences better? Usually, the better conversationalist the healthcare provider is, the better your care feels all around.
- You Fall Asleep Quickly
Nurses’ shifts change from week to week, and you might find that your schedule is all over the place. This can be troublesome for those who like a set routine, as it can mess with your sleeping pattern. Due to this, the ability to fall asleep quickly is a necessary one for nurses.
One week you might work night shifts, while the next you finish in the evenings. By falling asleep whenever your head hits the pillow, these changes will be much easier to deal with. The chances are, after a long shift on a ward, you’ll fall asleep within minutes anyway!
- You Manage Stress Well
As highly rewarding as a career nursing is, it does come with its stresses. Many nurses go through what’s known as “nurse burnout”, which usually occurs when a nurse is overworked and has dealt with difficult situations and patients. When this happens, it’s essential to be able to deal with stress well, as it could mean the difference between a life-long career or cutting one short.
If you have previous experience in fast-paced, high-stress situations and you didn’t fall under pressure, then you have the potential to make a fantastic nurse.
- You Are Fascinated with the Human Body
The human body is an intricate, amazing thing that keeps billions of people alive. If you are interested in how it works and wish to work with it closely, then nursing is a career you would enjoy.
While nurses don’t perform surgery, they do get up-close and personal with human bodies and help fix them. It’s a career that allows you to focus on the sick and mend them to health, requiring a genuine curiosity and fascination with the human body and the way it works.
- You Love to Learn
Many nursing jobs, especially the ones higher up, require a certain amount of education. The more enjoyment you get out of learning, the easier those years of education will be.
The learning doesn’t stop once you attain your degree. Within the medical world, new developments are made every day, and some of them stick. This means your job will evolve, so the treatments you give when you just start might not be the same as 10 years after your first day.
If you are serious about excelling as a nurse and acquiring a leadership role, then you will need to research in your own time, too. All of this is a million times more enjoyable if you have a genuine thirst for knowledge.
- Your Focus is Strong
Nurses cannot start daydreaming in the middle of their workday. No matter what hour it is, how much sleep they’ve had, or how many coffees they’ve consumed, they must always keep focus.
Focus is something that comes naturally to people, but there are ways to improve it. If you plan on becoming a nurse, you must know how to keep your mind on whatever task you are doing.
- You Did Well in Science at School
Healthcare is all about science, so having a decent knowledge of it is a great start for any nurse. You don’t have to be Newton to become a nurse, but if you managed to do well at Science in school, then it’s a sign you have what it takes.
Nursing school is competitive, so if you are still in school, you should aim to get the best grades you can.
- You Are Open-Minded
As a patient, you don’t want to be treated by a medical professional who is closed-minded. As a nurse, you have an obligation to provide great care to anyone who walks through the door, regardless of their appearance, age, or clothes.
Healthcare professionals know better than anyone that everyone is equal. No matter how much money you have, what color your skin is, or what your gender is, in the end, everyone ends up the same. If you are an open-minded person who understands this, then it will help you to become a successful and compassionate nurse.
- The Sick Don’t Bother You
This one should be obvious, but it’s better to know sooner rather than later. Some people find it difficult to be around sick people. This isn’t something people can help, but if it applies to you, then becoming a nurse is not an option.
Nurses deal with sick people all the time. Whether they’re tending to injuries or illnesses, they must talk, treat, and be around people who are in bad health all day. If this doesn’t phase you, then nursing could be the right profession for you.
- People Gravitate Toward You
As a nurse, your main priority is to help people become healthy, but that isn’t your only obligation. Sadly, some patients receive no visitors, which means their main source of communication is with nurses. As a nurse, this is a huge responsibility, and it helps to be a person that people enjoy being around.
If you’re likable, your patients will have a better time in your care. You’ll have better conversations, and they’ll feel much more at ease in your presence, which is a huge part of care.
- You Can Look After Yourself
While the role of a nurse is to look after others, it is just as important to know how to look after yourself. Nursing is a stressful job, but when you are responsible for other people’s care, it’s crucial that you are healthy and well yourself.
Looking after yourself might sound easy, but working long shifts and dealing with difficult situations can really take it out of you. If you are serious about becoming a nurse, then you must first know how to look after yourself properly, because it’s much harder to push through when you feel burned out.
Getting enough sleep, exercising, and eating well is a great start, but there is more to be done. You must also look after your mental health, and know your body well enough to know when it needs a break.
- You Look Out for Your Friends
Friendships are important in nursing. You will start making them in nursing school, and make many more once you secure your first role. On the tougher days, they will be what keeps you going. When you’ve had a full day of difficult patients, there is nothing more satisfying than a good, long rant and a cup of coffee with your workmates.
Just as much as you will rely on your nursing friends, they too will rely on you. This means you must be someone who knows how to look out for the people you love. If you are a generous, caring friend who notices when your loved ones aren’t quite 100%, then you would make a brilliant nursing friend.
- You Keep Calm Under Pressure
All nurses go through high-pressure moments. In healthcare, it’s simply part of the job, and it is essential to keep calm during it, no matter what is going on.
Think back to some of the scarier moments you’ve had to deal with. How did you manage? If you were the person who kept their calm and thought about the best possible plan, then you would make a great nurse during difficult situations.
- You Have a Sense of Humour
On the hard days, a sense of humor is essential. Nurses go through a lot, from watching patients suffer through illnesses to dealing with difficult patients, but it’s their responsibility to push through and carry on delivering the best care possible. One of the ways to do this is to have a great sense of humor. Not only will you make yourself smile, but you’ll help lift the spirits of those around you, which is what makes an excellent nurse.
- The Idea of Helping People Fills You with Joy
No matter how clever you are, how proficient you are with a needle, or how great of a conversationalist you are, you won’t be a great nurse without a real passion for helping people. When times get tough, and you feel like the work only keeps building, the genuine joy that helping people brings you will pull you through. If you think nursing is the career for you, take a look at the Online Nursing Programs | The University of Texas at Arlington has to offer. They have a high quality nursing curriculum and offer distance learning options
