You’re Not Stuck. Here’s What You Should Do Next.

In 2021 I had been working for a big name primary care company in Ohio for nearly 4 years. I stuck with this company throughout the pandemic and rode every wave that came our way.

Why is this important?

I felt STUCK. This was a position that I once loved showing up to everyday. So,  what changed?

Well, quite frankly, everything.

You see, this was a PHONE-BASED telehealth job performing triage. So tell me, why WHY were we all required to work out of an often cramped office? Why did this employer choose to keep us at higher risk during a pandemic when there were simple solutions?

I had been a single mom for years and my employer knew that when they hired me. I worked hard, was one of the staff members that had been there the longest, and trained other staff. There was no indicator that I would ever underperform. I rarely missed work and I loved being on time (if not early!). I did this all while having young children and no co-parent.

I asked to work from home when COVID hit. The answer was a firm NO. Why? No answer, mumbling a non-answer, and avoidance of answering a basic question that would address the needs of a human. My children had to go to daycare yet I was educating clients on quarantining. I had to craft many plans to ensure their care and have back-ups to my back-ups because anyone could need to quarantine at any time.

I am a nurse but I am a human. There was positively no reason that we could not have worked from home. In Summer 2021, I started my first mental health practice and I quit my job at the primary care practice two months later. I have never looked back.

Nurses are more valuable than just any other cog in a wheel. Most importantly, we are humans with unique needs.

The healthcare community has been tasked with embracing the unique needs of those that we serve but what it sometimes forgets is that nurses have unique needs too.

I thought I was stuck but I took one leap of faith and came out on the other side in a better position than I ever dreamed. I now own 4 successful practices and a medical billing company. I consult with other nurse practitioners to help them GET STARTED in creating their own business AND even TRAVEL THE WORLD!

What can you do next?

Think of your WHY and write it down. Why do you want to move on from the 9-5 grind, making a small percent of what employers make off of the back of your hard work?

Why do you want a change?

Now write that down.

Now tell me… WHY NOT?

Why can you not make a change? Why WOULD you not make a change?

Answer these simple questions and comment with them, please.

Follow me for the next part of this series about feeling stuck in our careers and how we can break loose from the barriers that exist to Nurse Practitioners being able to live a GOOD LIFE, even across borders!

With Gratitude,

Stacey Molle ACNS-BC FNP PMHNP