5 Myths About Being A Nurse Solopreneur | Not A Travel Nurse

Nurses are leaving the bedside at record numbers. If you work at the bedside, I’m sure it’s no surprise why.

There are so many ways nurses can use the skills they have acquired at the bedside to start making money however they choose. This blog post will give you a few ideas if you don’t know where to start as a nurse solopreneur.

If you’ve ever wanted to leave the bedside and become your own boss this post is for you. I’m a freelance healthcare writer and have been a self-employed nurse for some time now.

I’ve always wanted to be my own boss I just never knew how as a nurse. But I’m living proof that it’s possible. Here are some of the biggest myths I’ve heard from nurses who want to leave the bedside and become their own boss.

Myth #1

If you don’t start making money right away you’re a failure and you should give up.

Yeah, no. It is absolutely possible to start making money from day one, but it’s highly unlikely.

Being in business is always a long game. What does next year matter when you can’t even get through today without feeling wiped out. Learn to create systems and consistency around the areas of your life that you want to improve upon.

Being a business owner takes work, strategy, and perseverance. You aren’t going to get to where you want to go overnight. Just like in nursing, you didn’t pass the NCLEX on day one.

Myth #2

You can go from the bedside to business owner without learning any new skills.

Maybe. But probably not.

If you want to start in a brand new industry there is going to be a learning curve.

Think back to your nursing school days when you were just learning everything. Nowadays it’s like second nature to you. You got up to speed eventually, but it didn’t happen overnight.

Learning a new skill requires effort. Business is a lot like nursing. There is no possible way that you know the answers to everything. You will always continue learning as a business owner. Just like in nursing.

Myth #3

As a solopreneur nurse, you must do every part of your business by yourself.

Despite feeling like that sometimes, that’s not the case. Making friends is one of the best things you can do for your business and yourself.

Join social media groups that are doing what you want to do. Provide insight and information that others in the group may find helpful. Along the way, develop a network of organic connections and partnerships.

Just like nursing, delegation is your best friend in business. You can delegate more effectively when you have systems and processes in place in as many aspects of your business. 

Even if you don’t want to delegate the work, you might want to delegate the research and enroll in a course taught by someone you look up to in the field. However you decide to delegate, there are many benefits to reaching out for help.

Myth #4

Business owners have complete control and autonomy over their schedules.

Depending on how your business model looks, this may be true, but most of the time you are interacting with humans at some point along the path to making money. People can be challenging at times.

Just like in nursing, everybody is different. Everyone has their own personalities and hangups. Scheduling conflicts can lead to rearranging schedules at the last minute. And many deadlines are timelines for completing work are out of your control. 

The same goes for nursing. All you can control is how you react when they happen.

Myth #5

You have to quit your job before you can become a business owner as a nurse.

This is not true at all. It is also not advised.

Unless you have a sound financial plan. When you don’t go into it with a strategy for how you are going to make money, owning a business can be expensive.

You have complete control over how much work you take on in your own business. 

As a result, you can build up a foundation of knowledge before becoming a full-time business owner. You can try out different ideas before committing to the first idea you come up with. 

When you are starting out, being able to sacrifice profits in the short term can pay off in dividends later. It all depends on what your goals are. 

Conclusion

For nurses who want to leave the bedside and become their own bosses, solopreneurship can provide them with so many opportunities. There are no limits to the possibilities. If you want to read even more myths about being an entrepreneur check out Neil Patel’s take.

You can decide to stay within healthcare or you may decide to branch out into something completely different. If you want more download your free mindset guide for nurses who are new to being a business owner.