Embracing the Unexpected: Changed Plans Can Lead to New Opportunities

For many of us, the summer months mean taking a moment to slow down, enjoy the longer days, and have time for some fun in the sun. The planning that starts earlier in the year to ensure the kids are signed up for camps, vacations are booked, and time is taken off from work all come together during these few summer months for some well-deserved time off. Then the summer is here, and it seems to be gone in an instant. All the planning, all the images you had of what it would be like, all the things you wanted to get done, seem to slip by all too quickly, and sometimes it doesn’t always go to plan. And that is OK. 

As a nurse, I have felt this way as well. I remember starting my first job as a new graduate nurse and telling myself, “I will be back in school working on my master’s degree in two years.” I had no idea what my master’s degree would be in at that point, just that I would be back working on the next part of my education journey. Looking back, I can see that I was very naïve in my perspective on what I really wanted and needed during that time in my life. I did not go back to school for many years, and that time went by so quickly. It is easy to get into the groove of working day in and day out with a great team and putting off your plans. Those first experiences will begin to shape your practice and the next steps you will take in your career and in your life. 

My plans changed from what I imagined. I stayed and moved into a charge nurse role, which then led me to a nursing leadership role, which led me to AMSN. In truth, had I gone back to school after two years of working in acute care, I might not have found AMSN. 

If AMSN had not come into my life in 2008, I would have missed out on a wonderful experience of being part of a nursing organization which educates, connects, and advocates for medical-surgical nurses throughout the country. I would have missed out on the great friendships and partnerships I have developed throughout these years, locally as part of the Chicago Chapter, and nationally while on the board.

As my plans for this summer, and almost every summer, never work out exactly as I planned, I cannot get too upset about it. A change in the plan usually leads to a new and exciting adventure, just like my career has. I have learned to embrace the changes in my life as new opportunities and new challenges, and not as lost or forgotten plans. After all, I did go back to school and complete my master’s degree in nursing, and then my Doctorate in Nursing Practice in Leadership! So sometimes the plan just needs a few years to come together!