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3 Ideas for the Mental Game of Nurse Ownership: Better Ways to Face Your Problems

I’d like to tell you a secret I’ve learned after years of coaching and mentoring nurse owners at all stages of their careers: Successful nurse owners work on themselves just as much as they work on their business.

Expanding your practice means expanding your sphere of influence as you’re able to help and serve more patients. It means expanding your lifestyle as you’re able to provide more opportunities for you and your family. And it means expanding you personally – your comfort zone, your personal awareness, your leadership skills, your resilience, and your self-belief.
 
You already know that nurse-ownership requires problem-solving. And HOW you approach problems will determine the longevity of your practice’s success. The mental game of nurse-ownership is just as important (if not more important) as day-to-day activities and business strategies.
 
Some thoughts and beliefs will continue to propel you forward, while others will drag you and your practice down.
 
Here are 3 approaches to problem-solving that I believe are key for nurse owners to build the practice and lifestyle of their dreams.

Compassionate Problem Solving

As a nurse, you know how to be compassionate towards your patients as you help them solve their health problems. But, are you extending that same compassion to yourself as you solve your business problems?
 
As I’ll talk about in a moment, problems never go away. What matters is how you approach your problems. It’s counterproductive to beat yourself up over mistakes – big or small. Give yourself some grace. Growing requires you to get outside your comfort zone. It’s a learning process. You’re going to make some mistakes.
 
You have to live with yourself every step and every day of this journey. You can be a great travel companion by being understanding and compassionate to yourself as you solve problems. Or, you can be a terrible travel companion by talking down and belittling yourself as you face each new challenge.
 
The choice is yours.

Better Problems

You will never live problem-less. As Tony Robbins once said, “The only ‘problem’ we really have is we think we’re not supposed to have problems! Problems call us to a higher level.”
 
And if problems will never really go away, the best you can do is improve the quality of your problems.
 
As your practice grows with opportunities, so does your life. And growing professionally and personally will challenge you.
 
For example, here’s a quick brief on my nurse ownership history:
  • I started my first practice in 2013 with $2k and a baby on the way
  • We grew Med2U with thousands of patients across Texas and partnered with 10 different facilities
  • In 2019 we launched UltraPersonal Healthcare
  • In the past 3 years, we’ve grown it to include 3 providers, and are doubling new patient growth month-over-month, and are now in the process of expanding our offices to a large commercial space (which is new territory for me)
 
That’s the business side of things. But business ownership isn’t just about running a business; it’s also living your best life WHILE you run your business.
 
As my businesses have grown, so has my family. I was pregnant with my 1st child when I started my first practice. We are now about to have our 4th. I’m sure you can imagine the joys and the many challenges that come with a household of 4 children all under the age of 10!
 
We’ve also expanded our home. After buying a Summer home in the Tennessee mountains, we sold our home in Austin for a ranch in Texas. The new house needs some serious upgrades, and now I’m managing contractors for the remodel. (Something I’ve never done before.) And our ranch has chickens, cows, and goats, that need to be cared for. Something I also have zero experience with.
 
Do I feel stressed and stretched? You betcha!
Do I have good days and bad days? Of course.
Do I regret having these high-level, high-stakes problems that challenge me? Not one bit.
 
I’ve worked really hard to live in harmony with my problems, and therefore live in harmony with myself.
 
Bring gratitude to your problems because they’re helping you grow.

It's Happening For You, Not To You

This is one of the most powerful perspectives you can bring to your business (and your life).
 
What if your problems aren’t happening to you, but rather your problems are happening for you.
 
For some people, this might be a leap, but for just a moment let’s entertain the idea that your problems show up to help you. What would that feel like? How would look a problem differently?
 
When you believe that your problems are happening for you, you end up approaching your problems with curiosity instead of shame. You get excited about the potential for personal and professional growth because a problem forces you to get creative and innovative. The perspectives that help you find solutions to problems end up serving you in other areas of your life.
 
So, if your problem is here for you, what gifts could it be presenting?
When it comes to starting or growing your nurse-owned practice, please know that you don't have to face your problems alone. The American Academy of Nurse Entrepreneurs offers a FREE (and active) Facebook group dedicated to supporting our fellow entrepreneurial nurses.
Join the discussion, ask your questions, and become a part of our powerful community!

Veronica Pike

FNP-C President & Co-Founder
Veronica co-founded Med2You, a healthcare company based in Austin, Texas that provides primary and psychiatric care to underserved populations with a completely remote care team led by nurse practitioners.

Veronica started her business as a single provider with a mobile “doctor bag,” cellphone and a laptop.

As a family nurse practitioner and entrepreneur who has operated her own practice since 2013, Veronica knows the unique challenges and needs APNs have when navigating the business, legal and regulatory components of starting and operating a thriving healthcare practice.

Now, her mission is to put this knowledge in the hands of other advanced practice nurses so that they can realize their full potential as clinicians, entrepreneurs and leaders in their community.

With her business partner, Griffin Mulcahey, a healthcare regulatory attorney, Veronica has designed the educational programs, resources, and community support network that is the American Academy of Nurse Entrepreneurs (AANE).

Veronica is also a sought-after speaker around the country. She speaks to healthcare entrepreneurs, clinicians, hospitals, and associations – proudly educating and helping the growing community of healthcare entrepreneurs who are giving more options and better care to communities around the country.

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