A fierce advocate for mentorship

I have been a nurse for almost 20 years, and lately I have thought about the positive changes that have taken place in my beloved profession in that time. I clearly remember my first day on the job as a brand new RN and can picture what it felt like to walk onto the unit with incredible pride and big expectations. I also clearly remember thinking that what everyone said about “nurses eating their young” while I was in nursing school was not a myth after all. I experienced my fair share of that dynamic—more than I wish to remember. As an eternal optimist, I feel that “being the young that was eaten” set me up to become a fierce advocate for the importance of mentorship within nursing. I am fully aware of how the mentoring experience can make or break a new nurse’s spirit and how those relationships need to be nurtured.

I have been a mentor for the American Nurses Association (ANA) and Sigma for a few years now. I have loved cultivating a strong and trusting relationship with my mentees. I take my role seriously because I was in their shoes what seems like just yesterday. I wish that I had someone to invest their time, effort, and belief in me as I began my career. I wanted a genuine long-term relationship with an experienced nurse and desperately wanted to find the person who would show me the way. I am happy to say that since then, there has been a shift in nursing. More and more, I do not hear about the dreaded “eating their young” stories—instead, I hear stories of nurturing, welcoming, encouraging, supporting, and investing in our new nurses. This makes me so proud and happy at the progress nurses have made collectively.

I have been lucky enough to find several mentors along the way who I was able to trust, look up to, and who truly wanted to see me succeed. When I think about mentorship, the duality of this special relationship comes to mind. Whether you are the mentor or mentee, what you put into it dictates what you get out of it in the end. There must be mutual respect, collaboration, and a commitment toward the other person. The beautiful part is that I have learned over time that there is an added benefit to being a part of the mentor/mentee duo and that is a real sense of empowerment for both.

The truth is that there is empowerment through mentorship as each side gains confidence in their respective roles. How wonderful it is to be a long-term mentor and see the progress and growth in your mentee over time. I also feel it’s an incredible feeling of worth to be a mentee who is valued by a more experienced nurse who takes a real interest in you and your overall career development.

I can only hope that other nurses get the opportunity at some point to be a mentee and a mentor, too, and get to experience a positive and transformational connection in both roles. It is incredibly rewarding and an honor on both sides. If a new nurse has an amazing experience being a mentee, then hopefully they will one day grow into the mentor role. This will help establish a strong mentorship cycle that will continue and expand in the nursing field. As a nurse, there is nothing better than sharing your gifts with one another and making an impact on each other’s careers and lives. Mentorship is an awesome contribution we can all make to nursing, and it will have lasting effects on all involved which makes it so worth it!