09/12/2025
Nursing is beautiful, but don’t enter because someone told you you will always get a job or nurses travel abroad easily.
Enter with clarity, prepared and with intention.
After 13 years of wearing this uniform, working in Nigeria and now in the UK, here are the boxes you must tick before you choose nursing 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽
1. You must genuinely like and care for people and not tolerate them.
People will talk anyhow, complain, insult you, cry on you, cling to you, question every move you make
and you still have to offer care with dignity and professionalism.
If patience irritates you, nursing will frustrate you, take it from me.
2. You must be willing to learn for the rest of your life.
Nursing doesn’t end at I’ve graduated. You will write exams, upon exaams, complete trainings, learn new procedures, update your practice and generally change your thinking. If you no sabi book, don’t near nursing. It’s not for dullards.
3. You must be emotionally stable. You will see death, pain, you will see life change instantly and sometimes, you cannot cry where a family is breaking down. You must stay standing when the world is falling apart. I mean this..
If you don’t have emotional maturity, the profession will drain you.
4. You must have boundaries. Knowing and having boundaries will help you know when your compassion becomes exploitation, your kindness becomes weakness or when your empathy becomes a burden.
They are days you will drown trying to save everyone.
5. You must be ready to work hard and smart.
Nursing is work, real work, physical, mental, emotional. Not all the Instagram reels you see or tiktok dance on scrubs.
6. You must have some level of confidence, you will speak to consultants, relatives, and multidisciplinary teams, you must advocate for patients and do this boldly with plenty of sense in your head.
7. You must be willing to choose growth over comfort. When opportunities come further your education, advanced your practice, try new departments, specialize and look at the direction of leadership. Never remain stagnant.
8. Understand that nursing is not only bedside. Before you enter nursing school, know your future options, Community nursing, Research, Academia, Occupational health, Consultancy, Entrepreneurship, Coaching, Digital health etc etc. Don’t box yourself early.
9. Choose your motivation wisely, If all you want is quick money or relocation..ehn ehn when challenges hit, you will burn out.
Let nursing mean something deeper to you than money and jakpa.
Even if your why changes over the years, start with one that has heart.
Remember that nursing is a calling a discipline and profession.
And finally… fairness:
Nursing will give you a career that evolves with you, a passport to global opportunities, skills that are needed in every society, the privilege of touching lives and a sense of purpose few professions offer.
But nursing will demand, your time, strength, constant learning, Intelligence and emotional resilience.
Nothing easy is worthwhile.
If you’re choosing nursing, choose with intention.
If you’re entering school, go prepared.
Wishing you all the best.
