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Nursing Leadership, Chicago, IL (2025)

10/08/2025

Toxic leaders may find their way to the top, but their journey often comes at a significant cost to those around them. They leave behind a landscape marked by broken trust and missed opportunities.
It’s heartbreaking to witness the impact of their leadership; team members may feel disheartened and unvalued, struggling to find their voices in an environment where collaboration and creativity should thrive. The potential of individuals often goes unrealized as fear and uncertainty take root. This serves as a poignant reminder of the critical importance of evaluating an individual’s leadership capabilities beyond their job title and function.
It is essential to consider how they interact with others, including their people skills, ability to communicate, and more. It’s not solely about the numbers, and it’s so important to recognize that, when one assumes the role of a leader, their primary responsibility is to uplift and empower those around them, rather than to undermine or create divisions.

- The new Amazon Bestseller, Inspirational Leadership Quotes, Finding The Courage To Lead, is more than just a collection of quotes; it serves as a heartfelt guide for transformation. Each page inspires you to embrace new perspectives, strengthen determination, and ignite action.

10/07/2025

It's seldom the specific tasks or workload that truly weighs someone down; rather, it's the broader workplace culture that can have such a profound impact on one's mental well-being. Many individuals find themselves feeling overwhelmed not just because of what they're doing, but because of how they're being treated and the atmosphere around them.

In environments where support, understanding, and open communication thrive, people feel more empowered and resilient. Conversely, when the culture is filled with negativity or a lack of collaboration, it can create an emotional strain that is difficult to bear. We need to recognize how important a positive, nurturing workplace is for everyone's mental health.

- Our new Amazon Bestseller, Inspirational Leadership Quotes, Finding The Courage To Lead, is more than just a collection of quotes; it serves as a heartfelt guide for transformation. Each page inspires you to embrace new perspectives, strengthen determination, and ignite action. Learn more by clicking the link below.

https://lnkd.in/eT5HKFnV.

10/06/2025

Helping Nurses Learn to De-Escalate Patient and Family Anger
August 11, 2025 By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN

Nurse managers today spend a lot of their time in service recovery. Sometimes, patients are very unrealistic in their expectations about their care, which drives them to become very emotional when they feel their needs are not being met. But increasingly, nurse managers tell me that their staff make volatile situations worse by either arguing with the patient or taking emotional comments personally and complaining that their boundaries are being violated. Consider the story that a manager shared that I have heard repeatedly over the past year:

I was asked to see a patient today by one of my new nurses. She told me that the patient and his wife were totally out of control and had been disrespectful to her. She wanted me to fix things and felt that she was owed an apology. I went into the room and asked them to tell me what was happening and leading to their frustration. It turns out that they had waited for 12 hours to be admitted to the unit. The wife was upset because she felt that she was not given updates in the emergency department. They had arrived by ambulance, so she did not have a car and was hesitant to leave until she was sure her husband was okay. Her dogs were at home alone, and she had been unable to reach a neighbor who could feed them and take them out.

After hearing her story, her anger and frustration were understandable. Her experience with our hospital had been challenging before she ever reached our unit. My young staff member had not taken the time to ask any questions or find out why they were upset. She was making the situation about her when it clearly was not. I helped the wife arrange to have her animals fed and walked by having our social worker call her family and friends. I gave her my business card and cell number and told her to call me if she needed help. I know our young staff don’t have a great deal of life experience but I think some of the violence and anger we see today is a direct reflection of the lack of face to face communication skills and empathy. We need to do a better job of coaching and teaching how to de-escalate patient and family who are upset.

Many health systems are now using simulation and case situations to help staff learn skills and strategies to de-escalate patient anger. These strategies frequently include doing the following:

Listen Actively: Show empathy by listening without interrupting and acknowledging their feelings.
Use a Calm Voice: Speak softly and slowly to create a calming effect.
Maintain Professional Body Language: Use open, non-threatening gestures and avoid aggressive postures.
Validate Emotions: Recognize their feelings without necessarily agreeing with the reason for anger.
Set Boundaries: Clearly communicate acceptable behaviors and limits.
Offer Solutions: Collaborate on resolving issues or providing alternatives.
Avoid Confrontation: Do not argue or escalate the conflict further.
Ensure Safety: If the situation escalates, have protocols in place to ensure everyone’s safety.
Seek Support: Involve security or additional staff if needed.
Although all these strategies are important, the truth is that there is nothing like great storytelling to convey important lessons. Last month, a 12 minute TED Talk was released by Kaitlyn Carey, RN titled The Secret to De-Escalating Angry People. Kaitlyn is an experienced Emergency Department nurse with years of experience de-escalating angry patients. She effectively uses the metaphor of a blowfish to offer tools and strategies to help angry patients and families. It is a relatable video for nurses that can easily be used to begin a class on patient de-escalation and open discussion on how to more effectively handle both our own emotions and those of patients and families.

© emergingrnleader.com 2025

10/05/2025

Managing Organizational Politics
August 21, 2025 by rose

When coaching nurse leaders, we often discuss their experiences with organizational politics. As I frequently tell nurse leaders, a big challenge with organizational politics is that the game you are watching is not always the game that is being played. Discerning what is behind certain decisions can be difficult. Consider the following story recently told to me by a CNO:

I was brought into this organization three months ago with the clear understanding that I would be succeeding the chief nursing officer when she retired, which was would be six months from my starting date. Three months after my arrival, I was informed by the CEO that plans had changed and I was no longer under consideration for the position. I was stunned, and so was the current CNO, who had not been told of the decision and had received assurances she would be involved in the selection process. No rationale was provided, and I would be given a severance package to leave quietly. There were organizational politics at work here, but I had no way of determining what they were. No one was willing to talk about it including staff from the executive recruitment firm who had handled the search.

Organizations as Political Systems

Most nurse leaders will acknowledge that understanding and navigating the organizational politics in their work settings is often very challenging. Few experienced leaders have not personally experienced or observed a version of the scenario discussed above, where it seemed that there was organizational support for a leader, and then things suddenly and unexpectedly shifted. Organizational politics are inevitable, and leaders need to view their workplaces as political systems where employees at all levels bring their own interests, desires, wants, and needs. It is within the context of this diversity of interests that politics form. Organizational politics can become negative when individuals or groups of individuals take action without regard to the well-being of others.

Navigating the Politics

Understanding the politics in an organization is key to being an effective leader. Sometimes, leaders make a decision to distance themselves from the politics only to find that they have difficulty achieving some of their goals. Beware of trying to fly solo in an organization. It generally will not be a successful strategy. Some key steps for navigating the politics include the following:

Observe and Listen
The most important tools for negotiating workplace politics are your own skills of observation. Watch how decisions are made – look at group alliances – identify points of conflict in an organization – observe for competitiveness and jealousy – determine who are the key decision makers and has influence. Through observation, you will be able to better identify what the points of resistance might be to what you are planning. You need to be able to better use your expertise to create buy-in.

Create Strong Relationships
Building a network of strong relationships in your organization is important to navigate the politics. In highly politically charged environments, you need trusted colleagues that you can go through to discuss difficult situations and who will give you honest feedback. It is critical in organizations that leaders be seen as individuals who can keep confidential information to themselves otherwise you will not be trusted.

Be Tactful in How You Promote Yourself
Workplaces are inherently competitive. It is important to do a good job and have a measurable way that others can see this. Self-promotion either in person or online can be a slippery slope and result in others resenting you and the work you are trying to accomplish. Make sure that others have an opportunity to shine.

Help Your Colleagues
By helping others when they need it, you can leverage good will. You will always need allies. Relationships are built on reciprocity and if you have strong allegiances, people will return a favor if you need it to progress in your work.

As was true in the scenario described at the beginning of this blog, negative organizational politics can result in a loss of psychological safety for those who remain and the potential for employee disengagement. As a nurse leader, you will never be able to totally eliminate the organizational politics in your workplace. What you can do is become savvy in how you both anticipate it and manage it when it does occur.

© emergingrnleader.com 2025

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10/04/2025

One Simple and Effective Leadership Skill Nobody Teaches
Picture of Team Simon
Team Simon
September 12, 2025

Picture walking into a project kickoff meeting where everyone is polite, slightly guarded, and waiting for someone else to break the ice. Or imagine starting a new role where your team is watching to see if you’ll pretend to know everything or admit what you don’t. These moments happen daily in organizations everywhere, yet most leaders have never been taught how to navigate them effectively.

We train leaders to be decisive, confident, and clear—all essential qualities. But we rarely teach them one of the most powerful skills for building trust and accelerating team performance: how to be strategically vulnerable in a way that strengthens rather than weakens their leadership.

Beyond Traditional Leadership Training
At Team Simon, we’re constantly exploring how managers can develop the nuanced skills that can turn them into exceptional leaders. One of the most surprising and impactful skills we teach is something Simon calls “calibrated self-disclosure,” and it has the power to change how leaders build psychological safety without sacrificing authority.

“The skill: calibrated self-disclosure in the first five minutes,” Simon says. “Not radical transparency. Not keeping a stiff upper lip. Calibrated. It’s the leader saying one true, useful thing about their own limits early, tying it directly to the mission, and pairing it with a clear, confident request. Done well, it lowers threat and raises initiative. It makes the room exhale without making the room parent you.”

Simon paints a vivid picture of how this works in practice: “Picture a project kickoff. Everyone’s polite. Slightly guarded. You go first: ‘Quick context before we dive in. The AI piece is new territory for me. My worry is I’ll slow us down by asking basic questions. Our goal is still speed to learning, not speed to launch. Here’s my ask: if I drift into jargon soup, stop me. And if you see a faster path, say it in the moment.’ That’s it. Twenty seconds. Specific fear. Clear why. Concrete request. Confident tone. Then you move on.”

The result, according to Simon, is immediate and powerful: “What happens? People start telling the truth faster. The data scientist admits a dependency risk. The PM raises a timeline constraint. You just bought candor without drama.”

Simon identifies three critical elements that make this approach effective: “First, specificity. Vague confessions invite caretaking. Specific disclosures invite partnership. ‘I’m overwhelmed’ is a burden. ‘I’m behind on approvals; I’ll need 24 hours to respond’ is coordination. Second, sequencing. Do it in the first five minutes, before norms calcify. Whoever goes first sets the edge of what’s sayable. Third, tone. Confident vulnerability. Own the limit without collapsing into it. You’re not asking for permission to be weak. You’re modeling how strong teams talk.”

Why This Skill Is So Powerful
The genius of calibrated self-disclosure lies in what Simon identifies as its surprising nature. “Why it’s surprising: we teach leaders to be clear, not necessarily self-revealing, and when we talk about vulnerability, we swing to extremes,” he says. “Overshare, and you spook the room. Undershare, and you freeze honesty. Calibrated self-disclosure threads the needle. It sends three signals simultaneously: I’m human, I’m responsible, I’m here to serve the goal. That combination builds psychological safety without lowering standards.”

Most leadership training focuses on projecting confidence and authority, which often translates to leaders feeling pressure to appear infallible. But this approach actually creates distance and prevents the kind of honest communication that drives high performance.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid
Simon is clear about the mistakes that can derail this approach: “Common mistakes. Turning it into a monologue. Keep it under thirty seconds. Making it about your feelings without linking to the mission. Always tie your admission to why it matters for the work. Asking for rescue. Don’t do that. Make a crisp request that enables others to contribute. And performing it once, then reverting to perfection theater. Consistency builds trust; a single moment doesn’t.”

The key is understanding that this isn’t about emotional dumping or seeking sympathy. It’s a strategic communication tool that creates conditions for better collaboration and faster problem-solving.

One Framework You Can Use Tomorrow
Simon provides a practical template that any leader can implement immediately:

“A simple template you can use tomorrow,” he explains, breaking it down into five steps:

“Name the context: ‘Before we start…'”
“State the specific limit or fear: ‘I’m likely to…'”
“Tie to the why: ‘Because our goal is…'”
“Make the request: ‘So I need you to…'”
“Reaffirm confidence: ‘If we do that, we’ll…'”

Simon offers a concrete example: “Before we start, quick flag. I haven’t run a launch with this many regulators. I may miss a compliance nuance. Our goal is a clean, on-time approval. So if you hear me skip a step, call it immediately. If we do that, we’ll move fast and stay safe.”

Scaling the Impact
But Simon doesn’t stop at individual application. He sees this as a team skill that compounds when adopted collectively: “Teach your directs to do the same. Start meetings with one calibrated disclosure from the leader, then one from the owner of the riskiest workstream. Two reps. Ninety seconds total. Watch the quality of discussion jump.”

This approach transforms team dynamics by establishing a new norm where honesty and strategic vulnerability become the foundation for high performance rather than barriers to overcome.

What makes this skill so powerful is that it represents a fundamental shift in how we think about leadership authority. Traditional models equate leadership strength with having all the answers. Simon’s approach recognizes that true leadership strength comes from creating conditions where the best answers can emerge from anywhere in the room.

“You’re not asking for permission to be weak,” Simon emphasizes. “You’re modeling how strong teams talk.”

10/03/2025

New Leader Transition – The First 100 Days
September 15, 2025 By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN

Teaching a new leader program last week was a reminder of how challenging it can be to transition into the nurse manager role. Experienced leaders recognize that the first 100 days in a leadership position can significantly influence the rest of their tenure. Those you lead closely watch how you orient yourself to the organization, how you spend your time, and what relationships you begin to build. Yet, it can be challenging to decide what matters most when you are new. Five key activities that you will want to build into your action plan include the following:

1. Learn as much as you can about the department and the organization before your first day

Carefully study the website of the organization and other documents so you know the mission, vision, and range of services provided by the health care agency. If the hospital or agency is part of a larger system, go to the system’s website as well. Review any publicly reported data available about the agency, such as what is on the hospital compare care site in the United States. Some nursing services today use specific theoretical frameworks such as Watson’s Caring theory to guide care – be familiar with it. If the hospital is Magnet-designated and you have not worked in a Magnet hospital, review the forces of magnetism. You will be expected to know the role of leadership in promoting a healthy work environment.

2. Meet with all your direct reports

Whenever there is a change in leadership, the nursing staff will worry about how a new manager will affect them. A key success factor for the new nurse leader is to be proactive in alleviating this concern by scheduling a meeting with each staff member during your first 100 days. These meetings will provide you with an opportunity to build a relationship with each staff member, find out about their concerns and seek support from them. Some good questions to ask during these meetings include the following:

What are three things that you are proud of about this unit/department/organization?
What are three things that we need to change?
What do you most need me to do as your leader?
What are you most concerned about what I’ll do?
What advice do you have for me?
3. Gain trust by listening and observing

To gain the trust of staff, you need to avoid rushing to judgment about “what is wrong” based on your observations. At the same time, you do need to take note of what you see. Listen during your conversations with staff and carefully observe what happens on the unit when you make rounds. During the first 100 days, new leaders should also reach out to stakeholders including patients, interdisciplinary team members, and other department leaders. They will provide you with important insights into your work setting, and you will want to build strong working relationships with them.

4. Learn the culture and politics of the organization

Every organization has a unique culture and organizational politics. New leaders can damage their credibility by being insensitive to the politics of the unit and organization. You may have grown up in another organizational culture that has become so familiar to you that it is like the air that you breathe. When you come into a new culture with different norms, the differences can be profound. Take time to learn the norms. A good example of this involves meetings. Meeting norms, behaviors and standards vary widely across organizations. In some organizations, meetings are very formal while in others, they are casual and informal. Take time to observe, adapt and learn. New leaders can alienate members of their organizations by talking excessively about how things were done on their previous units, so avoid doing this.

5. Find a Mentor

You will want to build strong relationships with your staff but remember that they are not your leadership peers. You should not use members of your staff as sounding boards particularly when the topic is confidential. Look for an experienced leader in your organization who can help mentor you during your transition.

6. Avoid Acting too Quickly

Wise nurse leaders don’t announce huge changes during their first 100 days and don’t turn their departments upside down. It is important to let staff know that you have high standards and expect their best work. You can lower the level of what you expect if it turns out the demands are too high but it is almost impossible to raise it if you have started too low.

For many new leaders, the first 100 days will be challenging but exhilarating. What if your feel during this first 100 days that you have made a mistake accepting the leadership role? This is a difficult question to answer because you may feel overwhelmed during these first 100 days, but it may not be a good indication of how you will feel in six months. If you feel you have made a mistake, it is important to have the courage to discuss the situation with your supervisor. It is often said that success is becoming who you already are. Using this first 100 days to build this success will set the stage for a great leadership career. I am attaching this guide for you to use in planning. The First 100 Days Nurse Leader Action Plan

Excellent Book for New Leaders – The Nuts and Bolts of Nursing Leadership: Your Toolkit for Success

© emergingrnleader.com 2025

Our Most Popular Right Now The New World of Work Workshop

Two Brand New Workshops for Your Team in 2025

*** Trending – Building Bridges Not Walls: Leading Multigenerational Work Teams – Click Here for More Information Building Bridges Not Walls

Nurse and Nurse Leader Work-Life Balance and Well-Being: Nursing Leadership Strategies for Success – Click Here for More Information WorkLife Balance and Wellbeing WS

10/02/2025

True leadership revolves around inspiring and motivating each individual to reach their full potential. It’s about creating an environment where team members feel empowered, valued, and driven to contribute their best efforts. Instead of just tracking progress, effective leaders encourage creativity, promote collaboration, and build strong relationships, enabling their team to thrive and achieve collective goals.

10/01/2025

Using Stay Interviews as a New Nurse Leader
September 22, 2025 By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN

I recently spoke with a nurse manager who relocated for a new position in a different geographic area. She followed a manager who had only been in the role for a short period of time and left abruptly. Her new staff seemed distrustful of her, which was not surprising given their experience with the previous manager. Interestingly, while parts of the culture seemed toxic to her, many staff had been there for quite a long period of time, and she was curious as to why.

In her previous role, the managers were required to do STAY interviews with each staff member at least once a year. She had found STAY interviews to be quite valuable in assessing aspects of a unit culture that could be difficult to discern, and decided to begin with the end in mind. She told her new nursing staff that retaining them in their roles was very important to her. She wanted to learn more about what mattered to each nurse and how she could support them. She conducted STAY interviews during her own onboarding and found the information invaluable. She urged me to recommend that other new leaders should do this, and so I am.

An Overview of STAY Interviews

The practice of STAY interviews has gained momentum and is considered a best practice by HR experts. Leaders conduct these interviews to understand why employees stay and what might cause them to leave. It also gives nurse leaders insight into what matters most to their staff. In an effective STAY interview, managers ask standard, structured questions casually and conversationally. The goal is to collect real-time information on what matters most to nurses and then individualize your retention strategies. Five questions to ask during this conversation are the following:

Question 1: What do you look forward to each day at work?

This question brings nurses into the here and now and asks them to focus on their daily duties and challenges rather than expand on broader issues like pay and benefits. Employees stay and engage based on their relationships with supervisors and colleagues and how much they like what they do. These factors are often more important than pay and benefits.

Question 2: What are you learning here, and what do you want to learn?

This question helps leaders to direct their career coaching. Some nurses seek career advancement, others want to build their knowledge, and some simply want to work and go home.

Question 3: Why do you stay here?

While appearing simple at first, this question opens doors for discovery about retention. The leader helps staff reflect on what they may not have considered about why they do stay. You might follow this first question with a second question about whether that was the only reason or whether they have other reasons.

Question 4: When is the last time you thought about leaving us, and what prompted it?

It is common for individuals to consider leaving their positions at various points in their careers. Therefore, addressing this topic with direct questioning can facilitate an important and necessary conversation. For a new leader, it can also provide information about the competitiveness of the geographic environment. A good follow-up question is to ask what led them to reconsider.

Question 5: What can I do to make your job better for you?

This question aims to offer insight into the aspects of the role that may be challenging or the organizational policies and practices that could create difficulties for employees. It is important not to become defensive. Be transparent about what you have influence over and areas that you may not.

In his research on timing, Daniel Pink points out that many staff seriously consider leaving a position around their anniversary date with the organization. They ask themselves – “Do I still want to be here next year?” Pink advises that nurse managers pay attention to anniversary dates and do STAY interviews 60-90 days before that date. Taking notes and using the information gained during stay interviews to make positive changes is key to these interviews. Right now, the nursing workforce is undergoing substantial demographic changes. Knowing what keeps nurses in organizations today is crucial information for leaders especially those new to their roles.

© emergingrnleader.com 2025

09/30/2025

11 Leadership Skills To Build In 2024 For Executives And Emerging Leaders
By William Arruda

In 2024, leaders face a work landscape that has been transformed by generational diversity, complex hybrid work structures, and a rapid infusion of technology. To be a successful leader today – a modern, authentic, human leader – you must amplify a unique set of skills to meet this vastly changed environment. This is a combination of traditional leadership skills with an emphasis on soft skills (also called social skills). Here are 11 critical competencies you need to demonstrate so you can build your personal brand as a relevant and accomplished leader:

1. Emotional Intelligence (EQ)
The ability to understand and manage your own emotions, as well as recognize and influence the emotions of others, is vital for leading effectively and empathetically. At the core of this skill is self-awareness. Being self-aware is the first step in Daniel Goleman’s emotional intelligence model, and it’s the foundation for being able to build meaningful relationships with stakeholders.

2. Adaptability
The modern lexicon of the workplace includes words like 'change,' 'pivot,' and 'evolve.' Leaders must demonstrate flexibility, being able to swiftly adjust strategies and actions in response to technological shifts, worker preferences and market demands.

3. Inclusivity
Embracing and leveraging diversity, fostering an inclusive environment where all team members can thrive, is a non-negotiable leadership skill. Belonging is the key element here. When you cultivate a culture of belonging, your people do their best work in support of your mission.

4. Communication
Leaders must be storytellers, articulating visions and strategies with clarity and authenticity. Specializing in video communication for both synchronous and asynchronous interactions is vital in a hybrid work era, where in-person exchanges are less frequent. That means delivering compelling communications, while leveraging tech–messaging software and virtual meeting platforms.

5. Creative Problem-Solving
The ability to approach challenges from fresh angles and spark innovation is invaluable. Creativity is the foundation of innovation, offering potential solutions to vexing challenges.

6. Collaboration
Building and sustaining a collaborative team in a remote or hybrid setting demands skills beyond the traditional. Leaders must inspire, engage, and leverage technology to integrate collaboration into how the team works. Building team cohesion and connection is the key to engaging today’s workforce.

7. Resilience
We all learned from our experience with Covid that unexpected challenges can hijack well thought out plans. The capacity to recover quickly from difficulties, adapt to adversity, and continue to move forward is key to leadership longevity and success.

8. Strategic Thinking
Leaders have always been creators and stewards of strategy. They must be able to see the big picture, anticipate future trends and challenges, and plan accordingly. That requires an interest in what’s happening and a desire to learn and grow.

9. Learning
The only way to remain relevant in an ever-evolving environment is by being a lifelong learner. Leaders need to engage regularly in learning and become the model for team members, encouraging them to grow knowledge and skills.

10. Sustainability and Social Responsibility
Leaders must grasp the broader impact of their decisions and advocate for practices that ensure environmental care and social good. This helps them build organizations that are principled and appreciated by today’s workforce. It also helps them deliver greater profits. “72% of executives surveyed see ESG as an enabler rather than cost center,” according to a study from IBM.

11. Digital Literacy
Technology is accelerating into the workplace with the speed and precision of a NASCAR vehicle making a pit stop. Leaders need not be tech experts but must be tech-literate. They must adopt a digital mindset. “The digital mindset is a set of attitudes and behaviors that enable people and organizations to see new possibilities and chart a path for the future,” according to Paul Leonardi and Tsedal Neeley, authors of The Digital Mindset.

These skills form the mosaic of modern leadership. Mastering them does not merely equip leaders to survive in today's work environment but to thrive, driving their organizations towards success and innovation in 2024 and beyond.

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