Episode 15 - Brandon Thompson - Tips for Nursing Student Success!

Thank you for joining me for another episode of the Nursing Strategies for Success podcast with this week's very special guest, Brandon Thompson. Brandon is a dual-degree nursing student in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and they recently graduated from Central New Mexico Community College with their ADN and now working on their BSN. They recently became a dual citizen, originally from Jamaica, and they study business management and have worked in education alongside school nurses. They've also done some botany research during their undergrad and recently submitted a research article to the MedEd Portal. Brandon has lots of nursing school survival tips and tips for success. So this episode is for my nursing student listeners. So let's welcome Brandon to the show. Welcome to the Nursing Strategies for Success podcast, brought to you by The Nurse Speak, a show where we rally some of our nation's greatest nurse leaders, educators, experts, and advocates to tackle some of our greatest challenges that the nursing profession faces. My name is Damion Jenkins, and I'm your host for this show. So sit back, relax, and get ready to learn that nurses can do anything. So here today I have Brandon. So Brandon, thank you so much for being with us today. Just take a minute to introduce yourself, talk about how we connected. And, uh, what it is that you're doing as you're going through your nursing journey.

Sure, thank you, Damion Jenkins. So again, my name is Brandon Thompson. I'm a Jamaican-American, um, recently just graduated from my associate degree in nursing program. So I'm a graduate nurse, but I'm still in school because, um, the contract I signed, um, it's a dual degree nursing student nursing contract. So I pretty much go to a community college do their ADN portion. Then the last semester I go to a traditional university, which is the University of New Mexico, and that is where I'll have my final semester for the BSN portion. And then I could sit for the NCLEX. It's a little complex, it's a little— I don't like it that much because I wish I could have taken the NCLEX now, right? I have to wait.

But yeah, because, because the way your program is structured, it says you're not done. Right, because you didn't go through to get an ADN RN training. You're going through ADN to BSN.

Yes.

Yeah, that is one of the caveats for those programs. For those of you listening, just make sure that you're very aware of the progress of your program. Do you get to come out as an LPN and start working? Do you come out as an ADN RN nurse and start working? Or do you have to wait until you complete your BSN? So make sure you know that. That's very important.

I agree, because I thought I was able to come out and work, but yes, I—

they were like, surprise, they had something else in store for you, right?

Yeah.

Awesome. So, um, tell everyone how we connected.

Sure, um, through Instagram, of course.

Instagram is where it's at.

It's where it's at. I— that is the one app I use. Um, you know, a lot of people use TikTok and stuff, but I just focus on the one. Having too much, you lose focus and your audience that way. But we We connected on Instagram, really like your content. NCLEX prep is a need, so you're offering a need that we all need. Yeah, so I appreciate that, and that is how we connected.

Yeah, and so, so let me piggyback on that and say that I also appreciate your Instagram as well. So let everyone know what your Instagram handle is.

Oh sure, it's student nurse— it's student nurse Brandon for now, but Yes, Student Nurse Brandon.

Everyone can find you there on Instagram. I highly recommend those of you who are not following Brandon to do that now. Um, he creates all kinds of educational and humorous content that I think you would enjoy. Um, and same thing, so I really appreciated your content as well. Um, I followed you for quite a while to just kind of get a feel for what you were doing, and what really drew me to you is your consistency and the level of thought that you put into your publications and your posts. Again, a mixture of education, a mixture of inspiration, a mix of humor, something that we all need as nurses because this is a very high-stakes profession, lots of high tensions and emotions, and we need to oftentimes laugh it out, reflect, and kind of work through the challenges. That we are having as nurses. And so this brings us to the topic of this video, and that's really giving 10 strategies for nursing students as they move through their program and their nursing journey. And so, you know, you're— you've already completed the ADN portion, you're now into your BSN portion, you've done tons of clinicals by now, you So you have lots of experiences also by being a Jamaican American, you have your dual citizenship, you are a person of color and you're a member of the LGBTQ+ community. So you have a lot of perspective to offer that goes beyond what many people would say is the norm, right?

Yeah.

Um, honestly, I agree. You know, for when I was in nursing school, I was one of two guys in my class. And we were both white, right? And we had like 3 Black girls and maybe like 2 Asian students and like maybe 1 Indian student. So even I noticed, you know, 10+— 11 years ago that, wow, my class is really white. And so, so, you know, sometimes that offers some struggle as well. And me being openly gay through nursing school, that was also a struggle for me. I met a lot of resistance and, you know, intimidation and professors not liking me because I was openly gay and trying to give me a harder time. But, you know, we find ways to persevere and get through those challenges and let them know that just because this is one component of who I am doesn't mean that it defines me, nor does it take away from my ability.

Right.

So awesome. We have a lot to cover here. So Brandon, why don't you share with us your first tip that you want nursing students to know that is going to help them get through their nursing journey?

Okay, my very first tip, um, and everyone should do this, is do some self-reflection. You know you best. You know what works for you. You know your strengths. You know your weaknesses. You know what opportunity is out there for you. I went to business school as well, so I'm giving you a SWOT analysis. Strengths, weaknesses, your opportunities, and some threats. What's going to prevent you from moving forward? Is it your time management? You need to work on your time management. If your strength is being organized, you know that you're not going to be left behind in nursing school. And I've noticed that from pre-nursing to the new incoming nurses, that they wait until they're in the program to figure things out, and I believe you should do that before. So do some self-reflection. If you're a visual learner, perfect, go into nursing school with that in mind. If you're an auditory learner, go into nursing school with your— have your equipment ready, have your microphone set up, record yourself, listen to it. And you have to really do what is best for you because there's no one fit way how to study. And I get that question a lot. It's like, how to study for nursing school? How to study? And I'm like, how do you learn?

That's a great place to start, right?

So that is my very first tip. Incoming nurses or pre-nursing students, you need to do a SWOT analysis of yourself. Know yourself better than anybody else. So when you're in, you're in. Awesome.

That's such a great tip. Um, it is very true that we learn best when we dig deep, look inside ourselves, and identify how do we excel at certain tasks and where should we spend some time improving. And again, I tell this to all of my clients and students as well, is don't focus on what you don't know. You should be focusing on what you do know. So always focus on what you know to be true. So if you know you're a tactile learner and you're— you need to put your hands on, then you need to find many ways to get that experience so that it can all sink in. Auditory, you know, visual, whatever the case may be. So that self-reflection piece is so important. So Brandon, let me ask you real quick, for the SWOT analysis, is there a particular resource that people can go to to learn more about SWOT analysis, or can they Google it?

I think you could just Google it. Um, it's a pretty in-depth thing. Um, I don't believe in the concept of one thing fits one thing. I have a business associate degree and I'm applying my business knowledge into nursing right now.

Perfect.

So one shoe doesn't fit everything. You can use everything.

Absolutely. But I think it's a great place to start. So those of you who don't really know how to start the self-reflection process, Start with the SWOT analysis and see if that works for you.

Right.

Awesome. So what's tip number 2?

Tip number 2 is asking and knowing when to ask for help. This is so important. Do not sit there and drown and wait till the end of the semester to be like, oh my God, Professor, can you re-explain that? No, they're not, unfortunately, but they're not.

They're not going to.

They're not going to. So from day 1, be that person. And it's got— be the gunner. A lot of people where I'm from, we call it the gunner, and, and they think it's this bad connotation on students because you ask a lot of questions. No, you have a right to ask your questions. You paid for your education, you are responsible for your education, you have a right. So ask for help. This could be your peers, alumni. Reach out to alumni, they are the best resources for nursing school. And it's not just any alumni. Find the alumni that went through your program. They are the best person to tell you, hey, this instructor is keen on APA. You're going to know when you're in med-surg with that instructor, your APA is on point. Yeah, absolutely. So they are the resources, you know. Peers in the program is a good one. Um, if somebody is a semester or two ahead of you, it's good to reach out to them because They know, they've been through it, they're going through it with you as well. And your instructors, your instructors in nursing school are the best resources. They are in the field, they know everyone, they are nurses themselves, so they know. And yeah, go ask for help.

Yeah, absolutely. So piggybacking on, on that, you know, nursing really is a team effort. It always was and it always will be. There is not ever a situation where the lonely nurse is out there saving the world. That's not going to happen, right? And so even the best of us get weeded or get overwhelmed with what we're doing, whether it's our studies, whether it's learning a new procedure, whether it's a new policy that rolled out, whether it's managing our patients at the time. We always need to call for help. And it's the same thing with really understanding the limitations of your practice. We are not supreme beings with all this unlimited power at our fingertips. So we have to recognize our limitations and say that we can only do so much at once. And so, yes, that's such a great tip. When you're feeling overwhelmed or you're feeling like you don't understand something, the best thing to do is ask questions. If the people sitting in the back are smacking their teeth because you keep asking questions, let them smack their teeth. Like, right, because you're getting your answers, and your answer is also going to help them as well.

Yes, absolutely.

So they may be super smart, or so they think, and they think that it's a dumb question or that you've asked the same question in a variety of ways. But if you're seeking that clarification, that's more important than making a mistake. So the nursing students or new nurses, when I'm training them, if they If they don't ask questions, I'm very concerned.

Yes.

I'm like, what are they doing? Are they just holding their tongue or are they overly confident? And both of those can be dangerous in certain situations. So awesome. That's an amazing tip. Thank you so much. What's tip number 3?

Tip number 3, please read. That's such a good tip.

Read. Reading is fundamental, right?

Read, please. Um, it is hard, don't get me wrong. And I'm a senior nursing student, so I've been through it. I have my ADN, I've been through it. Yes, I made the time to read. And I don't mean reading word for word, paragraph or paragraph, highlighting the whole chapter. No, read by looking at those bold text. Your textbooks have them. Tables charts, images, list. Focus on those things. And I kid you not, during my psych rotation, that is where my professor got his information for from tests. I could not believe it.

I'll tell you, I'll tell you, us educators are just as busy as students trying to learn things and fit in all of our obligations. We also don't have the time, nor do we want to read word for word. We want you to understand the big picture. We want our students to understand the big picture, the concepts that guide decision-making. We don't need you to know every single detail.

Right. And just to share an example, um, a friend of mine, like, he was so into— he could tell you the cellular mechanism of digoxin, and I'm like, you don't need to know that.

Thank you.

You need to know the side effects of it. The therapeutic range, but you don't need to know the intricate details on how it connects to which receptor and open up which channel. That is good to know info, but you don't need that on the job. I always tag in along with reading is to read smart, which is focusing on those tables and know what information.

I mean, reading smart, I love that. You should put that on t-shirts, like, seriously, right? That should be your next like product line, because reading smart is really important. And, you know, to piggyback off what you were just saying about not needing to know the mechanism, mechanism of action in terms of how it affects the cells and all of that, is when you're really looking at content and you're trying to make sense of it, the one question you should really ask yourself is, does this fall in the wheelhouse of my ability as a nurse?

Right, right.

Can you change how the medications are going to affect the cells? No, no. Does it impact your ability to do your job as a nurse? No. You're going to give the med or you're not going to give the med. You're going to check the labs or you're not going to check the labs. You're going to determine if it's therapeutic or not. You're going to check for effectiveness or not. You're going to make sure their vitals are safe to give the medication or not. The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics and all of that, it's good to know the information that drugs affect certain organs and how they move through the body, but you don't need to know on a cellular level what it's doing, what channels open, and all of that stuff. So that's a really great point to make. Um, nursing professors, however, make you feel like you do need to know all of that. So I'm, I'm, I'm speaking from experience as a nursing student and as a professor. We have a problem in the classroom of making people feel like they need to know everything. So thank you for that. Read smart, don't overdo it. All right, what's tip number 4?

Tip number 4, which is probably one of the most important tips, is to practice a lot of NCLEX-style questions. Um, we've seen that is how a lot of people drop out their first semester in nursing school because they just got hit with this— what is this question? I read this, but The question is so different. Nursing school is not a fact-based kind of school, right? That is prereqs, right? You know the facts, period. Now apply the facts.

There we go.

So practice— the only way to get used to and see how this is in nursing school, you have to get some resources with some NCLEX-style practice questions. You have to practice a lot of questions to get familiar and Keep this in mind, guys, the question varies. So med-surg questions is not the same as psych questions. Med-surg might follow ABCs, Maslows. Psych, I've noticed mostly it's like safety and therapeutic communication. Peds, on— peds is a whole nother universe. So, but for each specialty, for each class, practice some questions and get familiar with how phrase and ask those questions. It helps.

Yeah, absolutely. And again, uh, I can speak to that in great detail because I am an NCLEX prep expert. This is my specialty and that I've found myself very happy in, uh, the last 6 or so years that I've been helping people pass the NCLEX. And really, that speaks to volumes. I tell people all the time, the sooner you start learning about NCLEX, the the sooner you start learning about the concepts that guide decision-making, the sooner you learn to utilize the nursing process as a tool for critical thinking instead of just focusing on it as a tool for care planning. When you leverage the rules of prioritization, the rules of delegation, the rules of therapeutic management of care, documentation, medication administration, all of these things that have very finite rules you have to do them by the book. There's no exceptions. When you learn these rules and these principles and guidelines that drive decision-making, and you can also understand how NCLEX questions are constructed, why they're written at 4 different levels—recognition, recall, comprehension, application, and analysis—now you can start to say, ah, I can now identify the concept that's governing this question. And so like you mentioned about psych questions being mostly safety and therapeutic communication, that's really a great observation on your behalf because that does happen to be true for a lot of those questions. Is it always true? No. And is it going to be as easy on the NCLEX as it is in a lot of these resources you get? No. So I want to also make that very clear for everyone listening today, is that not every NCLEX style question is created equally. Right. And so NCLEX prep experts such as myself can really distinguish the quality of an NCLEX style question one from another. So if anyone has questions about what resource they should use, feel free to go to thenursespeak.com and I'll include that in the blog today as well. All of the information, you can go and get in touch with me 'cause I'll let you know what resource I know is vetted by myself and other peers that has high-quality questions that will really give you the best experience to prepare for the NCLEX. Because there's a lot of junk out there. I'm just gonna— yeah, I don't want to drop any names for any companies, right? I want to stay professional, but there's a lot of junk out there. A lot of people just open textbooks and just copy stuff and call it an NCLEX question. And, and like you said, NCLEX questions are not fact based. They're going to be application and analysis based, at least the ones that get to pass the exam of that passing threshold. So if you want to just, you know, recall facts all day long, stick to flashcards, you know, stick to reading your books, stick to watching videos on YouTube. That's going to help you with the retention component. But to really pass the exam and to pass nursing school, you need to be able to apply what you're learning and make decisions about the data that's presented. So great, great tip. All right, tip number 5.

Tip number 5: build your resume while you're in nursing school.

Perfect, I love it. Tell us why it's important.

It is, and it is possible, guys. Don't believe— some people I know may have a job, some may not. This is resonating for both, probably mostly for those who don't have a job. You can build your resume in nursing school. Um, your clinical experiences, working with those nurses on the unit, build a relationship with them. I got so many resumes— um, not resumes, recommendations from some nurses I just work with. Um, campus, get involved, volunteer. I recently, um, was a research fellow for the emergency department. It's a teaching curriculum, and my research is focused on melanoma in pigmented skin because we're diagnosed at a later stage when it's pretty much prognosis is 5%. Um, and that was through school. And here I am, a new grad, and I have an ICU internship. I wasn't working in nursing school. I did not work for 2 years. And you need to put yourself out there and just every day from a clinical experience put something on your resume. I worked at XYZ Hospital. Yeah, keep in mind the skills you saw, the skills you did. Reach out to your instructors. Again, these are the guys in your field. Your summative and formative evals, those speak out, those are volume, and those add to your resume. So really work and find ways to build your resume. Nursing school, join the Student Nurse Association, be a treasurer. You don't have to be the president, right? You could just— but you know, you could take minutes for the meeting. That's showing organization skills. You could prob— I know a nurse who graduated and was hired as charge because she was so organized in nursing school. She was a student nurse president, she was doing this for class, and she didn't have a job, and she landed that position straight out the gate, straight out the gate.

That's lovely. So yeah, that's such an important tip, you know, building your resume, or, or, you know, a resume building is another way of doing this. But I always tell people to catalog what you're learning along the way, or journal about your progress as you go through nursing school. Um, keeping a journal to start is a great way to kind of track your progress, and then it's easier to translate that into more professional jargon on a resume. But yeah, you're absolutely Absolutely right, um, and so important that when you come out of nursing school, all of your experience should be encapsulated in a resume format so that you can show your potential employers that you have met certain requirements, that you've gained skills that are transferable to the role, that you are developing your professional self as a nurse even though you are a student the entire time. Um, and similarly, I was hired as a charge nurse straight out the gate as well. Okay. You know, again, coming out organized, coming out confident. And a lot of us go through nursing school as a second career track, right? That's just— it seems to be the majority. So many of us come into nursing with a variety of experiences and skill sets already that are transferable. And one last note on the skills through nursing school and the skills that nurses develop is nurses Students can do anything, right? Anything, anything, anything. Our training prepares us to handle any role that's out there. We have so many transferable skills. So never diminish yourself. Never think that, oh, I'm a student, so what I know or what I've done doesn't count. That is not the case. We have tremendous value to offer. We are more than just healers. We are educators. We are business people. We are policymakers. We run the world, right? Nurses can do anything. We just are working on getting ourselves seated at the table more fairly amongst the decision-makers in healthcare, but we're on our way. So as long as we keep showing up and showing out that we are more than capable instead of diminishing ourselves, we're on the road to success. So that's an amazing tip. Thank you so much for sharing that.

So tip number 6 Tip number 6 is coming right off of what you said. I'm like, do you have my list?

You did not share the list with me.

No, this is pretty awesome. It is to avoid tunnel vision. Nursing is not just— you don't have to just be a bedside nurse. It is the one degree, as Damion Jenkins said, that you could do anything. You could go anywhere with this degree. And a lot of my peers think it's just hospital work or inpatient, outpatient. It's like, no, there is— you could travel. And I'm not just putting travel out there because it's the high need right now, but I tie traveling because of my personal experience. In Jamaica, healthcare is not free, right? And I will travel back to my country to— my grandmother died at a very young age because she couldn't get the healthcare she needed. And as a nurse, possibly a future nurse practitioner, I want to travel to those countries that do not have the resources to see a doctor or a nurse. I'm going to be available for them, and that's just because of where I came from. And that's just removing that tunnel vision, right, and see the big picture of healthcare. There is— there are some disparities, and nurses are probably the ones who see it the most. And with seeing it the most, I believe we're the ones who are going to affect change. Absolutely. Right.

We're on the front lines of those disparities. We're the ones who feel the injustices or inequalities that exist within our system. And we are such a global system now that there's no reason for one country to have a system very different than the other. And hopefully we can eventually, as as a global community get to have our healthcare systems more streamlined and not be so segmented. Um, you know, there's tons of resources out there for how we're trying to change the way that nurses are compensated, maybe shift nursing from private pay from organizations that are responsible for covering our salaries to maybe more of a public utility. Um, you know, that's not necessarily social medicine, which I know a lot of people are against. Um, we— that's a whole nother topic. Yes, we want it. We won't address that today. But, you know, there's so many resources that show that the way nurses are being compensated, hired, educated, and provided with the resources to care for our community, um, we're showing it's just suboptimal across the board. And so we need to kind of reorganize how we're putting in our resources. So yes, nurses know where the problems lie, and it's always going to be on us to find solution. So as long as we are able to band together, um, like we're doing today, band together, share our thoughts, share our strengths, work together to arrive to those solutions, anything is possible. And so this is very exciting. So thank you so much for that.

Um, tip number 7. Tip number 7, oof, learn how to accept your failures. Ah, so important. Very. Um, yes, I derailed when I failed my first nursing exam. I thought it was the end. Um, and it It is very high stakes and I get it. Nursing school should be. We are dealing with people's lives. We are with them 24/7, more than other healthcare professionals. But we need to learn how to accept our failures. And this ties into the tips from before is knowing also when to ask for help. Yeah. Don't set yourself up for failure. But failure is not the end. Failure is a learning curve, right? If you have never failed, you're never learning. That is my concept. That is so perfect.

That is the concept. You have to fail forward. Yes. Forward, fall forward, fail forward. It's the same thing. That is, that is, I mean, that just resonates with me so well. You know, I'm an entrepreneur. I've been a nurse for 11 years, before I was a nurse. I was in the food and hospitality industry for 15 years. I, I'm in my, you know, second serious relationship as an adult. Um, there's plenty of things that I have failed at in life, but if I just bawled up and cried myself away, then I wouldn't be where I am today.

Right.

You know, I went through school, started off with nothing. I didn't have family support. You know, I moved out when I was very young, you know, I moved across the country to try to create a new life for myself. I put myself through college. I'm the first college graduate in all of my family. You know, I'm the first one to own my own business. You know, so there's a lot of things that I've accomplished by being persistent and again, failing forward. So when one thing isn't working, what's important is to pivot, right? You can't keep doing the same thing and expect different results.

Right. Definition of insanity.

Exactly. So, you know, that's really important. Accept your failures. The important thing is to grow from them, you know, not let them define you, not let them hold you back, but learn what it was that caused you to fail in the first place and then move beyond that. Do something different to get beyond that barrier. Sometimes you do need to reach out to professionals to help you identify where you're making your mistakes. And this is a lot, some, you know, very similar with my NCLEX clients. They're like, I keep failing the NCLEX and I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I'm doing everything that everyone else is doing, but I don't understand. And oftentimes it's a misconception or a misunderstanding, or someone gave them the wrong information, right? And they're holding on to this wrong information, which is causing that barrier. But you know, again, sometimes we need to reach out for help, going back to your previous, to say, hey, we keep failing, we keep doing this wrong. And understandably, with nursing school, if you fail too many times, you're out. Yeah. And it's not many, it's like 2 exams in a semester and you're screwed, basically. You know, if you fail the same course more than once, you're out. Yeah. It's kind of how it works. I don't necessarily agree with that process.

I don't. It puts so many stress on us. Maybe our generation can change that, we'll see.

What happens. Yeah, um, but you know, I don't think the 2 fails and you're out should be the, the end. I think it should be we downgrade you, okay, make it a little bit easier for you to get to your goal. So instead, so for example, and I know I'm digressing a little bit, but if you're in an RN program and you fail med-surg 2 twice, instead of just kicking you out and saying sorry, good luck with being a waiter somewhere, right, we can say, okay, well, we noticed that med-surg for RN is a little complicated, so what if we put you through the LPN training? All right, that way we can still get you in the door as a healthcare professional, as a nurse, because we need nurses across all levels of care, and give you an opportunity to still do what you want to do or live your dream. Because being a nurse is a dream for many people, you know. So it's kind of like, I don't think it should just be be, oh, sorry for you, you're out. We should give them other avenues, or even maybe put them through our CNA program and say, okay, nursing might be a little complicated for you in this moment, let's put you through CNA school. That way you can get to the bedside, you can start learning, you can start connecting the dots, and then you can come back in our next cohort. Or after you worked as a CNA for so long, then you can move through the nursing, uh, again. Because I think cutting people off too soon is really just adding to the shortage that we already have. Yeah, so awesome. So we are now on tip number 8, right? All right, tip number 8.

Tip number 8 ties into tip number 7, and tip number 8 is being flexible. So with failure, again, it's a learning thing. You fail med-surg Now you have to readjust your study method. Now you have to readjust how you read that concept. So that is what I mean by being flexible. There is— you cannot study the same for med-surg how you'll study for peds. I've noticed that in nursing school. Correct. I study so differently for all my classes: peds, med-surg, fundamental, um, pharm. Your study method changed by the semester, and that is the definition of being flexible. And let's make it even more applicable. We are nurses. What do we do in the hospital? We are the most flexible person in the whole organization. Yep. Lab follows one rigid lab, lab, lab. Nurses, no. You have 4 or 5, depends on your unit, different patient, different culture, different background. You have to be flexible with providing care to those patients from different background. So why not apply that flexibility that you're gonna see on the job while in school? Be flexible with your studies, be flexible with your time. Um, a very— my instructor gave me the most important tip, and he said, triage your work. I love that. Triage your schoolwork. If this worth this much, you know you're gonna spend more time on that. Cut— if you know Pharm more, cut the time down on Pharm and build up and change how you approach Peds. So really be flexible, guys, in nursing school. There is no— what, you're not gonna study the same, excuse me, for any two classes? Absolutely. Maybe, but rarely, I think.

I find that you're building on your previous study habits as you move through because the complexity of the courses increases in addition to the expectations of your ability to apply and analyze data and then in return demonstrate your understanding of the skills as you move through the programs. So, you know, yes, you're right, we kind of naturally change the way that we're studying as we go through school, especially if we're successful, because we're building on what we've already learned. And that could be what worked and what didn't work, right? So if studying flashcards all day every day did not work for us Well, now we have to find another way of retaining the information and then being able to recall that information or apply that information when we— so, you know, again, speaking from the educator standpoint, I also find that nursing schools, especially due to COVID, is missing a lot of opportunity to set up application and analysis level assignments or practices or clinical or simulation because of the social distancing and, you know, the infection control protocols that were mandated to follow. And so I want to apologize on behalf of all nursing professors across the world that, you know, it's out of our hands. That, you know, if you feel gypped that you didn't get some experiences that you feel would have made it easier for you, we are doing the best we can with our current circumstances. But there are still plenty of things that you can do to try to connect connect the dots. And again, it's by understanding the bigger picture, role-playing at home, you know, doing Zoom discussion groups with your peers. There's a lot of things that you can still do to try to understand the information and get a good grip on it. So, um, and that also goes back to your previous tip with reflection. You know, triaging your schoolwork is also a sense of reflecting. Is this subject going to be difficult for me? Is this something I don't know anything about and I need to spend more time in, or do I have a pretty good grasp on this? So again, that self-reflection, as you can see, is transferable across all avenues of what we're doing. So I'm loving how your tips are really kind of working together.

All right, so last tip, tip number 10. Tip number 10, and this tip is applicable to our current situation, which is we are going online. Your online etiquette— I understand 100% some people might be shy, but remember the field you're going in. You're going to have to talk to families and so many different people in healthcare— the techs, charge, HR, the doc. You're going to have so many people. And I'm saying that to get you comfortable with putting your cameras on, just have that online etiquette. It is, for me, because it is really hard to see a bunch of black screens and my instructor face alone. And we, you know, my school was realizing the lack of engagement in the classroom. So they're like, if anybody besides Brandon who didn't say something, we'll give them an in-class quiz. So it's affecting other people when we don't engage in class. And in engaging is when you will see that you're learning the content. Read the textbook, mark up your textbook. You pay $300 for that book, mark it up, mark it up, rip the pages out, post it to your wall if you need to.

Do what you need to do, right?

And ask those questions. Hey, I saw this in box 7 on page 16. Seeing or reading. Can you explain that? What does this mean? Put your cameras on and do that. You're— it goes a long way, guys. Your instructors are the people who are in the field. They probably know your bosses. They're probably gonna be your bosses sometimes. You don't know, right? And just being— having that online etiquette, you know, just even if it's to say a few words, just put your mic and your camera on. And show that level of professionalism. We are professionals, so you need to act and show that level of professionalism.

That's absolutely correct and very much appreciated as well. And to piggyback on that online etiquette, really a lot of us, we don't have that etiquette because we don't have the experience with being on mic or on camera. So my recommendation to get yourself more comfortable is to practice. You can do just like what Brandon and I are doing right now. We're on a Zoom call. I'm recording it. So this is going to be a time to reflect on how were our facial expressions? Was our tone appropriate? Were we clear in our explanations or our questions? Were we dressed appropriately to be on camera in front of other people? How is our background? Is it distracting? Is there a bunch of background noise? These are all the things that through, again, self-reflection or self-evaluation, you can become more comfortable with being on camera. Spend some time calling all of your friends, you know, calling family members, and then start reaching out to peers and then start reaching out to professors. And again, if you record yourself initially when you're learning, then you can kind of say, oh, I didn't like how many times I said, um. Um, again, it's not the end of the world if you do say um a thousand times, but if it's something that's bothering you or distracting you, then it might distract other people as well. So just kind of build on that. It's just like learning any skill set. We have to practice until we're comfortable, um, for anything. Putting that Foley in the first time, how many of us were uncomfortable? I was. Hello? I was like, oh my God, I have to do what? I'm dropping an NG tube in a patient. I have to do what? But now it's like I've done it so many times, I'm just like, boom, it's done. I don't even think about it. So it's the same thing. So I really appreciate that. Online etiquette, very important. We are in the world of online. It's not going to change anytime soon. If anything, it's going to become less in office, more at home, because why would a corporation want to pay for office space if they don't need to?

Right, that's a bonus tip, Damion.

Oh, we have a bonus tip! Yeah, yeah, awesome.

So the bonus tip is your experience is valid, or validate your experience. And what do I mean by that? You work at Starbucks as a barista, sweetie, you have patient communication down. You know how many of my peers are afraid to walk into a patient room and talk to them? You being a barista is not less than, it adds to you being a nurse. You could talk to patients. You come in with one of the great— you have customer service skills. That is one of the greatest skills to have. So don't discourage your experience, validate your experience, whatever it is.

Oh my God, that is so important. And again, You know, my organizational skills, which landed me in that charge nurse position straight out of school, came from being a waiter. Mm-hmm. It came from being able to take care of 20, 30 patrons at a time. Mm-hmm. Keep myself calm, keep myself collected, anticipate what they wanted, follow through with their recommendations or their desires, communicate with a team of people so that we can work, you know, harmoniously together to make sure that we're meeting the needs of our guests. Nursing is very different with the severity of what you're doing and the high-stakes emotions and all of that, but it's the same thing. It's the same. It's the same thing. So yes, whether you're a secretary working at Walmart, a trash man, whatever you're doing, you can transfer those skills into nursing. The only difference is, is we're meeting people at their worst. Which typically makes things harder to deal with. Patients aren't as receptive, they're not coming in chipper. You know, when someone comes to you for their coffee in the morning, you either see them two ways: they're sleepy and grumpy, or they're very excited, right? Either way, you get the same thing. In nursing, it's like they're dying, or they're in pain, or they're fearful. So, you know, a little bit of sensitivity is needed in nursing, and you learn that as you go through. But yes, transferring your existing experience, skill set, knowledge is so important, and don't let anyone take that from you. That's the other thing I want to mention, is because I've had— when I first started as a nurse in that charge nurse position, although they loved me for my organization and all my, you know, nursing abilities, they completely discredited and disregarded my 15 years of food and hospitality industry and business management and organizational skills and training and all of that, they completely disregarded it. So a lot of the issues that we had, or that I had starting in my first role, none of it was nursing specific. It was mostly operationally specific. How do we communicate with each other? How are we documenting things? What are we keeping track of? What's the progress, you know, the process that we're gonna use for progress? And my managers and director of nursing and all that were just like, oh, you're a new nurse, you, you don't really know what you're talking about, it is what it is, you'll get used to it, this is the way it's always been. And I was like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, I don't agree with any of this. I don't care if I'm a new nurse, I am not a new person. I've been on this planet a while now. I've had 15 years of corporate experience where opened up restaurants, was the head trainer, would help corporate design their training guides and all this. Like, I know that I'm bringing value to solving this problem and you're discrediting all of that. So don't let them discredit you. If you find yourself in a position to where your skill set that you have that can contribute to improving the process is being discredited, you know, be sure to speak up and just say, hey, I do have experience with this. Before, this is completely transferable to this situation here. I do understand that it takes a certain level of finesse, you know, or sensitivity because of this, whatever the situation may be. But it's the same thing. We are trying to enhance team collaboration. That is a transferable skill. You have your huddles, your team meetings, your, you know, your evaluations, your peer-to-peer evaluations. You have that everywhere. So these skills are definitely transferable to nursing. Um, so excellent bonus tip, Brandon. This has been amazing. I hope all of you who are watching this video, um, find this information extremely valuable. Uh, Brandon, other than Instagram, where else can people find you?

I'm only on Instagram. Only on Instagram?

Okay, so we don't have our website set up yet? Not Yeah, any of those things. Okay, cool. Awesome. Um, you don't have any kind of website that links resources together for people? Am I mistaken?

I'm working on it, honestly. I have a Linktree with a lot of different—

that's what I saw. So this is what I want you to tell— how can people find you on that Linktree?

Okay, um, it is on my Instagram profile. Go to my bio, click the link, and I have a bunch of different resources listed under my Linktree. Um, coming in the near future, all those will be on my website. I actually have a website being developed right now, so things are in the making. But use that Linktree for some resources.

And what is your website gonna be titled? Do you have that figured out yet?

Not yet. Okay. All right. I like to work, and then, you know, in the work, the name will come to me. No, I'm lying. I actually do have the name. Okay. It is called the Nursing Student Launchpad. Or what it's going to call.

The Nursing Student Launchpad. And have you figured out if it's going to be .com, .org, .edu? Have you figured that out yet? Probably .com. Okay, so say it one more time.

Nursing Student Launchpad.

Perfect. So I'm definitely gonna keep an eye out for that. I want all of you to keep an eye out for that as well. Brandon, thank you Thank you so much. It's been a real pleasure having this discussion with you. I'm certain that these tips are going to go far and wide because just like you, I get thousands of requests from people about how to study, what should I focus on, I got approved for my nursing program, what to expect. You get these very vague, general kind of questions and you're like, I mean, there's a thousand possibilities. Be more specific. So my bonus tip adding on to all of this is be specific when you have questions or you have needs. Be specific. There are countless avenues or considerations to take, just like when we're taking care of patients, we have to take in all the considerations. So if you're having a problem with NCLEX, if you're having a problem with designing a resume, if you don't know how to navigate a complicated instructor who seems to be bullying you, if you don't know how to deal with someone being racist or a bigot. You know, these are very specific issues that you can ask for help. You know, I myself, you know, NCLEX prep expert, but I've been through the wringer, so there's lots of things that I can speak to. And if I can't speak to it, then I know many people that can. And Brandon is now a new resource that's going into my network so that we can collaborate in the future and work together to make nursing, the best profession on the planet. So thanks so much, Brandon. We really appreciated having you here, and, uh, we look forward to the next time. All right, take care everyone. And that concludes episode 15 of the Nursing Strategies for Success podcast with this week's guest, Brandon Thompson. We hope that all of the strategies we've shared for you in today's episode will help you prepare yourself for nursing school success. For any of you who listening who are not nursing students, please pass these strategies down to those who you know are in nursing school or planning on entering into nursing school because it is our mission to get more nurses into the profession and help them thrive once they're there. If you have any questions about today's episode, you can always go to thenursespeak.com/contact and get in touch with me. I would love to have a conversation with you. All of the ways to connect with Brandon will be in the show notes of this episode. And until next time, take care, be well, and remember that nurses can do anything.