Peek Inside

As I toured each unit that day, it was so refreshing to see everyone’s guard delightfully down. It has been said that great organizations are built one conversation at a time. My experience as Florence Nightingale initiated many new conversations, thanks to the nearly one hundred interactions I enjoyed with nurses and other staff members that day.

Almost a decade later, nurses still vividly recount Florence’s stroll through the halls of the hospital. They don’t remember the costume or the strident edicts from their managers to participate. Still, they undoubtedly recall the unexpected time they shared a moment of laughter with their CNO.

By choosing something other than going with the flow, I could leave the constraints, both real and perceived, of the executive corridor behind and show the nurses who I was as a person. I freed myself to be lighthearted and spontaneous with them, and yes, even take a selfie or two along the way.

Staying fluid and open about my professional role, including those random “other duties as assigned-type things,” can be joyful awakenings that lead to new, positive connections to staff and coworkers. Our nursing organization was changed forever.