I started my career in healthcare as a physical therapist, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I worked in a variety of settings: acute care, rehab, outpatient, pediatrics, and home care. What I liked most in any of those jobs was taking great care of my patients – really listening to them, teaching them what to do to heal and stay healthy, and providing them with support and reassurance along the way.

I loved the teaching aspect of my job so much, that I decided to get a Master’s Degree in Adult Education. I was then given the opportunity to serve as Manager of the Nursing Education and Organizational Development Department for our health system.  Because I wasn’t a nurse, I had to rely very heavily on the very experienced nurses I worked with.   I always bragged that we had over 200 years of nursing experience in our department!  During the five years that I held that position, I gained a very deep respect for the nursing profession:  the dedication to stay on a shift as long as it takes, often skipping meals and even bathroom breaks; missing out on educational events and hospital celebrations because it’s too busy on the floor; and a willingness to stand up and fight for what is right for patients. Nurses are the ultimate multi-taskers!

As a result of my work as a leader on one of our patient satisfaction teams, I was encouraged to go back to school and get my MBA.  I did just that, majoring in Finance at Rutgers University.  It was not long after that I decided it was time for me to leave the world of healthcare, and utilize what I had learned in my MBA program.  I wanted to do something that combined all of the things I was best at: customer service, education and money.  It seemed logical that I would become a financial advisor.

I spent my first three years as a financial advisor at a major brokerage firm, where I had excellent training – I was in orientation for 6 months before I was ever allowed to work with a client. (Compare that to the two weeks or less that you were in orientation before starting work at a new hospital!)

While I was happy in my new role, there were a few things that didn’t exactly fit for me.  Working in a big firm, we were encouraged to only work with people who were classified as “high net worth.” That’s a nice way to say “millionaires.” I quickly realized two things: 1) all advisors were pursuing the same wealthy individuals, and 2) many people who really needed advice were being ignored.

It was about this time that one of the hospitals in my previous health system closed. It was a devastating experience, and something that no one in healthcare ever really expects.  I was asked to come back to the hospital and educate the employees about what options they had for their retirement plan money. I spent several weeks teaching workshops and meeting with employees individually to help them with the difficult decisions they faced.  I met with employees at their convenience, which often meant meetings with nurses on 2nd and 3rd shifts.  I can’t count how many 2am meetings I held!

When the hospital finally closed, many of the employees were grateful for my help, and became my clients. They realized that I was sincere about making investing easy and understandable for them, and that I would always operate with the highest integrity, putting their best interests first.

What I have learned is that most nurses are very good at what they do; however retirement planning and money matters are not their primary focus. They enjoy taking great care of their patients, but chances are they may not have spent a lot of time planning for their financial future.  When I worked with a large number of nurses who were leaving the hospital when it closed, there were two distinct groups:  those who had made their financial a future priority, and those who just hadn’t gotten around to it.  There was a stark contrast between the two groups.

The nurses who hadn’t planned ahead were stressed out and understandably afraid of what the future might hold for them.  They felt pressured to find a new job in a job market that was not so great.  On the other hand, the nurses who had planned ahead were upset and disappointed, but were confident that all of the pieces of their financial puzzle were in place, and that everything would work out fine, even if they were out of work for a while.

I decided then and there that the best way I could use my talents to serve others, was by helping nurses to make good decisions with their money.  If I can help to give nurses confidence and peace of mind about the very important – and sometimes troubling – topic of money, then they can spend the day doing what they do best:  compassionately caring for their patients.  So, just like nurses create a care plan for their patients, I create a “financial care plan” to assist nurses in achieving a worry-free retirement.

I've worked with many private clients, spoken in front of countless groups, and have created RNMoneyCoach.com to help nurses understand their money challenges and help them reach all of their financial goals.