By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN Nursing leadership success today demands a very high level of emotional intelligence. There are five essential skills to becoming more emotionally intelligent. These include: Self-awareness - knowing one's strengths, weaknesses, drives, values, and impact on others. Self-regulation - controlling or redirecting impulses and … [Read more...]

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN A very big challenge for many nurse managers today involves staff oversharing information with them to the point of discomfort. Consider the following story told to me by a leader: I like to think of myself as a servant leader, but I wonder if things are going too far with some of my team members. Nurses today seem to want to … [Read more...]

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN Changes in the nursing workforce have brought changes in the nurse manager role. Nurse managers now feel like NCAA basketball coaches with an ever-changing roster of nurses who stay only for short periods. Gone are the days when managers could depend on a solid core team who had been on the unit for years. The job has become 24/7 … [Read more...]

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN I recently talked with a nurse leader who is very stressed about some upcoming organizational changes in her health system. She anticipates that the director she now reports to and feels much support from may no longer be in the position. She fears that things could change dramatically and not in a good way. Worrying about what will … [Read more...]

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN In recent focus groups I conducted with nurse managers, they listed conflict management on teams and between departments as one of the top three activities they spend time on today. Focus group members commented that staff today don't know how to navigate conflicts with other team members. Social researchers have also observed … [Read more...]