Graduate Study Challenges and Strategies for Personal Success
Stacy Maahs
HCS/504
Jill Grundy
June 6, 2014

Graduate Study Challenges and Strategies for Personal Success
My personal plan for success as I pursue my master’s degree in the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Program is multi-leveled. Among other things, I believe stubbornness is one of my attributes; this in itself may turn out to be quite helpful to me over the next three years. “With self-regulated learning, students use several specific subprocesses to achieve self-directed learning goals in real-world contexts. Effective self-regulated learners select, structure, and create environments that optimize their learning” (Kumrow, 2001, p. 140). To me, this simply means that my success in this program is up to me. My ability to control my feelings of stress and anxiety, as well as juggle being a mother, wife and full-time employee will determine my success to an extent. I am certainly motivated to succeed. I plan to discuss my goals, challenges to meeting them, and ways to improve my communication skills in my pursuit of being a master’s degree prepared FNP.
Personal and Professional Goals
I have never prioritized setting personal or professional “goals” for myself, yet I would not profess to have wandered haphazardly through life either. I have an internal set of high standards that I maintain for myself and those around me. I was raised by two parents in the Midwest with an incredible work ethic; being taught how to be a productive human being with love and kindness was at the center of my upbringing. This same work ethic has been a driving force within me, allowing me to push myself beyond feelings of comfort. Once I make up my mind about something, I go after it. Becoming a board certified FNP is in this category. I have made up my mind on this, and it is my long-term professional goal. I would like to use my degree to help make it easier for people in the community to have access to health care by being a first line contact provider.
On a personal level, I have given consideration to the fact that it will be nice to think that my children will look at their mom in a slightly different way. I always strive to be a good role model for my children, and I think my working to become an FNP will provide a positive influence.
Challenges
Life is busy and making time to pursue a graduate degree will pose challenges to my time management skills. I have a husband I love and adore, seven children with a constant need for attention, and a full-time job. I plan to prioritize my work in a way that helps to cut down on stress as well, trying to focus and take one step at a time.
Duvall (2010) noted that, unfortunately, most of us are regularly confronted with a variety of important, but fairly tedious activities which take place in our environments that neither contain engaging content, nor support our plans and intentions. Furthermore, maintaining focused behavior under these all too common conditions can be difficult. I believe that in the circumstances where the little things seem like they are starting to pile up, it will be important to prioritize and also to cut out the things that are less important.
According to Tam and Spanjol (2012), “Facing impediments (such as perceived task difficulty) during the goal pursuit process is not always detrimental and can at times prove beneficial to goal attainment” (p. 97). This makes me think of my parents’ advice to "rise to the challenge” and “nothing worthwhile ever comes easy.” I am not planning to defeat myself. I will not let stress, the busyness of life and work, or time management failures become roadblocks in my journey to becoming an FNP. I'm up for the challenge and am starting this program with an attitude for success.

Milestones
Helping others, especially the disadvantaged, has always given me a great sense of personal satisfaction. I get to do this every day as a registered nurse in my work at Maricopa Medical Center. I plan to be deliberate in my actions over the coming days, months, and years until I realize my goal of becoming an FNP. My plan of action at this point is to take one day at a time, keep a positive attitude, and reach out to others as needed. In the short-term, I believe this will help me to manage stress as I become accustomed to life as a student again.
In looking at the schedule of classes for this program, certainly the completion of NRP 505 will be a milestone; signifying the beginning of a more clinically focused curriculum. Another milestone for me will be working in the clinical setting as our preceptorship commences. Putting our new educations to the test for me and my classmates will be truly satisfying. I look forward to these days, knowing I am nearing the end of the program, and at the beginning of my new professional career. Each completed assignment, and each completed class will be one step closer to the finish line. I definitely have feelings of satisfaction at the end of each job well done; even the small accomplishments are milestones that give me encouragement to keep focused and keep going to meet my ultimate goal.
Communication Strategies
Communication is dynamic, having many moving parts. It is also what I would consider one of my strengths. But like most things, there is always room for improvement. One aspect of communication that I would like to focus on is my listening skills. Guo (2009), states, “Listening is the key to communication, and it is the process of actively decoding and interpreting verbal messages. Being skilled at listening improves the communication process” (p. 13). I plan to work on being an active listener, and clarify any points to avoid misunderstandings.
I will also strive to maintain timely responses to my colleagues. I believe even just an acknowledgement of reading a text, email, or web based communication with some specific timeline for my response will become paramount. It will let the others in my team know my status, which will reduce stress on all involved.
Another strategy I plan to use to improve my communication is what I do, and can control on my end, including maintaining a positive tone, and awareness of my non-verbal communication. Eye contact, body language, attentiveness, as well as giving appropriate feedback to clarify myself, will all be crucial to help maintain effective communication with my faculty and fellow students.
Conclusion
I have embarked on the process of becoming a family nurse practitioner. This program and my success therein, if maintained as a priority in my life, will allow me to continue to help those in need at a higher level. It will be important to follow the path, recognize even the small accomplishments, and allow myself to feel rewarded along the way. As challenges arise in the journey, I will prioritize, maintain focus, cut out the small stuff and fine tune my time management skills. If all else fails and I hit a rut, I plan on my stubbornness kicking in. Keeping a positive attitude, professionalism at the highest level, and effective communication in place will be important tools in my ultimate success.

References
Duvall, J. D. (2010). Deliberate engagement as a strategy for promoting behavior change while enhancing well-being (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/docview/763599836?accountid=35812
Guo, K. L. (2009, Summer). Effective communication in health care: Strategies to improve communication skills for managers. The Business Review, Cambridge, 12(2), 8-17. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/docview/197300356?accountid=35812
Kumrow, D. E. (2007, March). Evidence-based strategies of graduate students to achieve success in a hybrid web-based course. Journal of Nursing Education, 46(3), 140-5. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/docview/203948659?accountid=35812
Tam, L., & Spanjol, J. (2012, March). When impediments make you jump rather than stumble: Regulatory nonfit, implementation intentions, and goal attainment. Marketing Letters, 23(1), 93-107. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/10.1007/s11002-011-9138-1