Maintaining career marketability as a professional nurse

As we rush around attending to the essentials of our lives (family, friends, clients, employers), what is left? Nursing Forum invites readers to engage in thoughts and activities that may awaken an untouched place. We hope these writings will kindle your personal involvement in something that was previously avoided--because of bias, fear, or uneasiness--in order to stretch your mind and spirit. The ability to be competitive in the shifting marketplace of professional nursing practice is dependent upon a nurse attaining the credentials or experiences being sought. Identifying those knowledges and skills and developing a working plan to achieve them is essential. The Career Development Work Plan presented here is the framework to help do that, and the accompanying Professional File Management system provides the mechanism to monitor and document achievements and abilities over time. This career development approach provides the foundation and preparation nurses will need when presenting themselves to the professional job market.