Our Enterprise beta is live! Apply here.
Learn More
As a nurse, you can make some great money doing things that you already do- except you shift your focus to making more income. Starting from within is the best way to create additional streams of revenue.
Nursing is an ever changing field with new skills being learned every day. By adding services or products that you are familiar with into your practice, you could earn extra cash.
There are many ways to begin offering such services to patients or members of the public. You may have knowledge in certain areas and want to go deeper, use those strengths to start creating business opportunities.
With technology moving at lightning speed, it is easy to produce content and share it across various platforms. If you are skilled in using social media, sharing tips and tricks, studying how to maximize profits online, this can bring in good income.
Overall, there are several ways to make passive income as a nurse.
A successful career in nursing requires you to be motivated by helping others, and there are many ways to do that. Starting your own business is one of the best ways to achieve this.
Running your own business gives you control over what you want to accomplish, and it can become very profitable if done right.
Since health care costs continue to rise, becoming an entrepreneur for yourself or as a nurse recruiter is like eating food while the world goes hungry. Your income will keep rising along with everything else!
Having a business degree or certification is great way to make sure you’re running a credible company, but being able to describe how to run a business from the ground up is even better. This is where having a business plan comes in handy.
You don’t have to be a professional writer to write a business plan, but you should be able to take some time to do so properly. Luckily, anyone can learn how to write a business plan quickly via free resources online.
As mentioned before, being an RN is a very lucrative career path. However, unless you are willing to put in some work to grow your nursing business, most people do not make much money off of it.
Fortunately for you, we have gathered several ways that can help you get started or improve your current business model. Whether you are looking to start a part time side income, increase revenue, or both, there are many ways to achieve this.
So what are these starting and improving your business strategies? Let’s look at them one by one!
Start with a niche
A niche is a specific area of expertise that someone already pays good money for. For example, how to bake the best chocolate chip cookies probably has lots of recipes, but none that seem too complicated or time consuming.
That is why so many people own only one recipe for their favorite cookie, because they know it works well and they charge enough to cover the cost of the ingredients.
By designing your nursing practice around a niche, you will learn the ins and outs of the field while still offering something unique and valuable.
For instance, if you are passionate about helping patients recover from bariatric surgery, then start giving tips and tricks for dieting after weight loss. Or maybe focus on common complications related to obesity such as heart disease.
Choosing your business location is an important first step in starting your career as a nurse. While there are many ways to make money serving others, choosing locations that have high demand for services will ensure you do not go without employment.
Finding out where most people need health care can give you some insight into which areas are growing. For example, if there’s a large amount of cancer patients around, then maybe being a oncology nurse makes sense!
And while it may be hard at times, thinking about which area of nursing would be best for you can help mitigate any nervousness or fear you might feel.
Your personal strengths could also mean more jobs than ones that require someone with less experience. A good way to know if this is the case is to ask yourself what you like doing and how you enjoy spending time, whether it’t's working or not.
Now that you have your feet wet, it is time to choose how to run your business! There are two main types of business structures nurses can use – sole proprietorships and professional corporations.
Sole proprietorship means there is only one owner/partner of the business. This individual owns and pays personal taxes for the business, but they usually don’t pay employment tax or payroll fees per employee.
A professional corporation has equal shares in the company which make up the shareholders. Each shareholder owes income tax on their share of the profits just like any other small businessperson, while also paying payroll costs per employee.
The easiest way to determine which type of business structure makes the most sense for you is by looking at what kind of benefits you get. Sole proprietors may enjoy lower initial investment cost, but will not be able to take advantage of employer-sponsored healthcare or retirement services like a professional corporation can.
As mentioned before, being an RN is a field that requires you to be trained in a variety of areas. Therefore, it is important to know how to run your own business. This includes registering your business with state and federal agencies as well as creating your online presence.
Running your own business means there’s no one else running yours for you! You get to choose what hours you work, who you hire, and what products or services you offer. It also gives you more flexibility than working under someone else.
There are many ways to register your business and the right way depends on what kind you want to launch. For example, if you want to create a website, then doing so through an agency may not be the best option. You can instead use a free platform like Google Sites or Microsoft Office 365 to easily edit and update yourself.
Just make sure to include all of your resources in this site, including job titles, degrees, certifications, and experience. Also remember to keep everything organized and clear.
As mentioned before, being a nurse is an incredible way to make extra money. However, before you can work as a professional nurse, you must be licensed or certified. Getting these credentials requires passing exams that are specific to your field of practice. You will have to prove that you know the basics of nursing along with taking certification tests for either direct patient care or education (residency) of future nurses.
There are many ways to begin studying for these examinations. Some schools offer formal courses while others rely more heavily on online resources and study guides. By investing in solid educational materials, you will ensure that your studies are well-rounded and efficient.
When it comes to earning additional income, efficiency is crucial. It may seem tedious at first, but I’ve seen people spend hours preparing for an exam and then barely making a fraction of what they could have. The expensive books and lessons out of pocket only result in not much return.
I recommend looking into free educational material such as YouTube videos, blogs, and reading articles.
Now that you have identified your area of expertise, what will people know you for? This is an important step in creating a career or lifestyle off of your skills!
If you are reading this article then you already know what field you want to enter into when it comes to nursing, but now you should choose a catchy business name to go along with it.
Your business name should be easy to remember and indicate what kind of services you offer. You do not need a degree in marketing to know that making a good first impression is very important!
Generalist terms such as “nurse” or “RN” may be used to describe your services, but they could also mean anything from being a house nurse to providing care at the ER. If yours is more targeted than just general health needs, consider adding the word “specialty” to make it sound less vague.
There are several ways to come up with your business name. Some say and do things quickly so they cannot think about it too much, while others take their time to make sure it fits well.
Whatever method works best for you, keep it short and simple! No one wants to spend hours brainstorming and redesigning something that does not fit his/her style.
Aftercare is an important part of any professional’s career. As we mentioned earlier, being a nurse means having close relationships with patients that can last years or even a lifetime.
That goes beyond just checking in every once a week for your next appointment, it includes supporting them after they get out.
This is where insurance comes into play. Hospitals and clinics usually have some kind of health coverage available to employees via their payroll provider or through the local hospital organization.
These plans typically include medical, dental, vision, and life insurance products. The cost of each individual plan varies widely depending on how much coverage you want, so do not worry about what price-point plan would be best until you check out all of them!
Most employers also offer group health benefits outside of the employee paychecks. These are often organized by department or profession to make obtaining care easy and seamless.
Talk to other nurses in your workplace to find the most appropriate options for you and your family.
