Nurses are known as life-savers and are more than three times the number of doctors in the healthcare industry. The difference between doctors and nurses is that while doctors usually specialize in one area, nurses can coordinate the care for all aspects of a patient’s overall health. This makes nurses always busy because they experience more workloads than ever. A traveling nurse even gets more stress. In recent years, there has been a higher demand for travel nurses worldwide as a result of population aging. A traveling nurse needs to learn to balance work and fun so that there is no overworking as well as negligence of nursing duties. Let us see how well to achieve this work-life balance.
Make good use of your free time.
Nurses are always very busy, so you tend to forget that you are supposed to be free of work during your free time. Most nurses keep working all through, especially for healthcare centers that do not respect free time. They could also use this time to do some quick chores or run errands. It is important to know that free time is for you to take part in your hobbies else it would feel like you are working all the time when you are supposed to be free of work. As a travel nurse, there are great opportunities to tour new places. You could even shop and get some footwear and clothes like a cute dress and practical boots. You could also increase your handbag collection by getting new ones. Using your free time to relax your body and ease yourself of all the stress you endured during your working hours is also a good way to utilize your free time.
Make bucket lists for every assignment.
Like I said earlier, traveling nurses have the opportunity to visit new places for every assignment they are to carry out. The journey doesn’t just happen without any planning. There is always some time to organize yourself and plan before moving out. As a traveling nurse, you can inquire about major tourist attractions in the new city before you set off. All the famous landmarks and local restaurants shouldn’t just be for your viewing pleasure. You should make up your mind to explore them. So, it is good to prepare a bucket list for each assignment so that you don’t miss out on any excitement. It will help you stay positive even during tough days simply because you know you have some fun to look forward to.
Choose assignments based on your needs.
Understanding your needs and choosing your assignments based on them can help you balance your work with fun as a traveling nurse. Everyone has their own idea and understanding of a work-life balance, and sometimes you will have to understand how that will work for you to live it. For example, it is possible that you work better at night or you do not mind it as well as working during the day. So, why not work with travel nurse agencies then to find night-shift assignments, thereby allowing you to make use of your day to have as much fun as you would want.
Create a schedule that you plan to stick to
As a traveling nurse, it is very possible to forget to have fun if you do not create a schedule that will guide you. A schedule is always very useful for organizing one’s time if you are willing to follow it anyways. Creating a schedule doesn’t take time. All you need is to find out when you will be at work and your free time. You can then decide how you will adjust your activities to help you enjoy your leisure time. With a schedule, you can set aside time for necessary errands and also for the fun activities from your bucket list. There could also be time set aside for exercises to ease out the stress that comes with a day packed full of activities. A schedule helps you to think about your time differently, using it to optimize balance in your daily activities.
Final word
Just like every other traveling employee wanting to balance work and fun, traveling nurses are not an exception. It is difficult to see how a nurse can find time to have fun while working, but it is achievable. The key to a nurse having a great time when traveling and working is planning. All the tips here are tuned in that direction; of course, we know that there are different stages to it. From creating a bucket list to preparing a schedule to utilize your time well, you can create the perfect work-life balance as a traveling nurse.
Our job board is a great place to search for your next travel nurse assignment. We have you covered with our housing page if housing is an issue. You can search for what you are looking for.
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