Nurse practitioners (NPs) should develop the best leadership competencies in order to achieve their potential. They should also formulate powerful leadership growth models and revisit their skills periodically. This discussion describes the importance of leadership skills in nursing. My personal weaknesses and strengths in these content areas are also discussed: professional and personal accountability, career planning, personal journey disciplines, and reflective practice (tenets or behaviors). The paper goes further to describe my current leadership skill set and ability to advocate for change.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Personal and Professional Accountability
I strongly believe that I am accountable. I engage in the best practices and behaviors to achieve my goals. I manage time properly and use powerful models to meet the needs of my patients. I liaise with different supervisors to empower my patients. I am also a professional who is aware of every obligation. I focus on existing codes of conduct, professional guidelines, and ethical procedures. I interact with my colleagues in a professional manner. I complete every task in accordance with my scope of practice. The only weakness is that I have not matched my professional and personal goals with my nursing philosophy.
Career Planning
I have always been outlining and planning my career goals. I use a powerful strategic plan to identify my future and current goals. I also analyze and address the gaps affecting my goals. I also identify the changes in the field of nursing in order to support my future goals. I focus on emerging concepts, ideas, and attributes that can support my aims. I have no weakness in this content area.
Personal Journey Disciplines
As a practitioner, I have completed different courses and disciplines in an attempt to improve my competencies. My current educational background has equipped me with adequate skills. I have completed a number of competencies to improve my care delivery models. However, I am yet to consider different theories that can support my roles as a nurse leader (NL).
Reflective Practices: Behaviors/Tenets
I engage in personal reflection to identify new ideas and concepts that can make me successful. I am also planning to become a competent NL. I always analyze and identify new approaches to improve my leadership skills. I also engage in lifelong learning to identify emerging concepts and administrative ideas that can support my future objectives. However, I have not embraced various attributes such as self-awareness and the power of multidisciplinary teams.
Advocating for Change
My leadership competencies such as problem-solving, time management, empowerment, critical thinking, and decision-making can be used to engage others. I always encourage my followers to work as teams, act responsibly, and support every targeted objective. That being the case, I can use these attributes to advocate for change in my unit. The targeted change is ensuring that my workmates are able to work as a team. This concept makes it easier for nurses to improve their skills and achieve their aims (Harris, 2016).
I will go a step further to encourage my followers to embrace the power of collaboration. Consequently, the workers will be able to offer personalized care, attract more professionals, and embrace the power of emerging health technologies. The nature of communication will also improve in the department. My leadership attributes will be applied in such a way that the targeted followers acquire new ideas that can support their career aims. The individuals will also be empowered to embrace the power of lifelong learning (Harris, 2016). These changes will ensure the needs of many patients are met.
My Leadership Growth: Implementation Strategy
Marquis and Huston (2015) indicate that practitioners should complete evidence-based researches in an attempt to develop superior nursing models. My personal objective is to widen my leadership competencies in the field of nursing. This achievement will make it possible for me to support more followers and patients. The goal will also guide me to improve my philosophy of leadership in nursing practice.
Three stages will be used to achieve this goal. The first stage is personal development. During the stage, I will engage in lifelong learning and complete various courses in leadership. I will also undertake numerous researches to develop superior evidence-based concepts. The second stage is implementation. During the phase, I will use the acquired concepts in my workplace to empower my followers. Journal entries will be made to identify specific areas that should be improved. The third stage is self-reflection. This process will make it easier for me to improve my skills, empower others, and redesign my nursing philosophy. I will also interact with different leaders in the healthcare sector. Every insight gained from my followers and patients will be considered to improve my leadership model.
Conclusion
This discussion indicates that I possess adequate leadership skills that can support my goals as a practitioner. However, some weaknesses such as inability to merge different nursing theories with my leadership model affect my effectiveness. I will, therefore, engage in lifelong learning, acquire new concepts, and interact with different professionals in order to improve my leadership philosophy. These improvements will support the needs of my patients and make me a successful nurse practitioner.
References
Harris, A. (2016). Nursing to achieve organizational performance: Consider the role of nursing intellectual capital. Healthcare Management Forum, 29(3), 1-13. Web.
Marquis, B. L., & Huston, C. J. (2015). Leadership roles and management functions in nursing: Theory and application (8th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.