Title: The Path I Didn’t Plan—and the Rest I Didn’t Know I Needed

Last year, I graduated with my doctoral degree, a significant accomplishment in the field of nursing and one I never truly intended to pursue.

Not because it was too difficult, but because, for a long time, I didn’t see the need.

At the time, I was serving in a Dean’s role and had a clear plan for what came next. When I eventually stepped away, I envisioned transitioning into online teaching or consulting, a natural progression that would allow me to leverage my experience while slowing the pace of my career.

But as I began reviewing job postings, I noticed something that gave me pause.

The minimum qualification for teaching nursing online at most colleges and universities had shifted. A master’s degree, once sufficient, was no longer enough. The expectation was clear: a doctorate, either a Ph.D. or a DNP, had become the standard.

That realization landed heavily.

My Master’s in Nursing Leadership, which I earned in 2014, had served me well. But it was no longer the key that would open the next door. And if I wanted the flexibility to teach, consult, and eventually step away from full-time leadership without limiting my options, I had a decision to make.

So I made it.

I went back to school.

But to really understand that decision, I have to take a step back.

While I was still working in the acute care setting as an educator, I had the opportunity to grow in ways I hadn’t initially anticipated. Not only did I pivot into specialty areas, first informatics and then simulation, but I also stepped fully into nursing leadership.

I was promoted into a Director of Education role within a Native American healthcare system. From there, I returned to my previous healthcare organization, where I served as Director of Education for Acute Care Informatics and later as Director of Simulation.

These roles stretched me professionally and expanded how I thought about impact in nursing. For a time, I believed I had found a sustainable path forward, one that blended leadership, education, and innovation without relying solely on the physical demands of bedside care.

At that point, a doctorate wasn’t even on my radar.

If anything, my plan was different. I intended to pursue a post-master’s certificate as a Family Nurse Practitioner; that felt like the logical next step.

While working as a clinical instructor, a turn of events unfolded that I can only describe as something orchestrated by God, in His infinite wisdom and perhaps a bit of humor.

A newly hired Dean of the school I was working at came across my résumé while reviewing the faculty credentials. At the same time, the program had a need for a full-time Simulation and Skills Manager.

I hadn’t been looking for leadership. In fact, I had intentionally kept that part of my background quiet. My focus was on teaching and completing my post masters nurse practitioner program.

But suddenly, an opportunity was placed directly in front of me.

And I accepted it.

Because my NP program was hybrid, I was able to make both work for a time. I balanced my role as Simulation and Skills Manager while continuing in the nurse practitioner certificate program. When it came time to complete my precepted clinicals, it became more challenging, but through the support of leadership, I managed to continue doing both.

Until I couldn’t.

That’s when the fork in the road appeared.

About halfway through my program, the Assistant Dean abruptly resigned. I was asked to step into that role while still maintaining oversight of simulation.

It was a significant opportunity.

But it came with a decision.

Do I step fully into this leadership role? Or do I stay the course and continue pursuing my nurse practitioner certificate?

Around that same time, something else became clear.

The nurse practitioner role was not what I thought it would be for me.

I was doing well academically, but something felt off. When I paused and reflected, I realized that my strengths had not grown most in direct patient care as a provider, they had grown in leadership.

In building programs. In guiding teams. In shaping outcomes at a systems level.

There were also practical realities. Financially, stepping into a new FNP role would have meant taking a step backward compared to where I was in nursing leadership. And beyond that, there was the weight of responsibility, the risk, the liability, and the possibility of causing harm.

So I made the decision.

I withdrew from the program.

And I felt immediate relief.

With that clarity, I stepped fully into my role as Assistant Dean. I worked closely with the Dean, who shared that I was part of her succession planning. That trust pushed me to think more intentionally about my future.

I changed my program of study and transitioned into a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) with a focus on Academic Leadership.

This time, it felt aligned.

Despite working full-time, navigating COVID, menopause symptoms, with chronic sleep disruption and experiencing the loss of my older brother and several close family members, I persisted.

And I did more than persist, I excelled.

The culmination of all of that hard work is this:

I completed my doctoral degree.

And in doing so, I came to understand something I couldn’t fully see before.

All of those seemingly circuitous paths, the pivots, the shifts, the unexpected turns, were preparing me. Each role added something: leadership experience, clinical insight, strategic planning, operational understanding, and perspective.

All of it matters now.

Because now, I find myself in a position to pivot once more, but this time with intention.

Not into roles that demand more physically, but into roles that draw from the depth of what I have already built.

I want to consult.I want to teach remotely.I want to pour into nurses pursuing advanced degrees.

That is where I believe I can make the greatest impact.

And maybe more importantly, that is where I feel aligned.

Because this is no longer just about career progression, it is about purpose.

And yet, even with all of that clarity, there was still one thing I had not quite figured out how to do.

Step away.