• Divorce your husband. If you choose not to divorce him, realize that he will probably divorce you before your finished with Nursing School.
• Give custody of your children to your parents or another responsible adult. If you think you’ll have time for Nursing School and KIDS….think again.
• Acclimate yourself to sleeping only 2-4 hours a day. Between the reading assignments, the studying for exams, clinical, and two to three part-time jobs…this is all the sleep you’re going to get. If you did not follow steps 1 and 2 then plan on 1-3 hours of sleep.
• Take a seminar on self-esteem. If anything can break a persons self-esteem its nursing instructors.
• Prepare for failure.
• Get two SOLID years of experience in your specialty before you even consider travel nursing.  Your going to be thrown to the wolves when you arrive in a new hospital because “your making the big bucks” so everyone thinks you should work harder to “earn your pay”.
• Work as a car salesman for at least a year to get your haggling/negotiating skills in check; you’re going to need them when dealing with all the recruiters and different companies out there.
• Buy a good pair of shoes.  This isn’t just for Travel Nurses, but nurses everywhere.
• Gather a good amount of emergency cash in your savings account. There WILL be issues with pay or banking or cancelled contracts.
• Go with an open mind and an adventurous spirit and enjoy your surroundings.
• Put your fears aside and take the leap.
• When things get hard, remember:  IT’s only 13 Weeks!!

Article By: thegypsynurse.com