Editor's Note: This article is the first in a series spotlighting and supporting various nurse entrepreneurs and their businesses. In partnership with adni, products from each nurse business will be featured in our Nurse 365 monthly giveaways — enter to win here!
Nurseology began as a conversation between a few nurse friends during dinner on a day off.
We were brainstorming ways to make some extra money and started with the idea of creating diagnosis-specific educational guides for nurses. But we quickly pivoted to another idea born out of necessity.
Something less clinical and more whimsical.
Around this time, our hospital had introduced stricter uniform requirements, which inspired us to design fun, clever socks and badges that both complied with the new dress code and added a touch of personality and humor.
And so, Nurseology proudly launched in 2016. We were careful to take things slowly to balance brainstorming for our fledgling business with working full time as bedside nurses. We scheduled meetings on our days off to strategize new designs and expand our customer base.
New badge and sock ideas would come from our own experiences as bedside nurses or suggestions from other nurses and still do. Early on, we knew that being active nurses gave us the opportunity to share a nurse’s rather particular sense of humor with other practicing nurses who get it.
When it comes to certain designs and the humor behind each one, if you know, you know! And that’s something that nurses really appreciate. Who but nurses and other healthcare workers could create and appreciate things like our socks that say, “At your cervix” or “Urine good hands”?
How we got here
Over the past eight years, our approach has been guided by a passion for experimentation and growth. We're always considering different strategies to help achieve our goals. And when a particular approach doesn’t work out like we’d hoped, we refocus our efforts and try something new.
In the growing community of nurse entrepreneurs, we’ve discovered that networking and collaboration can get you closer to the finish line. Many of us come from clinical backgrounds, rather than business, so we’re all navigating this new territory together.
We’ve been fortunate enough to meet many incredible, gracious people who were willing to share their ideas and strategies, and we make it a point to pay it forward by supporting and guiding others who are out there trying something new.
Typically, we network with other nurse entrepreneurs by exchanging ideas and things that have worked for us along the way. We’ve even collaborated with a few other brands on social media where we share or feature their products, and they do the same for us.
Recommendations for success
For future nurse entrepreneurs, our advice is to — start small to avoid becoming overwhelmed. This mentality is rooted in our nursing backgrounds, where each day begins with a flurry of activity but ultimately unfolds as a series of tasks on a to-do list.
By staying organized and diligently working through each issue, we navigate the chaos and achieve our goals as nurses. And we bring this same approach to Nurseology.
As long as you stay organized and persistent, you can achieve amazing things!
We’ll continue to expand our growing product lines of socks, badges, and compression socks while working hard to extend the reach of our brand. We want to get in front of as many healthcare workers as possible because we’re confident that when they see it, they’ll love it!
