Dr. Farah Laurent, a trained nurse, nurse career coach, keynote speaker, and podcaster, talks about why nurses are moving into business and the many career options beyond bedside nursing. Farah shares her journey from Canada to New York City, including being discouraged from emergency nursing as a student, securing ER roles, working in the ER for 13 years, and later advancing into nursing education leadership (including roles as nurse educator, NYU clinical instructor, director of education, and associate dean). She explains that workplace politics, resistance to advocacy, and being laid off three times in five years pushed her toward entrepreneurship, which she defines as identifying market gaps and creating solutions. She describes building a nurse career coaching business to help nurses land specialty and six-figure roles, earning her doctorate while working full-time and raising young children, and becoming focused on business skills, personal branding, and visibility. Farah outlines business paths nurses pursue (coaching, consulting, education, speaking, private practices, telehealth, aesthetics/med spas, and IV hydration) and notes legal considerations in some models. She emphasizes business acumen, personal development, market research (including wait lists and being "oversubscribed," citing Daniel Priestley), and community through mentors and masterminds, recommending multiple mentors inside and outside nursing. Farah discusses self-publishing her 2023 book "Nurses Making Money Moves," launching the Nurses Making Money Moves Conference in under three months with attendees from 20 states, and announces the renamed Nurses Making Business Moves conference on March 6–7 in Tampa, Florida.

Timestamps:

00:00 Welcome to Chatting with the Experts

01:23 Farah's Origin Story: Proving She Belonged in the ER

03:57 From Canada to NYC: Growth, New Opportunities, Bigger Vision

04:40 What Nurse Entrepreneurship Really Means (and How Layoffs Sparked It)

07:57 Building the Brand: Doctorate, Business Skills & Transferable Nurse Strengths

11:19 Business Paths for Nurses: Coaching, Consulting, Private Practice & More

13:01 Market Research 101: Waitlists, Validation & Avoiding Costly Mistakes

18:37 Visibility & Trust: Personal Branding and the Nurses Making Business Moves Conference

20:13 Community & Mentorship: Finding the Right Support System

22:40 How to Connect + Final Announcements and Wrap-Up

Get In Touch:

If you're interested in connecting with Farah Laurent, you can reach her via her website(https://www.nursefarah.com/), via Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/nursefarahinc/), via Facebook(https://www.facebook.com/people/Farah-Laurent/pfbid0k5EurPMhhN88u6hZmmAdpkoS92uiWER7DmpqCnZ31xnbmrRHXPt2JYJ2VN7tpQSXl/), or via LinkedIn(http://linkedin.com/in/nursefarah). You can also book for her upcoming conference: https://www.nursesmakingbusinessmoves.com/home

You can get a copy of her book here: https://www.nursefarah.com/books

For those interested in sharing their own stories on "Chatting with the Experts," reach out to Paula Okonneh through her website at chattingwiththeexperts.com or connect via LinkedIn.

Why Nurses Are Becoming Entrepreneurs