If you had told me years ago that I’d go from wearing scrubs on the hospital floor to running my own medical practice, I might’ve laughed and shrugged it off. Back then, I was just focused on getting through nursing school, showing up for my patients, and doing right by my family. But life has a way of pushing you toward your purpose. And for me, that purpose turned out to be much bigger than just treating patients—it was about building something of my own. Today, as the owner and medical director of a holistic healthcare practice, I wear a lot of hats, and none of them are scrubs.

The transition from healthcare worker to business owner wasn’t easy. But it was worth every late night, every learning curve, and every leap of faith. What I’ve come to realize is that the lessons I learned in medicine were the very foundation I needed to lead a business that doesn’t just run—but thrives.

People First, Always

The number one thing healthcare teaches you—whether you’re a nurse, a doctor, or a tech—is how to prioritize people. In a hospital or clinic, it’s your job to understand what someone needs, meet them where they are, and make sure they leave better than they came. That doesn’t change when you run a business. If anything, it becomes even more important.

I built my practice on the idea that care should be personal. That belief extends to how I treat my staff, how we handle patients, and how we shape our services. We’re not running an assembly line. We’re building relationships. My background in nursing trained me to listen closely, act with empathy, and stay calm under pressure—all skills that carry over directly into running a team and leading an organization.

Problem Solving Is Second Nature

In healthcare, you’re trained to expect the unexpected. One moment you’re helping a patient with routine vitals, and the next, you’re responding to an emergency. That kind of adaptability trains your brain to solve problems fast and with purpose. That same mindset has helped me every single day as a business owner.

When you run your own practice, there’s no shortage of challenges. There are insurance issues, staffing struggles, technology hiccups, and a hundred small fires to put out every week. But instead of getting overwhelmed, I’ve learned to ask the right questions: What’s the root of the issue? How do we fix it in a way that helps everyone? What’s the long-term solution, not just the quick band-aid?

Those are the same questions I asked at a patient’s bedside. Now I just ask them in the context of payroll, operations, and patient experience.

Leadership Is About Service

One of the biggest misconceptions about being a CEO is that it’s about control. But if healthcare taught me anything, it’s that real leadership is about service. When I was a nurse, I served patients. Now, as a business owner, I serve my team and my community.

That means being available. It means rolling up my sleeves when things get hard. It means not asking anyone to do something I wouldn’t do myself. I don’t sit in an ivory tower making decisions in a vacuum—I’m in the clinic, I’m in meetings, I’m on the phone with patients and vendors. Leadership isn’t about being above the work. It’s about staying rooted in it.

And more than that, it’s about vision. It’s about knowing why we’re here and making sure everyone on the team feels connected to that purpose. I want every member of my staff to know that what they do matters. That they’re seen. That they’re part of something meaningful.

The Heart Still Matters

One of the biggest surprises in becoming a CEO was realizing how much heart the job still requires. I thought I’d be spending most of my time on spreadsheets and strategy sessions. And while there’s definitely some of that, the truth is that business—especially in healthcare—is still about people.

I still sit with patients. I still hear hard stories. I still witness transformation. And I still feel the weight of trying to do right by every single person who walks through our doors. The difference now is that I have the ability to shape the environment they walk into. I can decide how we welcome them, how we treat them, and how we support them not just with medicine, but with respect and dignity.

That’s what being a CEO means to me. It’s not about profit margins. It’s about impact. It’s about having the freedom to lead in a way that reflects your values. I get to run a business that puts compassion at the center—and that, to me, is the best kind of success.

Looking Back and Looking Ahead

Sometimes, I think back to those early days—working overnight shifts, studying while raising a family, trying to make ends meet. I didn’t have a roadmap for how to get here. But I had determination, I had heart, and I had people who believed in me.

Now, when I meet young nurses or students thinking about their future, I tell them not to limit their vision. Just because you start in scrubs doesn’t mean you have to stay there. The skills you learn in healthcare—resilience, empathy, critical thinking, communication—are the same skills that build great businesses and even better leaders.

From the bedside to the boardroom, the journey has been wild, challenging, and full of purpose. And I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Because at the end of the day, running this practice isn’t just my job—it’s my mission. And I’m just getting started.