In November 2020, Dr. Beverly Malone, President and CEO of the National League for Nursing, received the Gail L. Warden Leadership Excellence Award from the National Center for Healthcare Leadership (NCHL). Applicants for this award come from a variety of disciplines and roles connected with health care. This award recognizes a person "whose commitment, values, and contributions embody the vision of the NCHL to improve the health of the public through leadership and organizational excellence." What an honor to be selected! Appearing below Bev's photo on the NCHL website (https://www.nchl.org/page?page=85) are the words: "Healthcare Leader / Accomplished Innovator / Nursing Champion." Those of us who know Bev would certainly concur.
In accepting the award at the NCHL virtual celebration, Bev focused on mentors and the difference they made in her life. She had some great mentors, including Dr. Hattie Bessent and Dr. Hildegarde Peplau, two of our nursing giants. She then focused on a different message: "To whom much is given, much is expected." If you were mentored by someone, you will likely understand from Bev's message that it is important to pay that effort forward by mentoring others.
Bev concluded her remarks as follows: "I never thought I could[horizontal ellipsis] but, I did not think I could not." Eloquent in her message, she repeated this phrase in relation to the positions she held, the elections she won, and the awards she received. In contrast, how many of us continue to say: "I did not think I could do it. I wasn't smart enough, wealthy enough, articulate enough, worthy enough"? Yes, the list goes on.
How many negative messages do we give ourselves in a typical day? And worse, how many negative messages do we give our students, colleagues, and clinical partners? Many of us did not have the experience of being mentored and may lack models for the role, but we do carry a licensure designation and are invested in nursing education. We all have opportunities to help future generations in their endeavors. That is part of how the nursing profession has been able to advance.
Let us think about how much more inspiring and effective we can be if we simply focus on the end of Bev's message: "I never thought I could not." Suppose we say, "I never thought you could not. I never thought we could not." We could even improve on that wording by saying, proactively, "I believe I can. I believe you can. I believe we can."
Words are a small part of the communication process, yet we all remember specific words that were said to us. Think of the power you have inspiring others to take risks when you say, "I believe you can." One of my students, who worked with me in her bachelor's, master's, and doctoral programs, gave me a plaque that says: "Because you believed in me, I believed in me." The word think appears nowhere on the plaque. This is not an intellectual process. Belief is about faith, and when one person conveys to another belief in that other person, it is hard to refute the message. The ability to believe in oneself - and others - is critical to humanity. I believe you value the power of Beverly Malone's words: "I never thought I could not." Please use those words to their greatest potential. I believe I can.