According to Chinn and Kramer (2014), personal knowing is a process of Self-knowing that is conscious; it is developed deliberately to know fully who you are and to understand your actions and relationships. Personal knowing allows you to take past experiences and reflect on that to develop yourself into a better person to more adequately care for patients. Personal knowing is not just internal reflection of also how people perceive you through your actions. In order to develop personal knowing you can ask the questions “Do I do what I know?” and Do I know what I do?” This allows the person to recognize and hold themselves accountable for providing the best, unbiased care.
A professional strength that I possess would be that I have a great attention to detail when it comes to patient care and my job. When it come to patient assessment, I can quickly notice a change in condition or behavior. I pay attention to a patient’s appearance such as grooming, edema to extremities, or gait. My co-workers always say, “Jen doesn’t miss anything!” My second professional strength is that I strive to be the best at what I am doing. I want to go the extra mile to do what is right for the patient and the people I work with. I do not want to be told twice or reminded on how to do something. When I work in the recovery room, I know what the doctor’s preferences are in caring for the patient.
My first weakness and biggest downfall is that I am critical. I put a lot of pressure on myself and other people to do things correctly. This is something that I continuously must check myself on. Just because it isn’t my way doesn’t mean that it isn’t being done correctly. I have found that through my work and personal experience that if you are constantly picking at someone, they may just give up! My second weakness is that I am not very confident. When I feel insecure and unsure about myself or my skills, I try to talk myself out of it. I clam up in uncomfortable situations.
Benner’s model of skill acquisition theory helps to improve my confidence and attention to detail. My base knowledge and experience help to provide me with the confidence boost that I need. According to McEwen and Wills (2014), expertise develops when the clinician tests and refines propositions, hypotheses, and principle-based expectations in actual practice situations. I know that in my current position, I am an expert. This makes me feel comfortable that I am making the right decisions for my patients. This can also apply to my weakness of criticism. A novice nurse may not seek advice from me if I am constantly critical of them and their work.
Chin, P. & Kramer, M. (2014) Integrated Theory and Knowledge Development in Nursing: Theory and Process. (9th Ed.); Elsevier.
McEwen, M. & Wills, E. (2014). Theoretical Basis for Nursing (4th Ed.); Lipincott Williams and Wilkins ISBN 9781451190311
