Shakira Lynn, Careers After CON

CON alumna Shakira Lynn DNP, APRN, FNP-C embodies the definition of a growth mindset. Throughout her journey as a nurse practitioner, military officer, educator, mentor, writer, mission worker, and entrepreneur, she has sought to develop her gifts to fulfill her declared purpose in life: to care for others.

She recently shared the inspirations at the heart of her career progression and how MUSC’s College of Nursing helped her grow.

Current position:

I’m currently working as a nurse practitioner at a college student health center. I provide quality care to both undergraduate and graduate students matriculating at the university. I feel that this work is meaningful as I’m not only helping to manage the students’ care, but I’m also assisting them in navigating life after high school. Working with college students holds a unique place in my heart because during college is when I began to realize what my passion was in life and which career path I would pursue. Children will often say what they want to be when they grow up. I didn’t always say I wanted to be a nurse. I remember wanting to be a teacher as well. I’ve been blessed to pursue both teaching and nursing in my professional and personal life.

I began writing when I was in middle school. I wrote several poems for leisure which discussed the beauty of friendship and loyalty. I wrote about several topics that were of interest to me at the time. When I was in school, it was common for children to write letters to each other which was extremely fun for me at that age. I began traveling on mission trips throughout the world in 2013. My first few trips were to Olancho, Honduras, where I worked alongside other health care students to provide care to patients from disadvantaged backgrounds. It was during these trips that I was charged with the task to begin journaling as an assignment for class. I didn’t want to complete the assignment at first; I just wanted to provide care and enjoy the trip. I had no idea how this assignment would shape my career as an author. I decided to publish my first book about my world travels in 2019. My book ‘Follow my Journey’ became popular amongst my family and friends as it gave them a glimpse into the passionate care I had provided throughout the world. I have since published the sequel to this book, “Follow my Journey: Volume 2,” and “If you Give a Girl a Passport.” Writing has truly become an amazing outlet for me to express myself.

I founded my non-profit organization, Essentially Elegant, Inc. in 2014 to empower young women to create social change. The organization seeks to improve the lives of these young women while teaching them etiquette, study skills, entrepreneurship and financial readiness. In addition to mentoring girls in Georgia, I was invited to teach a business ownership course to a group of girls in Tanzania, Africa. These girls were taught the importance of balancing work and college with the intention of gaining sustainable income to support their families.

What inspired you to pursue career opportunities in philanthropy and entrepreneurship?

I’ve never believed in coincidence, luck or that the stars have been aligned for certain situations. I believe in divine intervention—that things work according to the will of God. I’m confident that my purpose in life is to care for others. I wanted to participate in mission trips so that I could serve those in need. I know that I’ve been blessed with this gift; God trusted me with the ability to be a health care provider. I have never taken lightly my mission in life—I feel called to deliver the promises that God has made me aware of. He has shown me that if I give selflessly, He will continue to bless me abundantly. I’m humbled to be able to provide care to others. I also enjoy sharing my story;the things that I’ve overcome have given me the ability to remain faithful to God and believe in His promises.

In regard to entrepreneurship, I wanted to be the person I needed growing up. I wanted to motivate young girls all over the world to go into business ownership to support their families. I wanted to create an environment where I could chase my desire to make changes in my community. Most entrepreneurs question the status quo and wonder if there might be a better way to do things. After doing research in my hometown, I realized that very few organizations were available to motivate young women to become business owners and influencers. I feel that I was charged with that task.

Why has the mentorship of girls become an important cause to you? How does it inspire and motivate your work?

Mentoring girls is an important cause to me because it allows me to encourage and enable these girls to become successful in their own lives. Mentorship serves as a source of knowledge. I’m able to share the life lessons I have learned in hopes that they will positively influence the decisions of the girls whom I mentor. Being a mentor inspires and motivates me because it forces me to maintain accountability for the girls I mentor. It helps me to stay focused on my own personal and professional goals, giving me the motivation I need to stay focused. As a mentor, I have become a trusted ally to these young girls by communicating with them and being honest with them about navigating life’s decisions. I have been consistent on keeping my promises to them which helps to establish trust in our relationships.

What do you enjoy most about writing, and how do you balance it with your work as a Nurse Practitioner?

I enjoy writing because it allows me to express my own thoughts and opinions of different situations in life. I can reflect on my life experiences and how I encountered them with both confidence and fear. Writing allows me to be vulnerable and share my story, but most importantly it allows me to share my story without interruption. Being able to write allows me to be creative and touch others with my words. I enjoy sharing my testimony with others and allowing them to have a glimpse into my life. I love writing because it allows me to reach other people outside of my own social network and throughout the world.

In my most recent book, ‘If You Give a Girl a Passport,’ I wrote about a young African American girl traveling through the world. The main character in my book, named Journi after a close friend of mine, is seen on adventures to every continent in the world. We often find ourselves trying to explain our travel adventures using stories from photographs to recall the memories. Sharing our travel experiences not only inspires creativity but it also sparks the imagination in others and how they view the world. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the book encouraged children to use their imaginations to go on a worldwide adventure. Most importantly, writing this book helped me to show representation of young African American children in story because representation truly matters.

Tell us more about your career as a commissioned officer in the United States Army Nurse Corps. How did the experience influence your subsequent career choices?

While in the United States Army Nurse Corps I worked as Army Medical Center and School Staff Officer. I was an assistant to various Army Nurse Corps leadership officers, supporting leadership courses for Officers entering into the Army as Registered Nurses and Nurse Practitioners. I helped these Officers to navigate the start of their Army nursing career by helping them to connect to military treatment facilities all over the world. I coordinated field training exercises and assigned roles with responsibilities for mass casualty training for officers.

My experience as an Army Nurse Corps Officer influenced my subsequent career choices because the leadership experience I gained propelled me into several other influential positions. My leadership skills helped me to work alongside other healthcare professionals to provide quality care to patients. I learned the importance of influencing people by providing purpose and motivation while in the Army. This experience has proven beneficial as I continue to navigate my professional careers.

Fun Fact about your career path:

I wasn’t always confident that I would finish nursing school and become a nurse. I once fell asleep during a review session after my hospital clinical rotation. My clinical instructor told me that nursing was more than being cute and wearing scrubs. She said I would need to always be alert and attentive. At the time, I was working as a patient care tech on night shift then going to clinical rotations in the morning. I was overwhelmed.

How did CON’s DNP Program prepare you for your professional pursuits?

MUSCs CON DNP program prepared me to meet my professional pursuits by encouraging me to become an influencer in patient care outcomes and practice evidence-based interventions. Throughout the program, I was taught to be diligent in my pursuit of providing excellent patient-centered care. As I prepare for a future leadership position at the executive level in health care I will build on the knowledge I gained from MUSCs CON DNP program which helped shape me into the competent clinician I am today. Obtaining my DNP allowed me the opportunity to provide expertise in clinical practice by earning the terminal nursing degree. The curriculum followed in the program equipped me with research knowledge and resources needed to specialize in clinical practice as a nurse practitioner. The knowledge I gained also positioned me for obtaining job positions outside of the hospital setting, allowing me to work in different organizations based on my individual expertise.

How did CON help you grow as a nurse practitioner?

The CON helped me grow in tremendous ways as a nurse practitioner. At an individual level, I was prepared to provide quality care to patients throughout the lifespan. At a population level, I learned to develop and maintain influential interventions aimed at improving community health. At a global level, I learned the impact of global health issues on patient care. The values instilled within me from MUSCs CON DNP program will carry me throughout my professional career. I grew as a nurse practitioner by expanding my reach to provide care to patients throughout the world.

During my studies at MUSC CON, I conducted a research project titled “Open Access Scheduling: Improving Access to Rural Healthcare,” which was published in the Journal of Nursing Education and Practice in 2015. My work helped to develop a scheduling model that decreased the rate of no-shows and missed appointments at a rural clinic in Clinton, South Carolina. During my career as a nurse practitioner, I have worked at a Federally Qualified Health Center in South Carolina where I provided coordinated and comprehensive care for patients throughout the lifespan. I have also worked on a mobile bus providing care for the homeless living in shelters across the upstate of South Carolina. I was recognized as ‘Clinician of the Year’ in 2017 for services rendered to these homeless populations. My influence is now worldwide because of the knowledge obtained at MUSC CON. During worldwide mission trips, I have provided healthcare to underserved populations who would otherwise be without medical care.

— Shakira Lynn