Episode 6: Building a Nurse Community

This transcript was generated automatically. Its accuracy may vary.

Cara Lunsford

Oh, hey, nurses. Welcome to the Nurse Doc podcast, giving nurses validation resources and hope.

Cat Golden

One episode at a time. Oh, today on Nurse Dot podcast.

I set out originally to give people a safe place to be themselves. I have always tried to do that because I wanted to be myself. And so by me kind of going first and being my true self, it allowed other people to be themselves. In nursing, there wasn't a lot of place to be yourself.

Joining us today, Kat.

Cara Lunsford

Golden, a registered nurse and founder of the wildly successful brand Nurses Inspire Nurses. Kat's whole focus is on helping nurses to feel appreciated and supported through community cool merch and awesome events.

Cat Golden

I'm your host, Kara Lunsford, registered nurse and VP of Community at Nurse Ecom. Oh.

Cara Lunsford

How are you? Kat Golden.

Cat Golden

Then just running around, acting crazy.

Cara Lunsford

Running around, acting crazy just like the rest of us. You look amazing. I love the little hoodie. I love the nurses. Inspire nurses. Hey, Which I don't have a hoodie, I. I have a sweatshirt, but I don't have a hoodie, which means that I'm going to need to get one of those. So let's kick this thing off. Golden day for nurses.

Inspire nurses. Okay. We are talking about on this podcast episode today specifically is building a nurse community, which you have been massively successful at. I will also say that you have created an incredible brand in and of itself. I just wanted to take a second. Have you tell the listeners how this started for you to create the brand, how you then kind of branched in and how that became a community of nurses so that they just know your history a little bit?

Cat Golden

Yeah, I don't think I ever set out to create a community. I set out originally, I think to give people a safe place to be themselves. I think I have always tried to do that and because I wanted to be myself and so by me kind of going first and being my true self, it allowed other people to be themselves too.

It just so happened I was working as a nurse, so I think it was just organic and I never intended to start a business or anything. Yeah, it just happened and I think nursing in nursing, there wasn't a lot of place to be yourself, to have an opinion, to do things differently. It was just kind of, you know, this is this is the way it is.

And that's just really my personality. And I was like, Well, I think it's time to do something different. And everyone else was like, Yeah, once I once I kind of started talking about it, it was like the floodgates opened and everyone was like, Yeah, we feel this way too. And I was like, Okay. I mean, now it's so different than it was five years ago, you know?

Cara Lunsford

How is it different? How do you feel like it was different? I mean, I have my own opinions as well about how it was different, but how do you see it being different?

Cat Golden

When I started and I n I didn't even know there were nurse influencers out there. I didn't see like people talking as much about self-care, about being humans, about I don't really feel like people were felt comfortable saying, Hey, we're not okay. You know, five years ago.

Cara Lunsford

I'm not sure that we knew we weren't okay five years ago. That whole slow boil thing. Yeah, we've been really slow boiled. And so I completely agree with you. Like five years ago and beyond that, we weren't entirely sure that we were drowning. Mm hmm. And it takes people like you to say, Hey, I'm not okay. And then suddenly it opens the door for people to go, You know what?

I'm not okay either.

Cat Golden

Mm hmm. Yeah, exactly.

Cara Lunsford

And I think that's exactly what you inspired. You know, like, when the name nurses inspire nurses like you inspired people to speak candidly.

Cat Golden

Mm hmm. Yeah.

Cara Lunsford

Which is amazing. So, thank you for that. I've been a nurse for 16 years. How long have you been a nurse?

Cat Golden

I'm a second degree, so I've only been a nurse for ten years now. I guess it's been ten years.

Cara Lunsford

Only a decade. Well, jeeze. Only in dog years. That is 80. So, I mean, I would say just going back over the course of my own time as a nurse that I don't know about you. I don't know how you feel about this, but suddenly during the pandemic and now after, suddenly everyone is like paying attention to nurses and in 2017, which was when I started Holly Blue, nobody cared about nurses.

Even when I was trying to get investment, people were like, No. Like, they weren't interested. Lot of people were not interested. I'm like, No, this is important. Like, you should be investing in this. Like, this isn't. We have to do this. And you know, there was a struggle there, like to get people to see the value. And now suddenly, like everybody's building a community, which also feels very self-serving in a lot of ways, like we're this kind of company, but we also have a community.

And so I think, like what you did in my mind, why you've been so successful is because exactly what you said, you didn't do it because you were trying to create a business. You did it because you felt the need and people were saying, We want this, we need this. We. So you started it. It was organic. Mm hmm.

How do you feel about it when when you see other things kind of popping up now, how does that make you feel?

Cat Golden

Yeah, like, I don't really care, because I never thought nine was about me. Like, I just thought it was something I've always felt this way. Like, as much as. Like, I love my own company. I'm also very unattached to it. Like, this was never about me. It was something that I needed to get out into the world. And when the time is done, it will be done.

And I don't know what else to say. Like, I just have like a very different, I think, mentality in, you know, over the years so many people will try to copy us or do different things. And I literally don't care who comes out. I'm just like, Nobody's me, Nobody has my ideas. And that's great. There's literally, like so many nurses that are still not supported.

So I look at like the health and wellness industry. How many health influencers are there? Gyms, all these things like people are still unhealthy, you know what I mean? I think like there's so much out there abundance for everyone. And I'm just I literally am. So I really don't pay attention to what other people are doing or what is happening.

Like for as active as I am on social media, it is not to consume and I don't know. I don't really pay attention because I honestly don't care.

Cara Lunsford

You and I are a lot of like in this way when I had Holly Blue, I always, always had my head down. I've never been a big consumer of social. I kind of did it. I had to learn it literally. My friend Katie Viegas, who she ran the Empowered Birth project, which has like half a million people following her.

And it was an incredible platform on Instagram. She came over one day and she was like, I need to give you Instagram one on one because you don't know what you're doing. It's like, what a good friend. She was a good friend. She's like, I might come over, make it a day, have some wine, and I'm going to teach you about Instagram.

I felt like an old person. I'm like you. I don't really care what other people are doing. And I think the success that I have had has been because and you said exactly the same thing that I've said several times, No one can be me. No one can have my ideas. No one can have the same team. You could rip off the name and the the app or anything.

Right. But no one can be you. Mm. Which is why I think that you have built this incredible community, whether you intended to or not. You built an incredible community because of the authenticity. Because zero FS to give you a really nice way. No, it is in the nicest way. And Katie says the same thing. Yeah.

Cat Golden

No one would ever say that I'm rude.

Cara Lunsford

No, I think it carries with it a certain confidence. But that's the thing, is that, you know, you just ride your own ride and people gravitate to that authenticity. I want more of that in my life. So talk to me about your book, because I just first of all, I love that you brought your book club into back home, which is amazing.

Thank you so much for doing that, because it is a kick ass book club.

Cat Golden

Yeah, it's kind of funny because like, when I graduated nursing school, I started my own book club, like in person. When I lived in Colorado and actually still meeting to this day, which I find really funny. And it was the same thing, like I was just a connector and I just saw my friend Nicole and she's like, Yeah, you know, Angela like this girl, just a flow nurse.

I'm like, Hey, join our book club. Like, don't even know what? Like, I was just bringing in everybody to our book club, but I'm like, Dude, because I think it's like weird when we get older sometimes to, like, make friends or like, you're adults and, like, everything is so serious. I don't know. I've always kind of like reading as a way to, like, escape or like, honestly hold my mind.

I don't know. Our book club is just fun. Like, yeah, we read books, but like, we just talk about things and like, connect and we're all nurses, so we all understand and it's like the core of everything we do. It's nothing medical, it's just like human and fine and being yourself anyway. Esforco And yeah, it's great. We've been meeting for over a year and I don't know, we just have the best group and yeah, it's just, it's just literally fun and just the place to be yourself.

Cara Lunsford

One of the things that I see about you all the time over it and I'm like, Cat Golden is the best party planner on the planet. She's the best nurse, party planner ever. Can we just hire her as a party planner available? I love it because personally speaking, I only throw one big party a year, just personally, not nurse related, but this is like the only big party and we do it big.

I mean, we go big. We have live music. We have a lifeguard for the pool. This year we got a bartender because last year I was bartending and well, that's that's not always great because I'm a heavy pour, so people just going to get wasted. Lots of tequila, a little bit of mixer, but it takes all my energy, all year long.

I got to save up for this one party. But you how many events have you done? Just even working with nurse dot com Like we've had this great partnership for how many months? I don't know. Now.

Cat Golden

Yeah. It'll be maybe a year this summer or fall. But I think since I've started and, and I think we've done over 100, I counted at one point.

Cara Lunsford

Nobody can do it like you do it. I'm telling you, I watch you. And I was like, Just hire her. Just there's just just ease.

Cat Golden

For your party.

Cara Lunsford

But I'm telling you, I'm going to I'm going I'm going to fly you in for our Tequila party that we have right around the beginning of May help me. And then we have to, like, throw one for nurses. So you're the massive event person. But let's talk a little bit about you've done a bit of a shift, which I really appreciate, and I think you are spot on.

You're always like a little ahead of the curve, which I think is impressive. The whole like human, human first.

Cat Golden

Yeah, I mean, we've said that since day one, so it's not really new, but we just have put more of a focus on it. I mean, I've actually been saying that since day one, like when I would talk to anyone or any of our partners, like, I'm like, we don't do anything medical. We literally don't we don't provide education unless it's related to like, human things.

Yeah, we've just always said that since day one because again, I think it goes back to like our core values. And I didn't feel like nursing allowed me to be human. And I think that's crazy. Like we're taking care of humans, we're humans. And it just didn't make sense to me.

Cara Lunsford

Do you have a mission statement as nurses inspires? And I'm sorry if I don't know this, but what is your mission statement? Tell me.

Cat Golden

We hope nurses focus on themselves, shake up their day to day life as a nurse and have fun.

Cara Lunsford

That's perfect.

Cat Golden

Yeah. And then our three core values are we believe in growth, in learning, We believe in showing up for ourselves and each other. And we believe in fun. Everything we do is fun.

Cara Lunsford

I mean, who doesn't want to be a part of that?

Cat Golden

Yeah, it's because nursing is so scary. It's like life is too serious. It's like, I don't know, like I think we get so deep in and it's like, what are we doing if we're not ever, like, having fun? Like, what's the point that you can do anything to make money? Do you know what I mean? At the end of the day, like, this is our job.

Yeah. I own this company. For what? Like, yes, I'm passionate about it and I love helping people. I would literally do it for free, which I also do. But I'm like, at the end of the day, like, if this isn't fun, what are we doing? Literally, what are we doing?

Cara Lunsford

Yeah, I actually I love that you just said that about doing it for free. I will say that I get more enjoyment most of the time when I do like pro-bono types of stuff. I went to Haiti and you know, the best part about going to Haiti was that I don't even think I charted. And I honestly it's crazy to think about it, but I was like, I was thinking back and I was like, Did we have a chart?

Was there any charting? I don't think there was. We might have written down a couple of things, but it was literally just care for the patient. Mm hmm. Yeah. Communication. Yeah. Communication. Caring, passing that information on to the next nurse who came in. But having really good communication between the nurses and it was so satisfying. Mm hmm. Doing that type of nursing, which we just don't.

We just don't get to do at all. You know what? I think it is interesting to see, you know, how you. So you just said have fun, right? And a lot of times I've noticed that nurses get really slammed for, oh, they were doing a tick tock while they were at work or they were doing a real while they were at work.

I was like, Well, God forbid they have fun.

Cat Golden

Like people thought I was crazy. Like at my old hospital, people literally thought I was not I did not fit in there. They all just looked to me like, Who is this girl? They would even ask my friend Emily. That was one of my employees. Like, is it really like this? Like, is she serious? Like, they didn't know if I was just being crazy or what?

Like being. I shouldn't say that being crazy, but like, being fake or they were just like, Is that for real? Emily is like, Oh, she's ten out of ten, for real. Like, I would say, Hey, I need to take a five minute break. Can someone watch my phone? And I would like literally go sit outside just to feel the sun on my face or like, go get a coffee.

And they'd be like, Who does she think she is? I'm like, Yeah, I'm trying to get a coffee in the afternoon by.

Cara Lunsford

But we have to have more.

Cat Golden

They will get you shamed.

Cara Lunsford

Yeah, taking care of yourself. This is why. But you know, what's really interesting is that I think we have to experience things like this that these obstacles we have to experience. Because a big part of what those nurses were saying to you probably helped you to create your mission.

Cat Golden

Oh, yeah, totally right.

Cara Lunsford

Yeah.

Cat Golden

It gave me all the ideas and like, I'm very good friends with these people now. They just I came in as a traveler that ended up staying when I moved from Colorado to Michigan, and my hospital in Colorado was very different. And so that's where I came from. And so then to go working in downtown Detroit, I mean, it was just completely different scenario.

But I had the experience of like, you know, having work somewhere else and experiencing something different. And I was just like, this is crazy. Like, they would say like, So every morning lunch on days and nights to I guess around 2 p.m. or 2 a.m.. And so no one would watch phones. You wouldn't get an actual lunch break.

I was just like, this is literally legal. Like, I'm like, this is illegal. I'm going to sit down and eat my food. I'm sorry, Like I am allowed to eat. And there were I mean, maybe a couple of times, you know, where your whole day like, of course, we all had those days. But I'm just like, this is a normal day.

No, we are allowed to eat lunch. Like, why would you want to work in this environment? It's great. It's insane to me. I just think, like, it didn't have to be that way. And because I had seen a different way, you know?

Cara Lunsford

So how is it different in Colorado? I mean, first of all, Colorado just for like a nice place to be.

Cat Golden

But I don't know how every hospital is there. I worked at Children's Hospital, Colorado, but I mean, it was magnet like we had concierge, we had Ryan Seacrest studio in the lobby. We had 24 seven cafeteria like private rooms, Xbox for every patient. Like it was just bougie, like it was the Reds. I mean, it was nice, you know?

I mean, you need an overall change while you're working in the concierge. We will take your car again, all of those things. I mean, it was just nice.

Cara Lunsford

I'm sorry. Did you just say that the concierge would take your car to get it?

Cat Golden

Yeah. You needed, like, dry cleaning post office. Like I would get errands, dine while I was at work, Data concierge service, I office.

Cara Lunsford

I don't. I don't even know what you're saying right now, but I was like, Are you speaking English? Okay, So, I mean, I worked at a really nice I mean, Children's Hospital, Los Angeles magnet, top pediatric, very similar, although I will say we did not have concierge. We did not have that. But I need to go there. Okay.

I'm going to I am going to make it my personal mission to go there.

Cat Golden

This was like I left there in late 2016.

Cara Lunsford

Even if they ever had it. I think that's great. I mean, that's amazing. That is incredible. So but this is you're right. This is where the standard, the standards should be there.

Cat Golden

Yeah, exactly. It was amazing. And there's still many, many of the nurses that I used to work with are still in the same unit. I'm like, Yeah, why would you leave these great. You know, our ratios were good. Like it was I mean, it was great.

Cara Lunsford

So what, what made you leave?

Cat Golden

I just decided to move back to Michigan. I got divorced. My divorce, I think even like, three years after I had gotten divorced, my brother and I lived together. He was a nurse, too. And like, Colorado was just getting expensive. And like, every. Now, look, I moved to Colorado before it was cold in Colorado. I was just there this weekend.

I'm like, Oh my gosh, you might as well live in California. Like how basically that's what it's kind of like turning into. It's so beautiful. But I was just like, ready for a change. I lived there for almost ten years. I don't know.

Cara Lunsford

Detroit is cold.

Cat Golden

Yeah, it was weird, like, and I never even intended to stay this long. I'm making plans again to move in next year. I'm already making plans to move, but yeah, I don't know. I just. It was like something inside of me just felt that I should and I think it was like, to get all these ideas to start, and I ended.

Cara Lunsford

You know, that's it. I mean, but, but that's what happens, right? It's like you make these big changes and then things happen and getting out out of your comfort zone. We talk about that a lot. Like especially entrepreneurs, successful entrepreneurs are willing to get outside the comfort zone. Yeah, for sure. So I don't want to keep you too long because you are a busy, busy, busy.

Cat Golden

Lady, as are we all.

Cara Lunsford

As are we all. First of all, I want to thank you for all of just the amazing things that you have been doing with Nurse dot com, because I think since I came over to nurse dot com a year ago, we have been able to do so much more because of the relationships that we've been building with other people.

Right. Because I think the thing is that humility is important. No, no one can do it. All right? No one can be everything. So you do what you what you can you do that one thing and then you really branch out and you bring people in who are so good at what they do. And then you help them to grow and they help you to grow.

And then you just become this like growing organism.

Cat Golden

Everyone's happier, honestly. Like that's what we really saw. Even like moving our book club in our app. And, you know, I made the decision to shut down our app, which was like, difficult. But I'm like, Why are we doing this? Like, it just didn't make sense. And I think people are afraid to exactly that. What you said. Like, I don't know if it's humility, maybe that's a good word, but people are afraid to like quit stuff.

Cara Lunsford

I'm not afraid of fail. Yeah, well, it's someone.

Cat Golden

Can do it better. Let's partner with them.

Cara Lunsford

Yeah, well, and and some people don't know this, but the very first version of Holly Blue was different. It was. It was very workforce management. I was seeing that there. We just. We weren't working with our nurses correctly. Like we didn't have. Why is this so hard to find the right nurse for the right patient, especially in a home health area?

I was sending nurses out. I was a director of nursing at the time. I was sending nurses out at night. I didn't know if they had the right language to speak. I didn't know if they had the right skill set. And I wasn't. I was like, Why is this so hard? This is very difficult. And at some point I realized I'm like, You know what, Cara?

Like, what you're passionate about is just like connecting nurses. You're really just a connector. Like, I was like, I'm just I like to connect people. And so, you know, I just focus on what you really care about, which is the watering hole for nurses, which is because that's what I kept saying to people. I was like, I was like, Where's the watering hole for nurses?

It's like, and that was what I really wanted is I really just wanted to create a place that had resources and sustenance so that they could come and thrive there. And I had to walk away from a piece of technology that cost $300,000.

Cat Golden

Yeah, that's.

Cara Lunsford

Yeah, walked away. And it was hard. I mean, I almost wanted to vomit. I was like, Oh my God, what am I doing? It was hard. It's hard to pivot sometimes. You're smart and you're smart entrepreneur. You're a smart woman, smart nurse. And the fact that you're doing all the things that you're doing and you're so focused too, on like all these in-person events, they know you do some virtual stuff, too, but what's the next event?

Just so everybody knows?

Cat Golden

Well, we're doing one for Nurses Week, but it's it's not open to the public. It's at a specific organization. And then, I don't know. That's what's very interesting. So I decided this year that we were actually not going to have Nurse give back night because it takes I mean, that party is so huge, but I really needed to like get our business in a different spot and get us very focused.

I mean, with this shop is like a whole other huge piece. Having a product based business along with the community and everything else and like it takes so much energy and resources to do in-person events and to do them well. And the other problem now too, is to your point, I have set such a standard with in-person events, like, you know, when you have a £300 disco ball and a nine foot robot and dancing disco head, girls like you kind of just can't do this at 50%, nor would I do that.

So I don't know, honestly, like, I'm really focused on every single thing we do, every single partnership, every single campaign, just being ten out of ten. And honestly, like, I needed to take some time for myself, like, do what I tell everyone else. I'm going on a cruise like I planned. I'm going to be on, say, this summer, I'm going to an event the end of August.

And I'm like, Do you know what events I'm going to do? Like once that I'm not planning. So I'm actually taking a little bit of time for myself. And I told our community that it was difficult because it's difficult to say, Hey, I'm not having this party that you've been looking forward to for a year. Hey, I'm shutting down our app at the end of the day, like I have to do what I tell everyone else to do.

And I said, you know, and iron works for me now, not me. And I am like, as well you should you, you should make nursing work for you, not be a slave to nursing. I don't know. That's TBD. But whenever it is, whenever it comes, it will.

Cara Lunsford

Be whatever it is, it'll be awesome. And that's the thing, is that, like, sometimes one huge event a year is sometimes better than 20. That's what I do anyway, obviously with my with my yearly event because I just throw it all into that one. But I think that that is you're doing a great job as a being a role model and as a leader you have that is, I would say, your main responsive ability as a leader is to really be a great role model in that way, because if you're overextending yourself or not taking time away or then that is what you're telling other people to do, or they think like, Oh my God,

if I can go at that pace, why can't I go at that pace? I think about that. Like when I talk to Rebecca Love, I'm always like, How did she say, Lord, am I behind? But I think it's important to to slow down because it gives permission to other people to slow down here.

Cat Golden

And it's like season. I've been in a hustle season for five years, you know, and like, I haven't slowed down ever. And like, that's the season that I'm in right now and that's fine. And I already know, like, I'll be like I already feel myself being like, like I'm ready, but it's right and I need to take this time.

And yeah, it's just seasons and we're all in different seasons. You just can't compare to.

Cara Lunsford

Just tapping in and having that sense of awareness. I think what's what I hear you saying is just really having that sense of self-awareness, of like, what? What season am I in? Am I in the hustle season or am I in that hibernation? I get like that to where I kind of need to hibernate for a minute.

Cat Golden

Yeah, for sure.

Cara Lunsford

Well, all great lessons, all incredible learnings. I'm so excited to see what you do in this year and in the coming year, next year and all the ways that we get to support you Junior sitcom, which is also very exciting for me. And I just want to thank you for spending time with me today.

Cat Golden

Yeah, well, thank you guys for being such an awesome partner to us. It's been really fun for us too, and I think, you know, that's what I wanted for so long. And you know, you're going to vibe with some people and not with others, and that's fine, right? But I'm like, man, like, I really want to find some people that we really get along with that we can really help each other exactly what you said and just be stronger together because I don't want to do everything.

It's been fun and we're super thankful as well.

Cara Lunsford

Well, the feeling is mutual, my friend. You go and have an incredible rest of your week. Thank you so much for spending time with me. All my love to you.

Cat Golden

Thank you.

Cara Lunsford

I girl.

Cara Lunsford

I do. If you were a nurse who enjoyed this episode and you have an idea for future episodes, you can connect with me by downloading the nurse dot com app. See you there.