In the spring of 1995, after much planning, dreaming and preparation, I was
ready to launch my speaking business
by conducting seminars for nurses. One day
during this time, my husband, Joe, came
home from work explaining that he had suddenly lost all sensation and coordination in
both arms. Our physician immediately sent
him for a series of tests, but it took months for
a diagnosis—multiple sclerosis, a chronic,
debilitating and progressive disease for
which there is no cure.
Suddenly, the future seemed very uncertain. How quickly would my husband’s disability progress? Would he be able to
continue working? Would he be in a wheelchair six months from now, or would he still
be relatively independent? Since I would
frequently be away from home overnight
with my new business, would I be able to
leave him at home alone? There was no
way to know.
I had not yet invested significantly in the
business or done any advertising, so I
decided to take a step back and evaluate
my options. Should I scrap my business
plans, my dream and seek a conventional
job, one that would yield a regular paycheck and benefits with little or no travel? I
took two weeks to do some soul searching
and finally realized that the future is uncertain for all of us. I have to make decisions
for my life based on where we are now.
If things changed in the future, then we
would adjust that plan or do what needed
to be done to adapt. Besides, if I took a
conventional job, I could get laid off in six
months. That option provided no real security. I concluded that in the long run my
family and I would be better off financially
and otherwise if I invested in myself.
Within a year, my husband developed a
significant degree of disability and became unable to work. I was now the sole
support of my family. Without disability insurance our household income dropped to
zero. I was more determined than ever to
make the business work as I launched my
business with six public seminars. We lived
on our savings while I put all of my earnings
back into the business.
Over the next five years, as my husband’s disability progressed, I earned my
master’s degree (with the help of an NSA
scholarship), wrote my first book, and positioned myself as the country’s number one
career management expert for nurses.
Although my husband now relies on a
wheelchair for mobility, he has learned
to be self-sufficient. He is my greatest
inspiration and support and a large part of
my success. We feel blessed to have one
another to love and cherish. Each day is
a gift.
A successful business has allowed me the
flexibility of working from home with my own
schedule and better income than a corporate job would provide. My husband and
I have time together and quality of life that
was unforeseeable when his disease was
first diagnosed. Don’t give up when a crisis
hits your life. The courage to take a big risk
10 years ago has paid off in big ways.
Donna Wilk Cardillo, RN, MA, is president
of Cardillo & Associates in Sea Girt, New
Jersey. She is author of Your First Year as a
Nurse from Random House. She’s currently
working on her second book, The ULTIMATE
Career Guide for Nurses and writes a Dear
Donna column for both Nursing Spectrum
and Nurse Week magazine, the largest
combined circulation nursing publication
in the country. Learn more at www.
dcardillo.com.
