All right, Sharon, today we're gonna be talking about the basics of transitioning to 1099. You know, it's a process as we're gonna lay out in some of our other episodes. What do you need to be thinking about? How do you make sure you're going into this with the right mindset and that you're setting yourself up for success? Again, this is not rocket science, but it's things that you just basically need to be educated a little bit on, know what you're doing and make sure you got a plan as you go in. We all like a plan, right? Yes, especially CRNAs. Especially. All right, so the first thing is, and really this is true, you've gotta be financially ready for this transition. You know, when people go into doing 1099, you know, we recommend them to have some money set aside because like we saw in COVID, you know, there could be a time you don't have an assignment, for some reason you're sick and can't take an assignment, you wanna have some cash stashed back. And I usually tell people it's three to six months of your monthly expenses. What does it take for you to pay your bills, you know, not thrills, but bills, okay? Pay your bills, even if you had to eat Beanie Weenies, you know, you could do that, ramen noodles, for at least three to six months. Because we have seen scenarios that pop up like COVID where, you know, people couldn't work for a couple of months and people were freaking out because they couldn't pay their bills. So as you transition, make sure you're financially ready. And not that you have to have that in cash in the bank, you just gotta have someplace you can get it if you need it. It could be a credit line. You know, it could be borrowing against your 401k. It could be parents or friends, or it could be cash in the bank, you know, but have a plan for if something goes wrong, I've got it. Second thing, you've got to shift your mindset. And that is sometimes hard for CRNAs. They get in this W-2 mindset. Not naming any names, right? Yeah, no one that was in it for a long time and didn't change their mindset for a while. I just kept harping on her and harping on her. You know, you've got to change from being an employee to being a business owner and running a business. And that is a big mindset shift. There are some CRNAs out there, Sharon, that should not be doing this. They should stay W-2. Their mindset is such that they are W-2 employees. And I'm not knocking anybody, because we're not telling everybody to run out and do 1099, but you do have to transition that mindset to get you ready for what you're about to embark on. You're going from a place where pretty much everything is taken care of, your benefits, your paycheck, your health insurance, to a mindset of that's all on me. There's opportunities with that. There's also pitfalls. So thinking and shifting that mindset as you transition is pretty important. Next thing is, you know, what type of entity am I going to be? All right, you know, I want to embark on this 1099 journey. We've got more about this in more detail later on, but you know, what's right for me? Are you doing it 100% of the time or are you only doing it on the side? Because a lot of CRNAs, they do 1099 on the side, and you don't need the same type of entity that you might have if you're doing that full-time. So you've got to decide that. You know, make sure you're complying with all the legal things you need to be doing. Not only legalities, but the nursing board. Some states require you to register with the nursing board in that state. State that we're in in North Carolina, they do that as well. Some states don't. So make sure you understand that. Having a business plan. This just goes back to that mindset shift. And it doesn't need to be, you know, a complex business plan that, you know, a big corporation might do. But sitting down and really thinking through, all right, I'm making X amount now as a W-2. The positions I'm looking at are offering me X amount per hour. If I extrapolate that out and I want to take 10 weeks off this year, how much am I going to make? Okay, that's kind of what's coming in. What kind of costs can I expect? You know, I've got to pay for my own health insurance now. That's going to run me and my family 1500 bucks a month. Now I've got to pay for my own malpractice. I've got to buy my own disability. Just kind of having a pro forma. All right, where am I going to get work? Am I going to work through an agency? Do I have a position already somewhere? Maybe I've already worked and they want me to do 1099 there. You know, have I hooked up with a surgeon and the surgeon wants me to come in and do stuff for them. Those types of things go into a business plan. But remember, we have all these modules that will follow this, that will help you with this because to most CRNAs, this sounds like a lot, sounded like a lot to me. And it took me years to get to this point in my mindset, even though you tried to push me along. But if you're listening to this, know that we're going to go step by step in the modules that follow this. Absolutely. And we're going to have more than the modules. You know, we're going to have meetings to kind of go through each one of these topics individually where people are going to be able to ask questions and so forth, you know, in a live interaction format as well. So again, some of this stuff is basic. Some of it's a little more complicated and there will be opportunities for them to ask questions about that. It's a great point, Sharon. Yes, don't let Jeremy scare you right now. You know, it's easy to me. Yes, it is. But it's like for you guys, what you do is not easy to me. It's rocket science. And what I do to you is rocket science. So we all have our things that we're good at. Planning for your insurance. You know, this is a big step, Sharon. You know, you've gone through this. We go through this with a lot of our clients. What am I going to do for health insurance? Where am I going to get it? Evaluating that. Make sure you've got a good plan for that. Disability. Sharon, you're the goose that laid the gold egg. What are we going to do for that? You know, have a plan for, you know, what if? What if Sharon's arm gets chopped off and she can't give anesthesia anymore? You know, what happens? Besides Pierce going back to work for the rest of his life. But, you know, those types of things. And then the other part of this is malpractice. You know, making sure that you've got the right coverage with the right companies that's going to be there and support you. And obviously, you know, ANA has a policy out there that is CRNA specific that was developed for CRNAs and that they support CRNAs with. So these are just some essential bottom lines and things you need to think about. Looking at the opportunities. You know, this sounds like a big word, market analysis, but what does the market look like right now? Sharon, you and I have been around for, you know, a few years and we have seen the CRNA market up and we've seen it down. And it's definitely a cyclical market. Where are we at right now? You know, if I'm going to quit my W2 job, my family relies on me. You know, what does the market look like? You know, it's good right now, but I've got 10 more years to work. What does the market look like maybe out 10 years? And do some of that analysis. Look at how many CRNAs are going to retire? How many are we pumping out from CRNA schools? What's the projected demand out there for CRNAs? So again, CRNAs don't have to get real specific, but going through these exercises are things that they definitely need to be doing. I'm going to tell you one thing that Sandy Marie taught me is you know what the market is doing by how many emails you get for people looking for CRNAs to work. And my inbox, my texting, everything is absolutely full. So that is always a good sign. Yeah, and then just networking, you know, looking out for your, what are your colleagues doing? Where are places that, you know, you can network with people who might have a demand for CRNAs, networking with other CRNAs who are working in places that know they're short and they need help there, going to your state meetings. It's a great place to network and ANA meetings. So networking with those, networking with recruiters and so forth. And then there's platforms out there, you know, Gasworks for one, you know, there are other jobs posted out there. There's other platforms out there with jobs and positions in them. And it gives you a feel for how much demand is out there, what the pay is looking like. Am I going to have to take call, not take call? You know, those types of things. So really doing some of this analysis upfront helps you figure out, is this right for me? And then you're going to need professional support. CRNAs are smart. I mean, you know, Sharon, we say this all the time, but you know, you're embarking upon something that is, for most CRNAs, it's not your wheelhouse. Most CRNAs didn't go to business school, didn't get an MBA, didn't get an accounting degree, don't know much about the financial side of things. Not all, please don't get offended, but there's a lot of CRNAs out there that don't, not that they can't, they just don't want to. But finding an accountant that's versed in, yes, there's one there, self-employment laws, you know, specifically dealing with CRNAs. I mean, you know, CRNAs are a group and you guys have things that you can do. And that, you know, potentially a guy who is mowing grass somewhere and owns his own company, it's a completely different mindset than a medical professional. Looking for financial help from financial advisors. Again, find yourself someone good. This could be the same person, they could be different people. Someone good that can help you work through this process. You know, you might have one part of this taken care of, but you absolutely hate the accounting sides. You might hate both of those sides. But finding someone who can kind of work through this, help you work the numbers, maybe even upfront helping you look at this and saying, this is right for me and my family and my situation. And then how to keep you on track along the way. So these are important positions. So find some professional support out there. Obviously the credentialing process, Sharon, you've gone through this many times and we do have a complete module on this, but making sure you're getting credentialed from a timing perspective, making sure you've got all your information together to be credentialed. Those are important steps in the process as well. You know, some places, Sharon, how long did it take you to get credentialed down to where you are? A couple of months, but I have always kept a folder in my computer with everything in it, because some go all the way back and want a copy of your master's degree. So I keep a file with everything in one spot so that it's easy to access. I'm hearing, yeah, anywhere from six weeks to three months sometimes credentialing process. And they always seem to want one more thing, one more thing, one more thing. And every place is different, some want this, some want that, so. One company I tried to get credentialed with and it was a bear. Finally, I said, forget it, I'm not working for you. Yeah, again, you know, the networking side and learning, you know, I think that just keeps you on track. What are other CRNAs that are doing 1099 doing? Who are they working with? You know, what have they learned throughout the process of doing 1099? And where are the opportunities? Where can I get more career growth along the way? And that comes from networking, understanding where the industry's at and so forth. So I think these are important topics as well. Sharon, I think that's all for the basics.

Transitioning to 1099 Employment

Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists

Independent Contractor

Tax Responsibilities

Professional Liability Insurance

CRNAs

Licenses and Certifications