Aim To identify factors that facilitate participation in shared governance and attendance at unit meetings. Background Shared governance and unit meetings are crucial for education and communication. Current literature explores barriers to participation and attendance; however, removal of barriers may be insufficient to bring about behaviour change in nurses. Method Secondary analysis of data from 511 clinical nurses, who worked at one of nine facilities within one large health care system in the Midwest United States, was used to address our aim. Results Shared governance participants and unit meeting attendees were most satisfied with nursing as a career and more likely to be optimistic that nurses could change things, than non‐participants and non‐attendees, and this difference was statistically significant (p < .05). The organizational variable most associated with participation and attendance dealt with paid time‐off to attend meetings. Personal reasons for participation and attendance were the opportunity to express opinions and to hear opinions of others. Conclusion Organizations should encourage nurses to express their opinions and ensure that nurses are paid for the time spent participating in meetings. Implications for nursing management While some variables cannot be controlled by organizations, nursing leadership can provide opportunities for nurses to become more active and participate in decision‐making.