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The Monthly Checkout: March 2019

By Jimmy Turner, MD
The Physician Philosopher

Every month, I like to highlight some noteworthy posts that I’ve read.  I pass them along to you so that you can enjoy them, too. This is the monthly checkout March 2019.

Physician Contract NegotiationThe posts will involve topics that are often covered on this blog including personal finance, investing, physician burnout, and paying down debt.  We then end with an update on the happenings on the blog.

If you haven’t subscribed to the blog, you can subscribe here.

Welcome to The Monthly Checkout for March.

Recent TPP Appearances

I’ll continue to stand firm that teaching personal finance in both medical school and residency is not only a good idea, but that institutions that don’t do this are failing their trainees.

This month Physician on Fire  published a guest post of mine where I discuss the importance of a personal finance curriculum in medical training, and why we should focus more on the financial independence aspect (and less on early retirement).

Go visit the post and join in on the lively discussion in the comments section.

A Comprehensive Guide to Disability Insurance

Any reader of mine knows that I am a big fan of Ryan Inman.  Not only does he meet the Gold Standard of Financial Advising, but he runs an awesome podcast and blog called Financial Residency.

On the blog, he recently wrote an epic piece on disability insurance.  If you read this post and still have a ton of questions left, I would be shocked.  Fortunately, I don’t think many of you will have that experience in his Comprehensive Guide to Disability Insurance.

Why I Won’t Quit Medicine

This post hits the nail on the head for me.  I LOVE my job.  I love the teaching, the intellectual stimulation, the camaraderie, and the help we provide to patients each day.  While I do love my job, I want to do less of it.

Why would someone who writes about how the medical system is burning doctors out want to stay in medicine?  Partly to fix it the burnout problem, but mainly because I love what I do (most days).

But I don’t want to steal Passive Income MD’s thunder.  He published a really balanced post recently on why he doesn’t plan on quitting medicine anytime soon.  Everything about this post is right.  Find the freedom you want to live the dream.

A Story of Redemption and Repentance

Readers may remember Fred from Money with a Purpose.  Fred is a fee-only financial advisor, and while we disagree that some financial advising models are better than others – Fred is my friend.  He is a good man with a good heart.

Fred and I met at FinCon 2018.  The purpose of his blog is to write about money, personal adversity, and where those two worlds meet.  He does this because his son Jason has a long and storied history with drug addiction.  He first wrote about the inside details of being a parent dealing with addiction and the financial consequences in this post.

Then, he followed that post up with an update on his son and his ten months in sobriety.  How did Jason (Fred’s son) climb out of the pit of addiction?  You’ll have to checkout those details here in his updated post When Hope Arrived.

Stopping Expectations from Increasing

Wealthy Doc is one of the O.G. in the physician finance blogging space.  There is a lot to learn from him.

First, I want to highlight a post that Wealthy Doc wrote on how Long Term Care (LTC) Insurance may be a waste of money.  He lays out his argument, and then got absolutely blasted on social media and the comments section of this blog post.

I share it for two reasons: (1) When people get “heated” in a conversation it is usually because they are in the wrong. (2) Any of you considering starting a blog… read posts like this one and know the risks first!  I’ve experienced similar backlash for some posts I’ve written.

The second post of WD’s I want to share is his post on Stopping Rising Expectations.  Sometimes additional expectations come from employers, bosses, or colleagues.  Other times they are placed on ourselves.  It does everyone some good sometimes to simply say “no” so that they can halt rising expectations.

Part Time Doctoring May be Best

Have you ever thought about what you would do if you didn’t have to work?  What kind of day would you design each day?

Well, in this guest post by Vagabond MD over on Crispy Doc’s blog, he spells out exactly what he does on a day off.  It might not be what you and I would do with my time, but the joy that he experienced from his day comes from the fact that he had the freedom to choose how to conduct his day.

Sometimes, when we take our time back, we find our happiness. Vagabond MD thinks that working part-time makes you a better doctor.  Do you agree?

An Update on The Book

The Physician Philosopher’s Guide to Personal Finance has been doing quite well.  It was published in February, and over 1,300 copies have been downloaded or shipped to houses around the country.

The book maintains a 5-star review on Amazon.  (If you’ve read it, please click here and spend 60 seconds writing a review).  My hope is to sell 10,000 copies by the end of the first year in publication.

I wrote this book because it is the one I would have wanted to read as a medical student, resident, or early career attending physician.  It is literally a road map for anyone on the trail to become a doctor (or really any other medical professional).  If you stick to the principles taught in the book, you will be well ahead of your peers.  And well on your way to financial independence.

So, if you haven’t purchased your copy or left a review, please go to Amazon and do so.  It would mean a lot to me, and will likely help a ton of other people as the word spreads.

What did you think about this month’s posts? Check them out and leave a comment below.

TPP

7 Comments

  1. Crispy Doc

    TPP,

    The Wealthy Doc article was wonderful and he held his own despite the troll comments.

    Your PoF post was earnest and thoughtful – somehow your best personal traits of concern for our well-being come through in your writing.

    Grateful to you for highlighting Vagabond’s wisdom. I find that the more my career matures, the more I look to him for counsel.

    Look forward to reading Ryan’s article.

    Fondly,

    CD

    Reply
    • ThePhysicianPhilosopher

      Thanks for stopping by, CD!

      Yeah, I couldn’t believe the trolls, honestly.

      And, vagabond is a great source of wisdom. Everyone keeps telling him to start a blog, but instead he offers wisdom on ours! Sounds like a steal of a deal for us!

      Reply
  2. Dr. McFrugal

    Since I’ve been deliberately MIA on social media lately, I didn’t realize that Wealthy Doc got a lot of backlash for that article. I thought it was fantastic. It gave me even more reassurance that I don’t need LTC insurance with proper self insurance with a healthy lifestyle and a fat nest egg. I also have a daughter (and per WD and Crispy Doc, that should help too!).

    Cheers, and congrats on the continued success of your book!!!

    Reply
    • ThePhysicianPhilosopher

      Thanks, brother. A break from social media is often healthy. I’m almost completely off my personal accounts. The only ones I ever check are my TPP social media accounts. Otherwise, it is a giant time suck and does little for my mental health.

      Reply
  3. Gentleman's Family Finances

    It’s nice to hear the passion that you put into your work and how aware you are of burnout in your profession.
    It’s good to get your perspective.
    I see your profession as something that you’ve had a long long realtionship with. I’m married 6 1/2 years but my professional career is 14 1/2 – you can’t just quit so easily.

    Thanks, GFF

    Reply
    • ThePhysicianPhilosopher

      Thanks, GFF. I appreciate your kind words.

      We can’t fix a problem if aren’t first aware of it and willing to face it head on.

      And this profession is definitely a long-term relationship. We are still feeling each other out, and I like it the majority of the time.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Reply
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