Money and death. Sounds kind of morbid, right? But, that’s exactly what we are concerned within the financial independence community. We like to talk about the former and avoid the latter. Make no mistake, however, that all of our conversations have subtly interlaced the topic of mortality. Our time on this earth is limited.

No matter what your specific why of financial independence, we all want to find identity, …

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If my medical training taught me one thing, it was how to recognize the destructive nature of fads. They pervade our health care system. Most center around medicine, vitamins, and herbals. Though there also is no shortage of treatments and procedures that become popular very quickly and flame out over decades. Although one would think these spurious “advancements” would be pushed by a fringe agenda, it is actually commonplace for …

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The solution to most of my work related problems was half retirement. By leaving clinical practice and taking a less arduous administrative role, I was able to divorce myself from the worst part of doctoring. Being financially independent helped, but wouldn’t have been the complete solution. I am not ready to retire. I would be remiss, however, if I didn’t also point out the downsides. The part-time blues …

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There seems to be one question that drives the financial independence community. Not for everybody, but a large percentage of the group are chomping at the bit. The question is simple yet infinitely complex. It drives at the heart of what it means to be financially independent and evokes our greatest hopes and fears. It is often the reason we stumbled across the idea of financial freedom in the first …

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Being a physician has served me well. It has given me purpose and identity throughout my career. It has also provided me with a stable income. I knew, however, from the beginning that things were changing. From the earliest days of practice, I pursued lazy side hustles and real estate. I learned about investing. You might suspect that I did this …

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Proof of concept is important because accountability is a tenuous thing. One can pretty much say whatever they want on the internet. They can boast. Spin half-truths. Tell a tale. The most deadly of these are the ones that are just a slight variation of reality. Personal finance is no different. Net worth projections, budgets, the acumen of a business venture or …

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Reaching financial independence is no small feat. One has to turn inward and explore personal habits, goals, and rebalance value systems. These are somewhat introspective topics. Indeed, they require quite a bit of self-focus. This, I believe, is good. If we don’t continuously re-evaluate our beliefs and actions then how are we going to grow? On the other hand, such thinking leads to another critical question. Is financial independence selfish?

Are …

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It must have been about a decade ago.  It was another snowy day like today.  I awoke at the break of dawn, and rushed out the door to the hospital that was several miles away.  Leaving so early in the morning, the expressways hadn’t even been plowed yet.  I did this often.  Jumped into the car during inclement weather.  While most were waiting out the storm, I was cruising to …

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Retirement, or half retirement in my case, is a major life change.  Transitioning from the accumulation phase, to the maintenance stage, and eventually to the deaccumulation phase can be daunting.  These transitions are accompanied by a series of losses.  We all understand the loss of income.  But there are many other changes we don’t often talk about.  There is loss of social interaction.  Loss of purpose.  And …

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I like work.  I really do.  Although I have been talking up my half retirement, there is a reason I am not going the full monty.  I derive pleasure from being a physician.  The ability to reach out and help other human beings, and get paid for it is amazing.  Not only the work itself, but the human interaction is also quite gratifying.  I look forward to years of …

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