Physician on FIRE Turns Two.

That happened fast! This website turns two years old today. Still drinking from a sippy cup and smearing its face with frosting every time it eats cake, but at least it’s taken well to potty training. Now, if it could just drop a nap, I’d be happy.

Scratch that. I am happy. Thrilled, in fact! I’ve met so many impressive people, both virtually and in real life, as a result of this two-year old blog. I am grateful for the time you take to read, comment on, and share my writing, and for the dozens of people that have helped this site become something of a success.

 

Successes in 2017

 

At this time last year, I released a mission statement.

 

Physician on FIRE is a personal finance website created to inform and inspire both physicians and our patients with insightful writing from a physician who has attained financial independence and the ability to retire early. The site has a triple aim to leave visitors enlightened, educated, and entertained.

 

Inform. Inspire. Enlighten, educate, and entertain. That sounds like a tall order, but there is a bit of overlap in there, and if I’ve checked at least one of those boxes for you, I’ll consider that a victory.

I was successful in reaching far more people in 2017, technically the site’s first full year, although the site was live for all but eight days of 2016, as well. The pageviews increased from 404,400 in 2016 to 1,504,175 in 2017, for an increase of 372%. I don’t anticipate repeating that percentage increase in 2018, but the numeric increase is within the realm of possibility.

I could point to many reasons that this happened, and my blog tips page highlights the things I’ve done to grow the site, but the biggest factor has been a partnership with The White Coat Investor in creating the WCI Network.

This became the first network site in March of 2017, and we added Passive Income MD in November. As you can see, the alliance has been beneficial to the growth in readership (see the spike in March of 2017?), and I believe the relationship is truly a synergistic one among three personal finance bloggers.

 

 

2017 Highlights for Physician on FIRE

 

In addition to joining up with my fellow physician bloggers, I also got a chance to meet up with a bunch of other folks in the personal finance space. I made it to small blogger meetups in Colorado, Minnesota, and the big personal finance party known as FinCon.

One of several great things that came out of FinCon was an invite to join a mastermind group where I get to learn from and share ideas with other successful bloggers, podcasters, and online entrepreneurs a couple times a month. I have learned so much already in just a handful of conversations.

I lent my voice to a podcast for the first time with The White Coat Investor in May, and have since participated in a half-dozen more. If you haven’t listened yet, you can check out my 2017 interviews here. I think I’m getting better at talking, or at least getting used it it.

 

I continue to publish a guest post here and there, and occasionally someone will even write about me. One article, written by my buddy Mr. 1500 was featured on Business Insider leading to the busiest day ever for the site with 15,000 pageviews.

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Recent timely posts have proven to be quite popular, including the tax reform post for physicians and entrepreneurs, and my backdoor Roth post, which I updated last week for 2018.

 

Elsewhere in the Financial Independence Community

 

There were some other very cool developments in the personal finance space in 2017.

The ChooseFI Podcast launched like a rocket early in 2017. Jonathan and Brad are dominating, bringing the message of financial independence to tens of thousands of people who would likely not discover the concept through other forms of media. I’ve had an opportunity to hang out with the guys a couple times in recent months, and I’m happy to see their rapid growth and impressive reach.

The Playing with FIRE documentary was filmed, featuring a number of my new friends in the FIRE space. The film should be released in 2018, and I’m expecting it will be available on at least one if not several of the more popular streaming services.

J.D. Roth, who Got Rich Quickly when he sold Get Rich Slowly, has once again acquired the site, and has grand plans for 2018. He recently published a list of personal and blog goals, which include publishing more than 500 blog posts, drinking no more than 500 alcoholic beverages, running a mile every day, and eating lots of plants.

Rockstar Finance was acquired by early retiree ESI Money late in 2017, and I look forward to seeing where he takes the awesome aggregator, directory, and forum.

A number of people left their regular jobs, including Mark and Tanja of Our Next Life, Mr. 1500, half of the Adventure Rich couple, Jonathan from ChooseFI, and Craig of Retire Before Dad, Ms. Financial Literacy, and Financially Possible to name a few.

These are prominent people who are very public with their early retirement plans, but for each one of them, there are thousands of people leaving some form of the daily grind to pursue their passions.

 

Physician on FIRE in 2018

 

I plan to continue the publishing schedule I’ve settled into, which includes:

  • An original post on Tuesday
  • A guest post (or Christopher Guest Post) on Thursday
  • A Saturday Selection of a classic article from the WCI Network
  • A Sunday Best “round-up post” featuring some of my favorite articles from around the web
Learn to Avoid the Top 5 Mistakes Doctors Make With Disability Insurance!

I have no plans to start a podcast of my own, but I’ll continue to share my thoughts and knowledge via other podcasts. I’ve recorded with the FIRE Drill Podcast (soon to be released), and I’ll be recording with Doctor Money Matters and WCI later this month. I’ve got plans to chat with some other folks I’ve already recorded with, and expect to be on some new (to me) podcasts, as well.

The ambitious side of me keeps prodding me to write a book and / or create a course, but the actual me has barely found the time to keep up with the publishing schedule above, while also interacting with thousands of you on other online haunts, including Twitter, Facebook, the WCI Forum, Rockstar Finance Forum, and Bogleheads Forum.

I do also still have the anesthesia job, and expect to remain for at least another year and a half. I’m down to a 0.6 FTE position and loving it. My family and I spent most of November in Mexico and will be enjoying the Hawaiian islands for nearly all of February. An RV could be in our near future, and a medical mission trip is something I definitely want to experience before I decide I’m ready to hang up the stethoscope for good.

If you’re not yet following along regularly, please consider becoming a subscriber. It costs you nothing, and I share the spreadsheet with every calculator I’ve created in these first two years. Just enter your e-mail below.

 



 

Thank you again for being a part of this site’s success. Every time you share a post via e-mail, social media or word of mouth, I may not know about it, but I do sincerely appreciate it. I hope you had a fruitful 2017, and Cheers to mutual success in 2018!

 

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92 thoughts on “Physician on FIRE Turns Two.”

  2. Congratulations Physician on FIRE. Your success are based on many elements like articles are very engaging to read to many of your readers including me. You really focus on how your readers learn something on every post that shared. I can see more success on coming years. No doubt on it. Keep sharing valuable post. Cheers!

    From: primary care physicians | Internal Medicine Doctor

    Reply
  3. Subscribe to get more great content like this, an awesome spreadsheet, and more!

  4. I love to read about such amazing progress. Massive congrats on 2 years!!! And a hat off for what you have achieved in such a short time! Definitely feels like you’ve been around for much longer. Much inspiration to me as a newbie blogger and storyteller in the UK (where the FIRE is still very far from spreading!)

    Reply

  5. Congrats Dr. POF! What your blog has accomplished in 2 years, many may take a decade or more, if they are still around then! This speaks volumes about the quality, integrity and genuine value you provide. That’s what attracted me in the first place to your blog, and why I continue to visit! Take care and all the best for continued success!

    Reply

  6. Congratulations on hitting your 2 year mark!

    After only blogging for about 3 weeks, I have learned how time consuming this can be. I can only imagine the amount of time you have had to put into this, but after reading a few of your articles, I can already tell you create GREAT content consistently.

    I wish you all the best going into year 3 of your work and I look forward to reading your future posts!

    Reply

  9. Late to the game, but happy birthday PoF! Your progress is truly inspiring. I’m more or less following along on your trajectory myself, so hopefully a Luxe Sensei will take me under their wing, like WCI did for you, and take me to the next level. And I still remember being so excited when you featured me in one of your Sunday Best posts. I told my husband “OMG, I’m on PoF!” and then I was annoyed he had no idea you were a superstar in the PF world. I felt like a truly made it! Thanks again for the feature and for being so generous with info (in the forums, etc.).

    -Luxe

    Reply

  11. I suspect you’ve borrowed a play from Mr. Tako (or Zan and Jane, the Wonder Twins?) in that it must require eight arms and four keyboards to do what you do: remain ubiquitous on the forums, create timely and topical edu-tainment and still pepper your writing with eighties pop cultural references that put the rest of us to shame.

    Now if we can just master potty training by age three…

    Strong work, my friend!

    Reply
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  17. Congratulations on two years, PoF. You’re a true inspiration. I mean, c’mon. How did you do all the blog-related things you did in 2017 and still manage anesthetize your fair share of patients? Anyway we can clone you, my friend?

    Reply
  18. PoF readers: 1% bonus on debt & preferred equity investment.

  22. Happy birthday! You’re much more productive than my toddlers were:)

    Your focus and contributions to the online community are VERY impressive and inspiring. Keep up the great work (and increased play).

    Reply

  25. Congratulations! You have added to people’s lives with information, and your style. BTW, I forgot to tell you – I will be quoting you in my training for healthcare executives. The first one is coming up in February. You and WCI are my go to people whenever personal finance comes up.

    Reply

  26. Happy blogeversary! Your blog has inspired and helped so many — including me, most of all. Imagine all those people whose lives aren’t the same because of you. Here’s to an even better 2018!

    Reply

  28. So much success in such a short time. Congrats PoF!

    I definitely think that some type of product from you will be well received.

    Reply

    • I could always brew up a batch of beer, but the danged liquor laws prevent me from selling my homebrew. Guess it will have to be a book or a course, then.

      Cheers!
      -PoF

      p.s. I worked out more today than I have in quite some time. Made my New Years’ resolutions on the 8th of January, apparently.

      Reply

  29. Wow… that additional 8 days in 2017 made quite a difference!!

    Congrats on your Blogiversary! You’re killing it, keep it up!!

    Great content, great community, great insight, what more could you really ask for!

    Beers for many more years!!!

    Reply

  31. PoF,
    Congratulations on two years of successful growth. Seems like a long time to consistently put out good content. But when you enjoy the process of writing, growing a blog, and helping others to make better money decisions… tempus fugit! Thanks for the mention. Even though I haven’t reached 100% FIRE yet, pursuing FIRE and having a blog lessened the negative impact of my job loss. So what would have been a more tragic event became an awesome opportunity to grow my blog and reset my life. Looking forward to where you take PoF in the next few years.
    -RBD

    Reply

    • Thank you, Craig. I enjoyed meeting you at FinCon and read both your job-loss post and year-end recap. I realize it wasn’t quite what you had in mind, but you qualify as having left your job, nonetheless.

      It would not shock me if you remained self-employed for a good, long while. It does have its perks, doesn’t it?

      Cheers!
      -PoF

      Reply

  34. Such wonderful growth in only two years. Congrats! So fun and addicting right? I miss that time period for my site.

    I’m looking to take things down a notch to focus more on family.

    Best for 2018!

    Sam

    Reply

    • Fun and addicting. Yup, that pretty much sums it up!

      Good for you for the family focus. I’m slowing down at work for similar reasons, and one day may have to slow down here to free up more family time. Always tricky to find that balance, but having the boys in school most of the year does help.

      Cheers!
      -PoF

      Reply

  35. You’ve made great progress over the last 2 years and remain a great role model. Your site is one of the first I check every morning. Hope continued success!

    Reply

  36. Very well done indeed. 🙂

    A good number of your posts have really helped our thinking on topics such as asset allocation, taxes and lifestyle with kids. And I have sent links to work colleagues on a few of your posts in an effort to get them looking at things differently. Feedback from them tells me they liked your stuff. Pretty powerful, eh?

    Hope our paths cross again in the near future. Enjoy Hawaii and all the goodies that part time work is bringing to you and your family. Cheers.

    Reply

  37. Happy birthday! It’s amazing to see how your blog has grown so fast and so successfully!

    I think you produce great content on a regular basis, and it’s also a brilliant idea to partner with other bloggers in your niche. Best of luck in 2018! 🙂

    Reply

  38. Dude! Congrats and you are doing great. Watching your site explode to what it is has been amazing. Nice work and definitely always impressed by your productivity in and around the web. Here is to many more fruitful years.

    Reply

    • Hearing you say “fruitful” reminds me of those fruit trees you planted in the backyard you once had. Stupid Tubbs fire.

      I also heard you’ve got a hot tub at your rental, now, so there’s a silver lining. My wife and I enjoyed a little hot tub time tonight.

      Cheers!
      -PoF

      Reply

      • Oh yea..we did too. It is quite nice and since we are close to a state park, the stars are so much clearer. Very cool all in all and helps us re-evaluate what we need/want in life.

        Ah the fruit trees. I went and saw them today. For now they survive but we will see if they make it through next summer.

        Reply

    • Thank you, hatton1. It always sounds like a call sign from Star Wars or something when I say hatton1.

      “Hatton1, this is Bravo2.”

      The timing of the WCI forum starting right when I started the blog was certainly fortuitous.

      Cheers!
      -PoF

      Reply

  45. Happy birthday to you,
    Happy birthday to you,
    You helped so many physicians, among others, understand what it means to be financially independent and explore the possibilities of early retireeeee-mennnt,
    Happy birthday to you!

    Reply

  47. Happy blogoversary, looking forward to seeing what year 3 brings! You are an inspiration to me, not only in your financial life, but also in your blogging.

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the last year, and like I said, looking forward to seeing your great success in 2018!

    Reply

    • Glad to have met you in 2017 — I may not have listed it as a highlight, but I did mention FinCon, which included you. I understand our paths will cross at Camp FI Midwest in August. See you then if not before!
      -PoF

      Reply

  48. You are THE MAN, man! Keep up the great work. Your writing is impressive on its own merits, but to take your site to where it is today in two short years is phenomenal.

    Oh, and it’s comforting to have someone else past his millennial stage pursuing FIRE here in Minnesota. We need to do beers soon.

    Reply

  49. 2 years must have flown by!! Wonderful that you’ve made it and so much has happened in those two years in the community!

    How does one join the secret FinCon group?

    I am definitely looking forward to going to FinCon in 2018!!

    Reply

    • I’m just happy this community is so welcoming.

      Have fun at Camp FI Southeast this weekend. And say Hello to Stephen, J.D., and the rest of the gang for me. I think you’ll enjoy the zig zag in the woods. And no, I’m not talking about rolling papers.

      Cheers!
      -PoF

      Reply

  54. Wow, you have accomplished so much in only 2 years. You and the WCI network rock!

    Looking forward to seeing what Y3 brings 🙂

    PS: Thank you very much for your help and features in the 3 months we have been blogging 🙂

    Reply

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