The Sunday Best is a collection of articles I’ve curated from the furthest reaches of the internet for your reading pleasure.

Every week, I scan hundreds of headlines, read dozens of posts, and bring you the best of the best to save you time and mental energy.

Financial Independence (FI) is a primary focus, but it’s an awfully broad topic. I tend to approach FI and early retirement from a fatFIRE perspective and through the lens of a physician, so expect to see those biases in the selected articles.

Related topics that have become recurrent themes include early retirement, selective frugality, tax issues, travel, physician issues, and of course, investing.

For more great articles, take a peek at The Sunday Best Archives. Now let’s get to the best… The Sunday Best!

 

 

 

The Sunday Best

 

I met several people at Camp FI last weekend who became financially independent in short order with real estate. Coach Carson, who offers a free course on getting started with real estate, recently shared 15 Ways to Start Investing in Real Estate With Little or No Money.

 

I’m just a few weeks in to this post-FI life now, and I’m loving the fatFIRE aspect. For me, it was worth working a few “one more years.” Doc G of DiverseFI explores this concept. Why FatFIRE?

 

The aptly named interventional radiologist and mother known as the Tired Superheroine is in pursuit of a life less ordinary. Chasing Financial Freedom: My ‘Why’.

 

The Frugal Physician is a moniker I considered, but it didn’t exactly fit. I’m happy to report that a delightful young woman did adopt the name, and she was recently the guest of honor on The White Coat Investor podcast. Frugal Living with The Frugal Physician – Podcast #122

 

XRAYVSN shares a detailed reading of WCI’s second book. Continuing Financial Ed: WCI Financial Boot Camp. Clinical correlation recommended.

 

 

The Actuary on FIRE is a fan of the stock market, and he’s all in during these uncertain times. Why? I’m 100% Stocks and Happy with my Diversification.

 

Does index investing make him (and me… and probably you) a fool? The Big Short’s Michael Burry Explains Why Index Funds Are Like Subprime CDOs at Bloomberg.

 

Not necessarily, says Ben Carson of A Wealth of Common Sense. Debunking the Silly “Passive is a Bubble” Myth.

 

If I could only use one word to define the dude behind Refined by FIRE, it would be resourceful. He shares a bunch of his favorite personal finance resources in A Consolidated Consortium of Collated Collectibles.

 

ESI Money has gleaned more information from his growing interview series in which we learn how millionaires got to where they are today.

• Millionaire Interview #141
• Millionaire Interview #142
• Millionaire Interview #143
• Millionaire Interview #144
• Millionaire Interview #145

 

 

I jumped from one gathering of money nerds to another, as we just wrapped up another fun and successful FinCon. Last weekend, I was making friends in the woods outside of the Twin Cities. Camp FI Review: A Weekend with FI-Curious Strangers.

 

Do you know where you’re at on your journey to financial freedom? As a business owner or partner, it can be tricky. As a Business Owner, I Have No Idea Where I Am on My Journey to FIRE (and That’s OK).

 

I hope my funeral is many, many, many years away, but nothing is guaranteed. Attending Your Own Funeral: Thoughts on Finances and Legacies.

 

Inspiration & Information

 

I learn a lot when I read, and I read a lot. To curate this weekly Sunday Best that’s been published every weekend for over three years, I read dozens of blog posts. The content I share is inspiring, informative, and often both.

However, there is no substitute for one-on-one, in-person communication. Most of the folks featured above are people I’ve conversed with face-to-face this week. Dr. Michael Berry is not among them, but dozens of doctors did show up at FinCon this week, and they’re doing an amazing job of sharing their stories and knowledge with all of you.

I’m heading back to Michigan feeling inspired to put together a meaningful meetup to help people make progress on their financial independence journey and sort out what that freedom could mean for them.

I felt similarly a year ago, but I clearly did nothing with it. Putting it in writing makes it one step closer to actually happening. Stay tuned for an eventual announcement for some sort of event in 2020!

One event that you can join me at next year is the Financial Freedom Summit in St. Louis, MO May 1-3, 2020. I’ll be presenting in some capacity, along with an amazing lineup of your favorite authors, speakers, and bloggers.

The event is being organized by the people behind FinCon, but the target audience is not the content creators, but the content consumers. That would be you!

 

 

 

Heart Broken

 

I’m fighting back tears in a crowded conference room as I write this.

This is not about me, but the news hits home.

Two years ago, I got together with a handful of bloggers in Boston. I was excited to meet David, a.k.a. “Mr. P.I.E.,” the bloke behind Plan Invest Escape with a splendid Scottish accent. He and his wife retired early last summer to live the dream we all dream of.

They’ve got two boys just a couple years older than ours and the four of them left the hustle and bustle of the city for the mountains of New Hampshire. David and I hit it off over beers, and I’ve been looking forward to following their post-FIRE journey as we begin ours.

This is not the update I wanted to see. Mrs. P.I.E. shared this tremendously sad news on Twitter the other day.

 

They are raising money for cancer research. I’m contributing an amount from our donor advised fund that should get them above and beyond their goal. I cherish your help in furthering our charitable mission, and I wish the best for David, Emily, and family.

 

 

 

 

Have an outstanding week!

-Physician on FIRE