Top 5 Financial Priorities for an Early Career Physician

Medicine can be a fulfilling and lucrative career, but many physicians fail to make sound financial decisions and it comes back to bite them.

When they are mid-career and they realize that the job they once loved never loved them back. Just because you’ve made it through training and have landed a good doctor job.

Top 5 Financial Priorities for an Early Career Physician

Arrow

Young doctors are not rich. Most have a significantly negative net worth, thanks to student loan balances that usually increase throughout training.

1. Make a Plan for Your Debt

Start by taking inventory of how much you owe, to whom, and for what. There are different approaches to debt paydown that equate debt to snow-related objects for some reason, and I prefer the “debt avalanche.”

There are four categories of spending (not including debt service) that account for most of our spending: housing, transportation, food, and travel.

2. Avoid Massive Lifestyle Inflation

Decide which is most important to you, and go well above-average in that category, but be reasonable with the rest. With a multiple six-figure income, you can have nice things, but not all the nice things.

This really ties together the first two priorities of managing debt and keeping your lifestyle in check.

3. Save for Big Ticket Items

Most physicians can afford to max out all available retirement accounts, make student loan payments, and still set aside tens of thousands of dollars annually.

SWIPE UP NOW TO READ MORE