Life after medicine

[Auric goldfinger]

The best laid plans…
I’m 6 years done, nearly 7. Fascinating how many of my own plans, and those of fellow retired MDs change once actually retired vs pre- retirement. It’s hard to continue working when financial goals are met ( whether it’s 25X or 100X or ?). The surgeon who purchased my practice continued to ask me to fill in for him, even years after transition. Maintenance of CMEs, DEA registration, and insurance made this an easy choice for me. I stopped all. I do know retired MDs who continue to volunteer in free clinics etc.but this is pretty rare. Hats off to them. Not me. Amazing how many hours it takes to walk the dogs, really walk the dogs

[Notsobad]

Tough decisions. I know a couple of people in this situation. One was going to do an MBA after the required years but just retired young instead. Another worked almost 10 more years then retired early.

I heard the tough part is once they take over you might not like some of the changes such that it might be tough to stick around for several years.

[chucki]

Be wary of the PE. The cash sounds great but the 2-3 years working for them after being your own boss could be miserable. Hopefully, it's just a lesser role/part-time guidance for the newbies as opposed to them trying to milk some of the money back out of you. Really happy for you, enjoy your life. I would be off to the beach at a much lesser NW. Congrats.

[FIREshrink]

Struggling with this myself and might post my own thread. Pushing 8 figures, have lots I want to do, but not ready to walk away. The best parts of my job currently could be done at 3/4 time but unfortunately, not 3/4 time the way I'd want (that is, ten more weeks of vacation per year). More like an extra day off per week, which isn't the same thing.

I have golden handcuffs now where each quarter they keep dangling bonuses and this job is a unicorn in terma of income and opportunities to make community- and population- wide differences. But at some point I'm not getting any younger and this is the first year that physically i found that pure effort wasn't enough to reach a new PR in running or lifting, whether due to age or a nagging injury or two I did not hit my goals. Reality setting in. I am not immortal. Close to the half century mark. Might need to make a hard decision sooner than planned.

[VentAlarm]

Struggling with this myself and might post my own thread. Pushing 8 figures, have lots I want to do, but not ready to walk away. The best parts of my job currently could be done at 3/4 time but unfortunately, not 3/4 time the way I'd want (that is, ten more weeks of vacation per year). More like an extra day off per week, which isn't the same thing.

I have golden handcuffs now where each quarter they keep dangling bonuses and this job is a unicorn in terma of income and opportunities to make community- and population- wide differences. But at some point I'm not getting any younger and this is the first year that physically i found that pure effort wasn't enough to reach a new PR in running or lifting, whether due to age or a nagging injury or two I did not hit my goals. Reality setting in. I am not immortal. Close to the half century mark. Might need to make a hard decision sooner than planned.

Your name is FIREshrink….

[Tangler]

Ever tried kayak fishing? making your own fishing lures? gardening?

You now have the first world problem of deciding = choosing to _________

You are (will be) free.

No longer an indentured servant.

Freedom is awesome, but only you know what you want.

Nothing wrong with working for fun & fulfillment.

Nothing wrong with not.

Time = your limiting reagent.

Choose wisely.

[Tangler]

Struggling with this myself and might post my own thread. Pushing 8 figures, have lots I want to do, but not ready to walk away. The best parts of my job currently could be done at 3/4 time but unfortunately, not 3/4 time the way I'd want (that is, ten more weeks of vacation per year). More like an extra day off per week, which isn't the same thing.

I have golden handcuffs now where each quarter they keep dangling bonuses and this job is a unicorn in terma of income and opportunities to make community- and population- wide differences. But at some point I'm not getting any younger and this is the first year that physically i found that pure effort wasn't enough to reach a new PR in running or lifting, whether due to age or a nagging injury or two I did not hit my goals. Reality setting in. I am not immortal. Close to the half century mark. Might need to make a hard decision sooner than planned.

This is very similar to me. Existential crisis?
Not exactly but closer to the end than the beginning and there is stuff i want to do.

[jfoxcpacfp]

Struggling with this myself and might post my own thread. Pushing 8 figures, have lots I want to do, but not ready to walk away. The best parts of my job currently could be done at 3/4 time but unfortunately, not 3/4 time the way I'd want (that is, ten more weeks of vacation per year). More like an extra day off per week, which isn't the same thing.

I have golden handcuffs now where each quarter they keep dangling bonuses and this job is a unicorn in terma of income and opportunities to make community- and population- wide differences. But at some point I'm not getting any younger and this is the first year that physically i found that pure effort wasn't enough to reach a new PR in running or lifting, whether due to age or a nagging injury or two I did not hit my goals. Reality setting in. I am not immortal. Close to the half century mark. Might need to make a hard decision sooner than planned.

Pushing 8 figures and still wanting to grind it out at a job where you are not your own boss? I don’t get this.

Money is unlimited, life is not. Every day you go to work is ONE LESS DAY you will have to enjoy doing what you want to do with your life. You can NOT get it back and you have NO guarantee of the number of days you have left to live as a healthy husband/father/grandfather/son/friend/mentor. How would you look back at your decision to continue to work for golden handcuffs income you do not need if you found out tomorrow you have cancer or MS? Or your wife or child does? Imagine yourself in the future looking back at today. Is it worth the risk? Health and life and memories and family are priceless.

[CM]

What would you do on this scenario? MBA and join the dark side with the PE guys managing practices? Sell out for vanity goals (sub 3 hr marathon)? Alcohol induced cirrhosis on a beach? One day a week luxuriously paced community health? Start a new practice an hour away and try to duplicate the first?

Start a new practice an hour away and try to duplicate the first? Definitely not.

One day a week luxuriously paced community health? No. Do something more interesting.

Alcohol induced cirrhosis on a beach? Take a break. Do cocktails on the beach for a little while. You'll be bored with that soon enough.

Sell out for vanity goals (sub 3 hr marathon)? If there is something in this vein that you very much want to do, then yes. If that something is a better marathon time, then you can work on that for a while, but ultimately I'd want something else.

MBA and join the dark side with the PE guys managing practices? If you attend a top MBA program, you'll be exposed to all kinds of opportunities, most of them not on your radar currently, and almost all of them more appealing than managing practices.

Your interests will differ, but I expect to teach myself programming, relearn calculus and prob/statistics, then go further with linear algebra and discrete math, i.e., become a data scientist, in part to develop quantitative investing strategies, not necessarily in stocks, bonds, or currencies, but in some less efficient market(s).

[FIREshrink]

Pushing 8 figures and still wanting to grind it out at a job where you are not your own boss? I don’t get this.

Money is unlimited, life is not. Every day you go to work is ONE LESS DAY you will have to enjoy doing what you want to do with your life. You can NOT get it back and you have NO guarantee of the number of days you have left to live as a healthy husband/father/grandfather/son/friend/mentor. How would you look back at your decision to continue to work for golden handcuffs income you do not need if you found out tomorrow you have cancer or MS? Or your wife or child does? Imagine yourself in the future looking back at today. Is it worth the risk? Health and life and memories and family are priceless.

Yeah, it's a dilemma. But my dad was both the model of what to do and not to do. He worked healthy and happy into his 80s. 35 more years of vigorous good health i would want to spend some of that time working. On the other hand, my dad died of cancer just a couple years after retiring. No, don't want to do that. I'm looking for middle ground.

NB: I'm not running the company and I do have a boss but I am running a service for 150 clinical sites including ten hospitals. It's a rare opportunity for a psychiatrist and really a neat challenge. We've been able to do things that most health systems haven't because we have a true mental health expert (two of us) making administrative decisions. That benefits our communities enormously and I would be sad to leave that.

[Notsobad]

Maybe retirement is overrated. A lot of us love what we do, at least parts of it. Artists, musicians, writers never retire. They pace themselves. Big business types do philanthropy, sit on a few boards. There is nothing wrong with continuing to be a productive worker.

But on your terms.

[FIREshrink]

Maybe retirement is overrated. A lot of us love what we do, at least parts of it. Artists, musicians, writers never retire. They pace themselves. Big business types do philanthropy, sit on a few boards. There is nothing wrong with continuing to be a productive worker.

But on your terms.

Like the idea of pacing oneself. Gotta figure out how to do that when not own boss.

[artemis]

There is nothing wrong with continuing to be a productive worker.

True, but I keep being reminded that most productive workers don't need a license that must be renewed every 2 years, hospital privileges that likewise must be renewed every 2 years, or ongoing CME/MOC. And they face little chance of being sued in the course of their work. The time is coming when I AM going to chuck that all out the window and find a way to be productive doing something else (even if it is for little or no pay).

In the end, it is the bureaucracy that is going to drive me out of medicine, not the actual work. I'm jut getting increasingly sick of dealing with it. (Which is sad, when you think about it; I may end up taking a job a less-skilled worker could have benefitted from, while leaving a job open that most people simply can't do no matter how much they'd like to. There is something wrong with that picture!)

[Notsobad]

Good points. I agree that much of what we do can only be done well if we maintain a certain volume. And at too low a volume, it does not justify the trouble we put in.

[Tim]

Like the idea of pacing oneself. Gotta figure out how to do that when not own boss.

Hint: Mentor and hire your replacement(s). Successors in the right setting are forever grateful. Just a note, no "glory" in providing mental health services for those that are falling into the cracks. I wonder who might be able to figure that one out? You can choose whatever role you wish. Reinvent the role of advisor, the successors can ask for you to take on a project, but no obligation to accept it.Your trained them how to ask.Sorry, busy traveling for months. Maybe when I get back. You are working in the role as defined. Create a new role and get your replacements. Re-engineer the day to day and the structure.

That model is proven. Buffet, Gates, Apple and even a small family business. The hard part is to identify and mentor replacements. I have no doubt there are many special projects that need attention.

Just a thought, or a brain fart.