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Not becoming more risk tolerant until my late 30s.
Didn't proactively save for my own retirement until much later in attendinghood. Luckily, my partner did start a Roth for me during residency and did contribute for me, and also did a TIRA when I no longer qualified for Roth. But, because of my poor risk tolerance, did not allow spouse to invest aggressively on my behalf.
Not learning about personal finance, investing and various tax sheltered spaces until more than 5 years after attendinghood, lost saving/ long term investing opportunities (~150-200K) during those earning years. :x
Of questionable regret, not paying off my small amount/low interest rate student loans as quickly as possible.
Then again, I could totally have done none of the above but then chose to live within the affected areas of Hurricane Harvey or Irma and still lose a similar amount over the course of one disaster. Sometimes we are lucky and sometimes we are good, but rarely both all the time.Comment
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This is a little bit philosophical, but I would say that "mistakes" like holding 10% cash are only mistakes with the benefit of hindsight. If the market had gone down in recent years, you would probably be feeling much better about your cash level. Yes, I would recommend a lower cash allocation, but I wouldn't beat yourself up about it too much. My guess is that the cash has served a useful, non-quantifiable purpose in that it's given you peace of mind.Comment
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My biggest blunder came in college. I was ready to propose at the end of my senior year but had no money. So I decided I would open up a credit card to fund the engagement ring and would use my signing bonus I was getting in a few months to pay it off. Being a bargain shopper I thought I would apply to 7 credit cards at the same time to see which one would give me the best deal. The 1st one came in with a $3,500 credit limit, the next with $1,500, the next with $500 and the last 4 were all declined. All of those credit inquiries messed up my credit so badly I had to use my wife’s credit to get my first mobile phone plan. Fortunately I was able to buy the ring and she said yes, so I guess it was worth it in the end.
I used a med student loan as a 4th year med student to buy my future wife's engagement and wedding ring. It took me roughly 5-6 years to pay off those rings (when my loans were paid off, as my overall loan burden was thankfully low relatively speaking).
I also frequently used med student loan money to play no limit Texas Hold 'EmAn alt-brown look at medicine, money, faith, & family
www.RogueDadMD.comComment
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I also frequently used med student loan money to play no limit Texas Hold ‘Em
Whoa, Nelly - I think that makes the Top 10 list.Our passion is protecting clients and others from predatory and ignorant advisors. Fox & Co CPAs, Fox & Co Wealth Mgmt. 270-247-6087Comment
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I also frequently used med student loan money to play no limit Texas Hold ‘Em
Whoa, Nelly – I think that makes the Top 10 list.
I've never had a physician tell me they weren't winners at texas hold em. it's an investment, wink wink, I'm told.
except me. I'm always a loser at poker. possibly because I can't remember what beats what and I can't hold my alcohol.
I remember one night getting excited cause I had three pairs! three! I bet big and then somebody explained that actually I can only use 5 cards, so in fact my thee pairs were two pairs and I lost.
stupid rules.
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I used a med student loan as a 4th year med student to buy my future wife’s engagement and wedding ring. It took me roughly 5-6 years to pay off those rings (when my loans were paid off, as my overall loan burden was thankfully low relatively speaking). I also frequently used med student loan money to play no limit Texas Hold ‘Em
A whole new dimension to rougeDad.Comment
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During medical school, I began fully funding Roths thanks to my wife's income. Which was not that great of an idea since the interest on my loans was 6.8%. But it was a solid emergency fund since I could (bit never did) withdraw the principle.
But then I went on to learn 3 more hard lessons from these early investments before I made much real money.
#1 Don't invest through family and friends. Initially it was through a relative that my roths were setup.
#2 You can be too conservative so that you lose "real" money. My relative placed me in a permanent fund with gold as a large portion of it.
#3 You don't need a discount brokerage firm as a buy and hold investor. When I decided to leave my relative's firm I decided to index but I didn't realize I could just buy directly from Vanguard.
Thanks to WCI I learned these lessons relatively quickly and before much long-term harm. I now have my own reasonable investment plan.
Now 1.5 years into Attendinghood I have >$250k in Roth/i401k/HSA primarily at Vanguard with only $80k in refinanced loans remaining that I will destroy this coming year while adding >$70k to the tax protected investment pile. This is all while tithing from gross income, having 1 trip/month the last 6 months, buying a $32k used vehicle with cash when my junker broke down. We are living the good life while setting up a good early retirement!Comment
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Rogue Dad, M.D. wrote: I also frequently used med student loan money to play no limit Texas Hold ‘Em Click to expand… Whoa, Nelly – I think that makes the Top 10 list.
Lol -- I was one of a few in a small group in my class doing it. I wasn't nearly as good as my friends. Some of that almost supported their families off the winning -- they played a lot online. I was not at their level...An alt-brown look at medicine, money, faith, & family
www.RogueDadMD.comComment
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A whole new dimension to rougeDad.
If I wasn't mature and responsible with 3 kids and a wife and a mortgage I would probably still be doing it.
Who am I kidding -- I am trying to plan a guys trip to Vegas (that may or may not happen). If it does happen, I'll be at the MGM Grand -- they have a great poker room for non-high rollers like me.An alt-brown look at medicine, money, faith, & family
www.RogueDadMD.comComment
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Selling Netflix purchased as an IPO after it only tripled.
Being a critical care doctor right out of training in the very early days of this recognized specialty - nearly killed me but I stopped after 13 months.
Investing in a real estate partnership in the 1970's and taking the unbelievable accelerated depreciation that I had to recapture and the partnership failed due to the real estate collapse. Biggest mistake but best lesson ever - if it looks too good to be true, it probably is.Comment
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Not going to med school. :lol: :cry: :P 8-)Comment
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Not paying attention to student loans earlier, buying into the line "You'll be a doctor, you'll be able to easily pay it off" - now in family med and I absolutely love it ....but I love the $360k waiting to be paid off much, much less.Comment
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a. First condo- Bought a place that took far too high of a percentage of my take home income because I thought it would be 'easier to sell' when the time came because it was a two bedroom versus a studio that was less than half the cost that I was also considering. Long story short, ended up renting the condo for almost 10 years during the housing crash.
a1. Using a portion of early Roth contributions to fund down payment for a. above.
b. Not having a substantive emergency fund (< 1 month of expenses) after a. above.
c. Taking three years from starting my 'professional career' to maximize 401k contributions.
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1. Not buying property in NYC in early 2000s
2. Buying full price house at too high of interest rate when real estate market was obviously crashing. Still living in it now and struggling to sell it for a reasonable profit.
3. Not paying off student loans 10 years ago
4. Holding on to way too much cash instead of using to payoff loans. (#3 above)
5. Not researching insurance needs and just trusting first insurance agent I met
6. Not knowing what to do with money. Still learningComment
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