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!

 

 

 

As I’m about to mark 2 years of freedom, John from ESI Money celebrates 5 years of FIRE after leaving behind a lucrative marketing career. Retirement Update: 5 Years.

 

She was planning to marry a radiology resident when she realized the mistake she was about to make. How Financial Independence Let Me Leave An Abusive Relationship from the FI Mechanic.

 

You don’t need to be financially independent to leave an unhealthy situation, and you don’t have to leave your job to live your best life, according to the Incognito Money Scribe. How to Live Like You’re Already Retired.

 

The primary care Physician in Numbers looks at her numbers and decides she can definitely probably maybe retire now. Or soon. It’s tough to say when The Finish Line Keeps Moving.

 

Leif from Five Year FIRE Escape channels his inner Peter Gibbons with this declaration and explanation. Doing Nothing. Why this is the best goal for high performers.

 

That may sound like an odd goal, but we set all kinds of odd goals according to The Physician Philosopher and his co-host Ryan Inman. The Most Important Numbers in Physician Finance.

 

Your goals and objectives later in life will be starkly different than those you had in your youth. Joe Kesler with Humble Dollar explains Life’s Two Halves. Have you crossed over that line?

 

Anesthesiologist Sanjana Vig, The Female Professional, breaks down the career of a professional, discussing the financial implications as one advances. Your Evolving Finances at Each Stage of Career Development.

 

With stocks up nearly 20% year-to-date, your net worth has almost assuredly grown. The radiologist with XRAYVSN is not impressed. Are We Making Financial Headway? Focus On The Denominator!

 

Most people didn’t see their HSA balances grow much at all, though. I hope you’re among the small minority that actually invests the money in your Health Savings Account! Investing in an HSA: Don’t Sit on Cash Like Everyone Else.

 

Real estate has been doing gangbusters, too. I would know; I’ve sold 2 places this year. Passive Income MD compares and contrasts two popular ways to invest in real estate. Active vs. Passive Real Estate Investing.

 

Some years aren’t so great for stocks, and some bear markets last a very long time. Nick Maggiulli with Of Dollars and Data looks at overseas markets to find his worst-case scenario. Could it be Japan? Nope. Try Spain and Greece. My Investing Nightmare.

 

Could your investment portfolio survive a nightmare scenario? Dr. David Graham, the FI Physician highlights the risks and how to estimate your exposure to them and damage from them in Portfolio Stress Testing.

 

 

It’s Good to Be Home

 

We somehow survived more than two weeks in the belly of the COVID beast that is Florida right now without contracting the disease. It certainly helps that 3 out of 4 in my family are vaccinated.

I did get a bit of a summer cold, and my boys each had the same symptoms a few days after me and a few days apart. We all took COVID tests just to be on the safe side, even my asymptomatic wife, and all 4 of us tested negative. Uff da.

It’s starting to feel like no place is perfectly safe, and we know of a number of young children in our community — friends of friends — who are sick and tested positive. It’s a shame this highly contagious Delta variant couldn’t have held off until the kids had a chance to be vaccinated. But here we are.

Nevertheless, it’s good to be home. In outdoor settings, we’ve been able to see family again. My wife and boys ran a 6k today (yes, 6 kilometers — don’t ask), and all came home with medals for their age group. Between the 3 of them, we took home gold, silver, and bronze! I’m still not back to running due to nagging ball-of-foot issues, but now that we’re home, I’m back on the spin bike regularly.

Speaking of Gold Medals, the Olympics wrap up today, and the USA will easily have the most medals overall by a count of 113 to 88, and we edged out China for the most gold medals, 39 to 38.

There was one Gold Medal that had me jumping and hollering, not believing what I had just witnessed. I honestly haven’t been this excited over the outcome of a sporting event since Stefon Diggs’ Minnesota Miracle.

This was the Miracle on the Mat, with Minnesota’s own Gable Steveson scoring not one, but two takedowns on the three-time world champion heavyweight wrestler from Georgia in the final 10 seconds. The statistical odds of victory when down 8-5 as time is expiring have to be infinitesimally small, but our guy defied the odds.

The final 23 seconds:

 

AT THE BUZZER 😳@GableSteveson wins gold in the final second of the match

(via @NBCOlympics)pic.twitter.com/ywEHEj5g1T

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) August 6, 2021

 

Keep grinding, keep hustling, never say never, and watch what happens.

 

 

A Recommended Financial Advisor

 

For those of you who would rather not DIY, I maintain a list of recommended financial advisors. Among the good guys and gals who work frequently with physicians, only the lowest cost, fee-only fiduciary advisors were invited to be on this short list. Among them is CMG Financial Consulting.

CMG Financial Consulting

CMG Financial Consulting Vetting Application

 

Clint Gossage CFA, CFP®, CPA, has been married to a Surgical Oncologist for the past 15 years and has experienced first-hand the ups and downs over the journey from undergrad to attending. After helping friends in medical school, residency and fellowship with their finances, he left a high-paying job, managing the investments at a multi-billion dollar family office, to startCMG Financial Consulting. He helps physicians and medical professionals to get out of student loan debt, save money, invest in tax efficient strategies, manage and protect their assets and give them back their most scarce resource…time. Schedule an appointment today.

Fees:

One-Time Services:
Student Loan Review – $500

Residents/Fellows:
Ongoing Student Loan Support  – $100/month
Financial Planning  – $225/month

Financial Planning, Investment Management & Tax:

Early Investors: (Up to $500,000 of Assets Under Management): $450/month

Foundation Builders: ( Up to $1,000,000 of Assets Under Management ): $850/month

Financially Independent> (Over $1,000,000 of Assets Under Management): $1,250/month

Contact Info:
22816 N 79th Pl
Scottsdale, AZ 85255
(877) 695-8004
cgossage@cmgfin.com

Visit CMG

 

Have an outstanding week!

-Physician on FIRE