1. Show gratitude for good health in the midst of this pandemic. Whether you’ve made a full recovery from coronavirus or have been one of the lucky few to have never gotten infected, you’ve made it to the close of another year. Show gratitude. We are alive and healthy enough to make a living, be in our right mind, and make it through the Christmas holidays. That is a blessing. Good health is one of the things many people take for granted while they are young and spend a fortune trying to maintain when they are older. Be different. Part of showing gratitude for good health means making a commitment to take care of your body and preserve that health for as long as you can. Enjoy the holidays but make a commitment to exercise, eat healthy, and maintain a good mental state going into the new year.
2. Practice good self-care to become a better version of yourself. It’s not enough to just have good health habits. You also have to put in the work needed to become a better version of yourself. You are too smart and have too much potential to stay stagnant. You have to grow. And in order for you to grow, you have to practice good self-care and commit to getting better. That means doing what it takes to improve mentally, emotionally, physically, intellectually, and financially. You may have to hire a personal trainer, see a dietician, get a therapist, take a few courses, read some new books, and surround yourself with a social circle who will motivate you to strive for more.
3. Get optimistic about next year and refuse to stress about the unknown. You’re a young professional with a promising career, good health, and a sound mind. There’s nothing you can’t do. Instead of worrying about your job, your bills, or other things that used to cause you stress, adopt a new mindset. Before this year ends, make a commitment to write down some goals for next year. And dream big. Think of what you plan to accomplish, the money you plan to invest, the places you intend to travel, the people you hope to impact. Then visualize it. Picture yourself doing all these things and think about how it would make you feel.
4. Reaffirm your commitment to invest money and grow your net worth. If you’re like most people you desire to live a life of significance and get paid to do work that you enjoy. Perhaps you also want to travel the world, spend time with family, and live in a nice home. Your ability to do these things will be much improved if you build your net worth. The more money you have, the less dependent you will be on your job and the more options you will have to live life on your own terms. Make investments now to give yourself that chance. Set aside 10-20% of your income for building wealth and use that money to invest, pay down debt, and save for large purchases. One of the best things money can buy is control over your time. Do what it takes now and make the necessary investments to build your net worth so you can live the life you desire.
5. Never forget the importance of faith and family. Maya Angelou once said, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” So do your best to let your family know how much they mean to you. Regardless of how much money you have, regardless of the type of career you build, or the kind of possessions you acquire, it’s vital that you remember what’s important in life. The love and support of your family/friends along with your faith and positive belief that you are here for a purpose and can do anything you put your mind to is vital. Take the time to tell people how much you love and care for them this holiday season and renew your faith in God who has allowed you to make it to this moment and all the future moments to come. Finish 2021 off with a bang and head into 2022 with a plan for this to be your best year yet.
Key Lessons from 2019 to Bring into 2020:
1. Meaningful relationships with family and friends can add so much joy to your life. As a busy physician I can sometimes forget how important a personal life is to our overall well-being. Having close friends outside of work to socialize with or plan fun weekend activities makes my life so much more enjoyable. Having family around to relieve stress and keep me grounded helps me remain focused on what’s most important. With close personal relationships, I find myself happier at work, even in the most trying of times. I’m more positive, more optimistic, and even have increase job satisfaction. In 2020 I will continue to prioritize personal relationships.
2. Happiness is a choice—positivity, in the most trying situations, can improve your mental health. Many of us chose to work in health care to help heal various illnesses and provide people with second chances through medicine. Despite our altruistic motives, there are some parts of our job that can steal our joy. From ever increasing administrative work, patients expressing frustration over costs/wait times that are often times beyond our control, to rising pressure to compromise quality patient care in lieu of “efficiency,” work can seem less enjoyable. Despite these challenges, I’ve learned that happiness is a choice. Positivity, even in the most trying situation can improve our mental health. Finding the silver lining, even when it seems to be hiding, can alter our mood and outlook for the rest of the day. There are many reasons to feel frustrated or upset but choosing happiness and positivity makes things so much better.
3. Finding ways to relieve stress is necessary to prevent burnout. Although happiness is a choice, finding ways to relieve stress is integral. As a resident doctor who works crazy hours with high expectations, work can be stressful. In order to have longevity in my career and actually wake up each day excited for what it may bring, I have to relieve stress. For me, that means going to a hip-hop spin class, having brunch with my girlfriends, enjoying a football game with my brothers, or sometimes just relaxing at home with a piece of chocolate and a savory glass of red wine. Whichever the method, it’s important to have reliable ways to relieve stress.
4. Financial stress can be avoided by using a budget and sticking to a spending/saving plan. Learning about personal finance is integral to our future. It’s so easy to live the lavish doctor lifestyle with a large house, expensive car, and limitless luxury purchases largely paid for with debt and credit cards, but those decisions can put us into a perilous situation down the line. As a grad student, I made some horrible financial decisions (buying things I didn’t need on credit cards, moving to a city I couldn’t afford, and living above my means when I finally did start making decent money). Trust me, it is taking a lot of effort to right these wrongs now. Instead of investing as much as I want for retirement or putting more money into a high-yield savings account, I spent a good chunk of each check paying off credit card debt I racked up in my early 20s. Now that I’ve nearly paid it all off, I’ve vowed to be better in 2020. Having to correct previous mistakes is always more costly than we think. Learning to stick to a budget, live below my means, and follow a set financial plan is a never-ending exercise in self-discipline that has set me on a clear path to financial independence in the coming years
5. Writing down goals and creating accountability can help you achieve more overall. I learned a while ago that a goal without a timeline is just a dream and a goal without a plan is just a wish. In order to make sure I achieved my goals, I decided to write down them down along with some concrete objectives and action steps. Doing so has helped me create accountability and drastically increased my chance of success. I definitely plan to continue this practice in 2020. If I truly want to go higher, achieve more, and have continued success then I need to be constantly striving for more and putting safeguards in place to remind me of my goals and motivate me on the journey. Writing down my goals and placing them on my bathroom mirror forces me to look at them each morning and be reminded of the bigger picture.
6. The people you surround yourself with have a major influence on your life choices, decisions, and accomplishments. The people we surround ourselves with, listen to, and speak with have a major influence on our life. We begin to think about what we constantly hear and we begin to believe what we are repetitively told. When I started interacting with friends who were very religious, I too gained more zeal and faith. When I started meeting up with young professionals were business-minded with multiple side hustles I too began to think of ways to create additional revenue streams. When I conversed with doctors in the hospital who were positive despite the challenges, I too became more optimistic about my job. In 2020 lets think about who we want to become and surround ourselves with more people that embody those traits.
What are some key lessons you learned in 2019, that you are bringing into 2020?
New Goals for the New Year
1. Increase retirement investments. As young professionals who will eventually retire or cut back on work at some point, we need to start investing towards our future. While many of us may already have started setting aside money for retirement, others of us may not have begun that process. In 2020, let’s strive to do even more. Let’s commit to increasing our retirement savings, even if it’s by a small amount. As we continue to set aside more money for retirement, we will have a greater amount of money invested which will allow the magic of compound interest to work in our favor and increase our net worth.
2. Save more of my income. In addition to investing more money for retirement, I am also striving to save more in general in 2020. In addition to saving up money for vacations and large purchases, we should also have a certain percentage of our income in an emergency fund and for unexpected expenses. While some people may choose to save all additional funds in retirement accounts, I plan to keep a certain percentage of money “liquid” or saved outside of retirement accounts just in case I need to access it at a later date. It’s difficult to take money out of retirement accounts before you reach your mid-50s, so having money saved in a more accessible account is ideal for those of us who may be a bit younger.
3. Live below my means. As I enter in 2020, my goal is live below my means. Instead of buying things because I can afford them or living the doctor lifestyle I envy, I’ve chosen an alternative path: practicing self-control. I share an apartment with a roommate, which allows me to save money on housing costs and other bills. I have a budget for food that I adhere to each month. I also refrain from going to the mall unnecessarily or buying things I want simply because they’re “on sale.” Learning to live below my means has helped me become less materialistic and allowed me to save more, invest a greater amount, and be better prepared for any unexpected events. It has also prevented me from buying things to impress those around me. Instead, I’m focused on my own financial goals which will allow me to make even greater progress toward financial independence.
4. Pay off bad debt. Before I became financially literate, I made some costly mistakes. I used credit cards to purchase things I didn’t need. I moved to a city I couldn’t afford and failed to live on a budget. I also didn’t save much of anything, for retirement or for emergencies. Now that I’m older and wiser, I have sought to right these wrongs. You might be doing the same thing as well. As we enter this new decade, lets strive to get rid of credit card debt and car loans and refrain from accumulating more. The quicker we get rid of high interest debt, the sooner we can increase our cash flow each month and have more money to invest.
5. Give money to charity. Along with spending money on ourselves and saving money for the future, my goal is to give more. It can be easy to focus on my own priorities but giving allows us to improve the lives of others. Whether it’s paying tithes to the church or increasing charitable donations, giving is a self-less act that allows us to make a difference in the lives of people with real struggles and financial hardships. Although I’d love more money for myself, I recognize that I’ve been blessed beyond measure and should actively seek to pass that grace onto others.
Tell me, what are some of your financial goals for the new year?
Before you head into the new year, REFLECT
One of the best things we can do as we head into the new year is review and re-evaluate. 2020 is the start of a new decade if we want this one to be better than the last one, we must take some time out of our busy schedules to reflect. As we contemplate things that occurred in 2019 and prep for the new year, here are 4 key areas we should examine:
Look at things done well. When it comes to your career, your finances, and your personal life what are some things you feel you did well in 2019? For me, that could include a variety of things. In terms of my career, I interviewed at many amazing hospitals and accepted a job at my top choice in Atlanta. I learned quite a bit during my first 6 months as a physician and have done well on various tests and evaluations. In terms of my finances, there are many things I am proud of as well. I started living in an affordable apartment and paid off a significant amount of debt. I also created a monthly budget that allowed me to give money away to others, save for retirement, and teach me to live below my means. In terms of my personal life there are few things I’m proud of as well. I finally moved to the same city as my family and have cultivated some amazing friendships. What about you? What are some things you feel went well in2019?
Look at things that could have been done better. Although it’s nice to think back on our accomplishments, in order for us to keep progressing we must also reflect on our shortcomings. We must take a look at things that could have gone a bit better and determine where we can make improvements in the new year. For me, that includes several areas of my life. In my career, I’m happy I started working as a physician, but I need to do a better job continuing to learn new information by reading updated journals more frequently and researching the medical management of specific diagnoses more consistently. In terms of my finances, I need to do a better job tracking my spending. I have a general spending plan, but there are certain areas in my budget, mainly food and restaurant spending, that I could cut back on if I tracked it better. I also need to build up a larger emergency fund. What are some things you’d like to be better in your life in 2020?
Determine what you’d like to achieve this year. We should each have a few goals for 2020 in various areas of our lives. My 2020 goals in my career are to take and pass the last of a 3-part series of national board exams. I’d also like to publish and present research at a national conference, begin a quality-improvement project within my family medicine clinic, and be the team doctor for more athletic events. Within my finances, I’d like to pay off all credit card debt from my graduate school days, save and invest even more money toward retirement, continue to give to charities, and pay for a couple international vacations in cash. In my personal life, I’d like to prioritize more time with my family and continue to cultivate friendships with even more people who push me to be a better version of myself. What are some things you’d like to accomplish in your career, finances, and personal life this year?
Determine the actions, steps, or commitments you need to make to ensure this year is better than the last. In order to achieve the goals we set out in the previous step there are different action steps and character traits we must adopt in order to turn those dreams into a reality. For example, if I want to do well on my board exam, present research, and start a quality improvement project I need to stay organized and create deadlines to finish certain parts of my research. If I want to pay down the remaining credit card debt and save more for retirement, I must make sure I have some automatic payments coming out from my bank account and increase the percentage of my check that goes towards index mutual funds. If I’d like to make more time for the people I love, then I need to prioritize time each day that is free from other commitments. No meetings, no emails, no work projects, or blog writing, and instead having at least an hour each day of personal time. Tell me, what action steps and commitments are willing to make to ensure that you meet your goals for 2020?