Retirement's Around the Next Corner


by Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
Joined practice July 2006 of
John K Throckmorton, DPM
Lansing, Michigan

The other day I was watching my son playing and realized time seems to be speeding up. This is a comment my parents, now reaching retirement age, have often mentioned. Obviously, time isn't actually speeding up (unless we've all just entered the Twilight Zone). Life events like having children, finishing medical school, or completing residency and starting practice help us mark our lives, which, when looking back, provides the mirage that time's speeding up. This had me thinking about retirement.

No. I'm not planning to retire so soon after starting practice. However, as all experts tell us, retirement planning should start as early as possible. No, students and residents, it's not too early to think about this. The earlier you start, the more money you'll have when you retire.

Here's the danger. For the majority of us, we've been poor for a very long time, struggling through college, medical school, and residency, delaying our gratification for a later date. Then you start practice, and you're making more money than you have in the past. All of a sudden you have the means to start purchasing "stuff." A new car, perhaps a new house, new furniture, etc. All of a sudden years have gone by, and you haven't even started saving for retirement. Don't fall into this trap!

So what should you do? Well, I'm not a financial adviser so I'll keep this discussion general. Here are ten tips to get you started. Plenty of books are available on the topic from more qualified individuals than me.

  1. Live BELOW your means.  Don't give in to the temptation to spend your money.

  2. Second, start saving now.  It's not too early.  Experts say you should “pay yourself first” then pay your bills.  Current recommendations are to save 10% of your income.

  3. Third, pay off your debt.  When I was in school I used credit cards to get me to interviews and pay for other expenses, which saddled me with thousands of dollars of debt.  After my first year in practice I took a large chunk of my bonus and paid off my high interest credit card debt.  I'm now putting that extra money toward retirement.  I would avoid paying off your consolidated school debt since the interest rate should be lower than any profit you receive on investments.

  4. Buy life insurance.  Shop around and get quotes from a variety of companies.  It's very complicated and requires careful consideration.

  5. Buy disability insurance.  Since young individuals are more likely to become disabled than die, you'll need this protection in case something happens to you.  Be sure to buy insurance with “own profession” coverage.  This covers you in case you become disabled to the point where you couldn't practice podiatry but could be retrained to do something else.

  6. Negotiate hard for a 401K if you enter associateship under another doctor or work for a larger practice.

  7. Start investing any extra money you have in aggressive investments which become a little more conservative as you age.  Don't watch the stock market every day unless you enjoy stressing yourself out.

  8. Consider enlisting the help of a financial planner.  The money you spend for their services should be offset by the stability and money you earn from their assistance.

  9. Live BELOW your means.

  10. Live BELOW your means.  Did I mention to live below your means?
Good luck with your retirement planning.  Start now!


Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
PRESENT New Docs Editor
[email protected]

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