Fawcett’s Favorites 8-31-20

Each week I run into a few articles that I feel are especially valuable. Every Monday I would like to share some of the best with you, my readers. I hope you find them helpful.

This week’s favorites include a book review of The Doctors Guide to Navigating a Financial Crisis, how to get rid of stuff, how my grandfather saved money, what happens when you have “enough”, and ways to protect your investment portfolio in a downturn.

Happy reading!

Look for Zebras was the first site to put out a review of my new book, The Doctors Guide to Navigating a Financial Crisis. Many people in every profession are facing a personal financial crisis right now. Some are caused by the pandemic and others are caused by other factors. I wrote this book to help all people in crisis (not just physicians) find their way back to normal. This review concentrated on a few takeaways from the book and encouraged readers to not only read it after a crisis has hit, but to have read it before a disaster strikes. Here is the review’s recommendation for getting the most from the book:

1: Don’t wait until you’re in a true crisis to buy it.

2: Read through it once now, and then stash it away for future reference.

3: If you do encounter financial struggles, you’ll already be familiar with the steps you need to take, then pull the book back out and re-read the relevant sections in depth.

Read the complete review here, then get your own copy to help you through your current or future crisis. 

I think we all go through a phase when we realize we have too much stuff hanging around. We are in the process of downsizing our home right now. We need to get rid of a lot of stuff. Next Avenue published an article that was great timing for us on How to Get Rid of Stuff. When I did locums, we lived with just a few things at the assignment. Not having all the stuff was very refreshing. There is a simplicity to having less stuff surrounding us. If you are having a space problem in your house, maybe it is time to rethink all the stuff you have accumulated and start getting rid of it.  

When I talk with people about saving money, they often state that they just don’t have any money left over at the end of the month to save. But according to our grandparents, that is the wrong approach. Margin Matters tells a great story of what saving money was like in the 1950’s when grandpa put money in a coffee can. A lot of people have become wealthy using the coffee can method. What method are you using? Is it working out the way you planned? 

I’ve often thought about the concept of enough. The final chapter of my book The Doctors Guide to Eliminating Debt is all about that notion. The Physician on FIRE recently republished an article from The White Coat Investor called Six Tips for Those Who Have Enough. Without defining what enough is for us, we run the risk of overwork and burnout. We really can stop running when we cross the finish line. Have you set a finish line? Do you know what “enough” is for you? I suggest you think about this and come up with an answer so you will know what your target is. Then you will know when you have completed the rat race.

Many of us had a big scare when the market dropped in March. If the market dropping bothered you a lot, then you likely need to make some changes in your portfolio, so you are not so worried every time the market dips. Your Money Geek shares with us Five Ways to Protect Your Investment Portfolio in a Downturn. If you got hit harder than just a downturn would suggest, as in you also lost your job, then read The Doctors Guide to Navigating a Financial Crisis and pick yourself up out of the hole. What have you done to keep your portfolio safe? 

I hope you enjoy these articles as much as I did. I look forward to updating you again next week with a few more articles I find especially interesting. If you read an especially good article, send me the link so I can share it with others.