Our goal at Presario Ventures is to be wealth makers for our investors. One of the ways we can help them grow their portfolios is by providing education that will give them some of the tools they will need to make sound decisions.
We regularly host Doctor Dinner events designed specifically for physicians, a group with a unique set of attributes and challenges. While most doctors are driven, successful, and have fulfilling careers, most are also facing increasing demands on their time, increasing expenses, decreasing reimbursement, litigation, and legislative interference. With so little time and a relentlessly decaying income, outside investment and a passive income is an attractive option. As a former surgeon, that’s something I understand well.
I recently spent two days at the Florida Medical Association Annual Meeting talking with physicians (you can read a full article about that event here). Many physicians stopped to talk to us about real estate investing, the benefits of passive cash flow, and income producing assets they could invest in. But there was a troubling undertone that permeated many of the conversations. A startling number of these doctors admitted that they were “burned out” to some degree with the practice of medicine.
Learn To Speak The Language Of Money
Certainly, doctors can lobby for change, enter politics and try to change the system. In the long-run, this may have lasting effects. In the interim, we need to take care of our personal health and our families. If we cannot change the burdensome infrastructure and oversight that has infected medicine over the past 20 years, we must change ourselves. We may not immediately solve the systemic issue, but we can chip away at our own collective situation one doctor at a time.
What can individual practitioners do to counter the potential for burnout? Doctors need to learn to talk the language of money. It sounds trite and simplistic, but none of us were taught that language in school. Many feel that it is reserved for the “experts” or the guys in the C-suites. That is simply not true. A modicum of financial education could start you on a path to gain some control over your professional life and buy back a piece of the precious time that you are losing in front of a computer screen. A physician who is less dependent on income from a medical practice is less stressed and enjoys his profession more. I can promise that your patients will notice and they will receive more compassionate care.
With so little time and a relentlessly decaying income, outside investment and a passive income is an attractive option. As a surgeon, that’s something I understand well.
Commercial Real Estate As An Income Producing Asset
There are multiple income producing assets that are not correlated with the medical industry. The challenge for physicians is the time required to start a business outside of their practice. The beauty of real estate is that it can be managed in parallel with the demands of a busy doctor and in that sense is a passive income.
I remember vividly a presentation by a financial manager that I attended during my last year of his medical training. He told me I should make a lot of money, buy a big house, and turn the rest over to a financial manager. I figured that if I reached retirement age I would have to live below my means and pray the money didn’t run out before I did.
Most people who are in a position to consider growing a wealth portfolio are taught the same thing. And while stocks and bonds can be an important part of the plan for some people, I would caution against making it the only part. Dollar purchasing power has declined for the past 100 years. Hard assets, like real estate, retain their inherent value and thus, are a hedge against inflation.
In my case, I was slowly able to produce enough passive income outside of medicine that I have been able to mold my practice to my liking. In turn, this has, with all modesty, provided a much more pleasant and caring environment for my patients. I still work within the same system, but I now have the power to eliminate or change conditions that affect my time, my income, or my patients’ care.
From Medicine To Millions
Real estate investment is a particularly attractive portfolio builder for medical professionals because investors can dedicate as much time as they desire, and explore investments alone or with partners. It’s also a passive income stream that will be there whether you work or not.