M Advisor Podcast: Financial Clarity for Physicians

Referencing the book "Your Money" by Carl Richards, I discuss the four sources of capital (sketch #6), Money, Energy, Time, and Attention. I key in on attention, and chat about what that actually means. Who do we "pay" when we pay attention? And what's our attention worth? This is a cool book. I receive no commission for the book sales. Check it out: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1804091715/?bestFormat=true&k=your%20money%20carl%20richards&ref_=nb_sb_ss_w_scx-ent-bk-v2_k0_1_14_de&crid=2P86HU8QY2O0D&sprefix=your%20money%20car

A quick template on how to evaluate and move your finances to the next level. Know where you are: Create a Balance Sheet List your goals and priorities List your procrastinations - this is big Manage how you talk to yourself about money - this is bigger Resources: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/improve-your-finances-create-a-balance-sheet/id1613405436?i=1000743276123 https://www.m-advisor.com/blog/how-to-create-a-balance-sheet-video

Roth vs Traditional retirement plan contributions is a great debate and should be considered carefully. There isn't a clear-cut answer that works for everyone, but there are benefits to both Roth and Traditional retirement plan contributions. Here is an article mentioned in this podcast that details a similar topic: https://www.m-advisor.com/blog/retirement-plan-contributions-traditional-vs-roth-updated-for-2026

Finding the right financial advisor can be one of the most beneficial relationships you can make, as it can bring clarity and confidence to your financial life; however, selecting the wrong advisor can waste years of savings and put you behind on your financial goals. Here are a few tips before interviewing a financial advisor to make sure you find that right one. Be sure to download the checklist with 24 interview questions for a financial advisor, specifically for physicians: m-advisor.com/questions-for-a-financial-advisor

What is the most romantic gesture you can make to your spouse and family? Planning for their lives and livelihood beyond yourself, of course! That's called estate planning. Estate planning is not just a financial topic, it's a selfless action to ensure your loved one's future, even without you there.

Financial fraud is a multi-billion-dollar industry, and it is much bigger than we think because many fraudulent cases go unreported. Talking to your family about fraud and scams is an important conversation that can help you prepare for a potential attack. Fraudsters play on emotions, so think through what's going on if you get an unfamiliar call. The 2025 data is not yet released, but here is the 2024 data from the Federal Trade Commission that's discussed: https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/csn-annual-data-book-2024.pdf

Physical fitness and finances are interwoven in deeper patterns and occurrences than we ordinarily recognize. As the new year brings positive changes to our fitness routines, here's some motivation on the connections between our health and our wealth.

Making positive changes to our lives each New Year isn't anything new. If you're looking to positively change your finances, this is the first thing: Create a Balance Sheet and track your "Net Worth." This simple task may be the key to help make your finances improve year over year. Video referenced in the show: What is a Balance Sheet? https://youtu.be/-YxzJuyoFFU

Family financial meetings are a tool used by many high profile and high net worth families to make sure massive wealth doesn't erode family values. I think the family financial meeting translates to a much broader audience to intentionally verbalize and pass on family culture, stories, and values, as well as preserve open communication about how the family financial plan is structured.

Roth IRAs, due to their tax-free growth and tax-free distributions, can be useful accounts for any financial plan. The IRS has rules about who can fund Roth IRAs; however, there is a loophole that allows some high income earners to fund Roth IRAs indirectly. This loophole is commonly referred to a "Backdoor Roth" contribution. The IRS has a rule that makes it difficult to fund backdoor Roth IRAs if you already have a traditional IRA. I discuss this "pro rata rule" in detail. Failure to understand this rule is one of the biggest mistakes when utilizing the backdoor Roth IRA. Download your free Backdoor Roth IRA Checklist at https://www.m-advisor.com/backdoor-roth-ira-checklist

This is my conversation with Dr. Kevin Pho when I had the opportunity to speak on KevinMD. The conversation is based on this article: https://kevinmd.com/2025/08/physician-practice-ownership-risks-rewards-and-reality.html

Explore and review the most common benefits associated with hospital employees. I'll frame each benefit with how I help other physicians make benefit enrollment decisions. Remember to always enroll in your benefits with your current financial plan in mind! Here is a guide to hospital benefits enrollment, based on the information in this podcast: https://www.m-advisor.com/blog/a-guide-to-hospital-benefits

What if you make a plan, and it doesn't work? There may be nothing spookier than that! The results of a plan not working can be catastrophic, leading to family division for generations. Don't let this happen to you! Learn how to avoid pitfalls in your financial plan. Here are three spooky reasons your plan won't work!

This episode explores a goal-setting exercise that's a great checkpoint for review and evaluation on the trajectory of our lives. You are currently the midpoint between the "past you" who wanted to achieve a career in medicine and a "future you" who is an ideal or refined version of this current you. Comparing these two people is a great way to explore your values, your accomplishments, and the direction you're headed.

As parents, we are all willing to support our kids. As our kids grow up, they'll need some support, both emotionally and financially. Sometimes financial support for adult children can create a sort of financial enablement where the "child" is unable or unwilling to take care of their own responsibilities. This can put the parents' finances in a tough spot as well as create division in family relationships, such as sibling relationships. In this episode, we'll explore the impact of this situation and a few different ways of dealing with the bigger picture of this scenario.

So I was reading "Start with Why" by Simon Sinek, and there's a moment in the book where Simon gets to attend a conference with select business leaders, and the conference began with these two questions: "Raise your hand if you have reached many or all of your financial goals." "And Raise your hand if you feel successful." (and many of the hands went down). I wondered how this would apply to physicians. Many of us see physicians as being successful just by being a physician, but I wonder how many physicians, whether they have achieved a number of financial goals or metrics, actually feel successful.

I ran across a thoughtful quote credited to Confucius, and it made me think about it from several different angles. The quote is this: "We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one." This podcast examines this quote from a financial planning perspective and a bit beyond. Enjoy this episode, and maybe you can examine it from different angles in your own life, too!

For most physicians, purchasing disability insurance is an easy decision; however, there is one investment that disability insurance companies do not support. Wait, do your investments and disability insurance policies coincide? To some degree, yes. Here I give an example and explore a potential blind spot in doctor's income protection: unearned income.

Some investment assets warrant the formation of a holding company, usually for liability purposes. Real estate, private equity, and franchise agreements are great examples of these assets. Learn how a physician may structure a holding company, and let's take a deep dive into how it works.

We leave a different kind of legacy in various aspects of our lives. We leave a legacy for our spouses, our kids, and our clinics, among others. We'll explore some of the conversations and experiences that impact our legacy.

When you figure out you need an LLC, the question always looms: "What do I name the LLC?" Also, find out how to see what names are available and what names are already taken. This episode explores what kinds of LLCs and what uses of LLCs might be appropriate for what kind of LLC names.

Time horizon is generally defined as the period of time for which a specific investment account will stay invested before being utilized. Many times, an investment isn't allowed to enjoy its full time horizon due to our own behavior with our money. Adjusting your view for a much larger time horizon, and adjusting it for all of your assets might provide a different perspective on your life and legacy goals.

With the springtime weather upon us, thunderstorms can intrude on our finances by damaging our houses. During storm season, it's important to understand how our homeowner's insurance policy works if our house gets hit by a storm. The wind & hail deductible is included in all our homeowner's policies, and it is often misunderstood.

When the market declines, what are some good investment responses? How do market fundamentals work in a down market? What should we do with our investments when the market declines?

When the market goes down, what financial planning tasks help with the bigger picture? Knowing your budget, cash needs, and making sure you have the right amount of insurance are all critical components of a financial plan that's experiencing a reduction in asset valuation. Additional Resources: https://www.m-advisor.com/blog/financial-planning-for-savers-in-a-down-market-image

The memories we give our kids and grandkids provide them with the lens they'll use to view their inheritance - or any gift, for that matter. Vacations are just one of many ways to create memories that shape our lives. Let's explore the impact of taking time for vacations and how this shapes our legacy.

How are hobbies connected to your financial plan? Are they actually that important?

Learn what "per Stirpes" means, and how it can have a lasting impact on your beneficiaries.

Establishing a family trust or a revocable trust is an important step in a financial plan, but unless the trust is funded properly, it can be a near worthless endeavor. Learn the importance of funding a trust and how to do it.

Understanding how the concept of sunk costs impacts your decision-making can be a valuable tool for improving your life. Identifying this concept can be effective, not only in your financial life, but in nearly every aspect of your well-being.

Tax planning with W-2 income is simple, yet important. Understanding how income sources do and don't interact with one another is important to planning your next decision from a tax perspective. I also describe a calculator I use from the IRS to estimate tax withholdings. Here is a link to that calculator. Enjoy! https://www.irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator

What are some common New Year resolutions for your finances? How can you improve your finances?

In financial planning, figuring out what we want can be a difficult task. Deciding what we like may feel like we limit our possibilities. If we choose one path and lean in to that path, we may close the door on other opportunities.

While tax planning with W-2 income is limited, there are still steps you can take to maximize your tax deductions. For those who take the standard deduction most years, but almost get enough expenses to itemize, here's a quick way to plan ahead to get the most out of your charitable contributions.

If a tree falls in the forest, but no one hears it, does it make a sound? If plans are created, and no one knows about them, do the plans exist? Here, we chat about what aspects of a financial plan should be discussed and how to discuss them.

What is a buy/sell agreement and when does it become important? If you own a business or run a practice with other owner/partners, a buy/sell agreement can protect your practice against unwanted changes of ownership. Additionally, if you own your own practice, you may be responsible for buying shares in a practice when a partner unexpectedly cannot work any longer due to death, disability, bankruptcy, or divorce.

First of all, what is an LLC? Do physicians need an LLC or a PLLC? Learn why a physician might want to create an LLC or a PLLC (and what's the difference?), and how would an LLC be beneficial?

Our financial lives can be as simple or complex as we make them; however, there is a balance of the simple and the complicated that might make our financial plan more effective. Is there a planning opportunity we're missing by being too simplistic? If our financial plan is too complicated, is it sustainable? Utilizing professional guidance from financial advisors, attorneys, and accountants may enable you to use a sort of professional capacity to hold the complexity balance you need.

Money can undoubtedly stir emotions. Your initial memories and experiences with money can create a lasting impression on your money habits, which ultimately can play a part on determining your legacy. Were your first money experiences good or bad? Was money a sore subject in your youth? Uncovering and labeling these experiences may help you understand why money is emotional to you.

Many physicians receive a bonus when signing employment contracts. These bonuses can be nice additions to a new job; however, where there is income, taxes exist. Learn about the most popular forms of physician signing bonuses and how they impact your income tax. You may not be able to change your signing bonus, but you can plan for it!

Too often the conversations about life insurance are geared toward how much insurance to purchase. This conversation focuses on when to consider life insurance purchases and changes. What do you look for when you look at your own policies? Easy ways to make sure your insurance policies are up to date.

What are gift taxes? What are estate taxes? These taxes are uniquely positioned to work together, yet they are distinct taxes. Learn the basics of how these taxes work. Understanding the basics of these taxes might help you plan for your kids.

We are all saving for someone else, even if we're saving for ourselves. As time passes, are we taking care of our future selves? How can we be aware of what we will need as we get older.

The summer often provides a bit slower routine, which allows us time and capacity to consider what's important in our lives. In financial planning, understanding the kind of life you want to live is a great accomplishment. With some self-awareness, you can prioritize meaningful planning objectives and filter those that aren't.

How do you go about combining finances after you get married? Here are some talking points, fundamentals, and things to consider when combining finances.

How does term life insurance work? Life insurance is generally pretty complicated. Term life insurance is the simplest kind of life insurance, but there are a few things to be aware of. I've seen too many individuals get bad advice on their life insurance because it benefitted the insurance agent. Life insurance shouldn't be a zero-sum game, and you shouldn't have heartache when buying life insurance. In this podcast, learn some of the basics of the two primary types of term life insurance, their pros and cons, and what to look out for when reviewing or purchasing a policy.

Let's get morbid! What is the impact of your legacy on the decisions and to-dos surrounding your own passing and funeral? There are a lot of decisions that are made after a person dies: do you want to be buried or cremated? Where do you want to be buried? Do you want your ashes spread or held? Is it fair to force our grieving families to make these decisions on our behalf? How do we even have these conversations with our loved ones?

What is the self employment tax? If you have any 1099 wages, there is a good chance you are subject to the self employment tax. Depending on your personal tax situation, the self employment tax could be devastating to your lifestyle and your ability to save for your future. Learn what the self employment tax is, so you can be aware of one of the biggest tax traps!

What if you create a financial goal and are successful at achieving it? Then what? Is planning for our financial future a fulfilling endeavor? Are there other questions we should be asking ourselves when we plan ahead? If we retire, for example, is that enough? Is achieving a goal enough to keep us fulfilled?

As a parent, is an inheritance an obligation to provide? Can an inheritance promote negative outcomes? What are your thoughts on inheritances?