Bold title right. This blog entry acts as a continuation and explanation of a 2023 New Year’s resolution. Yep, Mrs. TFC and I had the goal of investing $20,000 each month of 2023. And we exceeded that every month by an uncomfortably healthy amount. Not bad for an employed CRNA and an employed Nurse Practitioner.

Mrs. TFC and I are examples of what is possible. Some life happenings are controllable others are not. We have had our share of uncontrollable happenings and I’m not a big “excuses guy.” This post is about managing the controllables.

The Financial Cocktail narrates my personal finance experiences and why I do what I do. It’s radical and not for everyone. Working 40+ years at a job I despise just to retire as an elder isn’t for me. I demand an atypical life, so I live atypically.

A substantial income is a given. Saving $20,000 per month as W2 employees, it’s difficult considering Uncle Sam takes his share before I see mine. And all of our expenses (which are taxed) are paid with taxed dollars. What problems to have.

TL;DR:

Our goal was to save $20k a month. We met and exceeded this goal, but it didn’t come without sacrifices. We achieved this feat working high paying jobs, working a ton of overtime, and living like the average American – not the average CRNA.

I’ll discuss 5 areas Mrs. TFC and I sacrificed to make this savings goal possible.

Living to the CRNA standard

In my CRNAs: Financially Independent in 10 Years post, I received quite a few comments saying it was unrealistic to live off the amount published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics website. Good news, they have updated data. An average couple in America spends $6,080 each month to live. Refute as you will, that’s the number.

And that’s about what Mrs. TFC and I spent each month. Occasionally a bit more if we were traveling or preparing for a newborn. A bit less if we were grinding out the hours at work. This means we not only live within our means, but well below. Like…way below.

Our advantage here is that we are in the moneymoon phase. We live comfortably on $6,000 per month. Easy when the previous standard was small apartments and a backpack full of clothes.

Lifestyle deflation rarely happens. So, we actively manage and contain lifestyle inflation. I could go back to living in a college dorm, but it wouldn’t be my first choice. I’ll stick with the modest abode and upgrade as the years pass.

We looked far and wide to rent a place when moving to the Southwest. We had many reasons for wanting to rent, but no luck finding a place. The housing market was pretty tight. If we wanted the job, buying was the only way.

Housing is an area where I noticed many of my classmates elevated right of the start. Some opting for a new build. Others moving to the same neighborhood as the cool kids.

There are plenty of CRNAs with a mortgage payment greater than $6,000 per month, let alone total monthly cost of living. Nothing wrong with a $6,000 mortgage unless you are trying to save $20,000 per month as a new grad.

When we applied for a mortgage while I was still in school, they looked at our contracts and approved us for a seven-figure mortgage. I was absolutely taken aback. Especially since there weren’t even any seven-figure homes in our area. We settled on a $250,000 house which translated to a $1,585 payment including PITI (principle, interest, taxes, and insurance).

I wear western boots from high school and drink coffee from a mug I have had since age 18. It’s not about the age or cost of items, but rather buying something because I NEED it, not because I WANT it. There is real empowerment walking through Fashion Square in Scottsdale knowing you can actually afford the wares.

I drive a 14-year-old pickup and Mrs. TFC was driving an equally aged car. She upgraded this year, but more on that in a bit. Could we afford more? Darn right. But it wouldn’t change anything or make me any happier.

We had plenty of opportunities to live the CRNA lifestyle. Everyone was willing to give us plenty of leverage to buy whatever we wanted.  But that didn’t fit the plan. We will upgrade after our investments start covering our expenses. Then it’s as good as free.

The average American saves less than 5% of their income. To save $20,000 per month, an employee would need to earn $4.8M annually. Probably more considering the effective tax rate. And no, we didn’t make that. Not even close. One needs atypical interventions for atypical outcomes.

Living in a Desirable Area

Typically, an inverse relationship exists between compensation and location desirability. Much supply, standard demand. This is evidenced by compensation rates in Manhattan, West Palm Beach, and Oahu. Not great, especially considering cost of living.

This was another controllable factor we sacrificed. We moved to a small, rural town in a remote area. Not bad so far. Then throw in high poverty rates and significant street drug use. I’m not speaking ill of the citizens of this town, but the setup just isn’t that attractive to outsiders.

The school system is quite underperforming – one of the considerations for families with school aged children.

We opted for low location desirability for high compensation. The town itself lacked pizzazz but was 90 minutes from an urban metropolis. Could have been much worse. Would I choose to settle in this location. No. Raise a family here. No.

Of the 4 jobs I was looking at before graduation, this position had the highest compensation and was in the least desirable location. I have the pros/cons lists from 2022 as evidence.

All of these factors can be overcome, but at what cost? All the more reason to make these sacrifices young.

The community hospital and staff are great, but the lack of community accolades make it difficult to retain providers. The call responsibilities of a critical access hospital (and request from the CEO) essentially require providers to live in town, so no commute from the urban metropolis.

Working a Desirable Job

As an SRNA, I made it a point to ask multiple CRNAs at each site what they most liked and disliked about their job. Urban trauma center CRNAs almost universally said work-life balance. Shift work with a relief CRNA. Work 40 hours and out. Call is in house paid hour for hour.

I understand not all trauma centers are like this, but the idea is alluring.

When asked about the pros of their job, rural CRNAs almost all said something like scope of practice or autonomy. Maybe they enjoyed regional anesthesia or just a few OB patients. None said work-life balance. I resonated with the practice style.

Well, the job I accepted out of school was a full scope of practice independent position. 3 on, 1 off with 7 days of solo call per month. Despite this set up, we ran at 50% staffing for most of 2023. This turned into no time off and call every other day / every other weekend – some call voluntary, and some not so voluntary. Hence the new adventure to full time locum work.

Call isn’t great. No one likes working nights, weekends, or holidays. No one likes receiving a call at midnight saying there is a case to be done. That is one of the disadvantages of working in small, independent sites. Call makes it tough to leave town or commit to doing really anything.

We had a group of close friends who all worked at the hospital and had frequent get togethers. These all were within call radius as almost every single member worked in an on-call position, but this was the extent of our social outings.

As a critical access facility, resources were limited. Nothing fancy. Refurbished equipment. Usually functional. Pharmacy and the C-suite influencing medications despite evidence stating otherwise. As you know, cost drives care. And this magnifies at small facilities.

This is where I started using Miller 3 blades because that’s what was there. I am now fond of the intubating sword.

Similarly to location, these less than lifestyle friendly jobs typically result in higher compensation. Mrs. TFC already said I can’t do the 230 days of call when we have kids in school. I put in the hours up front to be available when it matters.

Trading Time for Money

Mrs. TFC and I both worked for a big-dog healthcare company as W-2 employees. All of our 2023 earnings came from earned income. There is not a 10-million-dollar trust fund that we take dividends from. None of our earnings are passive.

The whole point behind the massive savings rate is to reach financial independence so our investments can fund our cost of living. Retirement is not an age, but rather a financial ratio.

As previously mentioned, we were short staffed. When presented with the option of working more hours, I opted to cover the vacant shifts—including call.

At first, this was to buy time for the company to credential locums and hire full time staff. Unfortunately, this didn’t happen quickly, so I ended up working more than the average bear for far longer than anticipated.

This was my first taste of being a pawn in a much larger game.

This arrangement did not facilitate time exploring the Southwest but was great for the bank account. When presented with the opportunity for more income, we jumped on it knowing it would accelerate nest egg growth and expedite FI. The sacrifice in the moment means more time with Mrs. TFC and our family in the future.

We planned on doing a bunch of hiking. I think we did 3 hikes. We planned on exploring the metropolis. We made a couple day trips. No major league games. No Waste Management Open. Big letdown.

Coming from the Midwest, we had packed boxes of hunting and fishing gear. None of these were opened for the entire 18 months that we resided in our Southwest home. Not for lack of hunting and fishing opportunity, but rather for lack of time.

In hindsight, this was a rather extreme sacrifice that I do not recommend. It was tolerable for the short term, but not sustainable.

Frivolity and Impulse Spending

There are two major factors of personal finance: money in and money out. Mastering personal finance is to understand the dynamics of both. Personal finance is all about the ratios. If the goal is to save $20k per month, it’s as easy as “make more and spend less.” Easier said than done.

Fortunately, with the current status of healthcare, there are plenty of opportunities to earn more. They may not be desirable, but they exist. Cover extra shifts at a current job. Locum during PTO weeks. Take a 24-hour OB shift on a Saturday.

If you are truly capped on the income side, decrease the outflow. Spend less. Again, the average couple lives on $6,000 per month. That means there are 150,000,000 Americans living on less than $6,000, so it can be done.

This delicate dance is best done through everyone’s favorite (most dreaded) word: budget.

Our range of spending was consistent within $1,000 month to month with notable exceptions being travel. Even when we traveled, we did not throw all caution to the wind. We spent consciously.

We retrospectively tracked our budget monthly. This is not as effective as proactive budgeting. However, we have been budgeting and managing our finances together for many years and are at a place where this works for us. It’s only fair to share our faults and inefficiencies.

I am a believer that the financial goal is fed first (second behind the government, but you get it). Our investments eat first when the paycheck arrives. We primarily lived off Mrs. TFC income. When that green hits the bank account, it’s difficult to avoid buying something nice. I just tuck it away.

It is tempting to go for big purchases such as cars and houses, just as it is tempting to buy smaller things like jewelry, electronics, and clothing. You may have read about us purchasing Mrs. TFC a new vehicle this year.

The 4Runner was a calculated purchase. Total financial liability, but it made Mrs. TFC happy, so it was worth fitting it in.

We fed the investments, then lived, then set aside money to buy the 4Runner outright. Only our over time dollars went towards that purchase.

There is a way to spend your money on “frivolous” purchases that can still align with your goals. It is all about prioritizing what is important to you and being realistic about time frame. A time frame is easily altered with even a small income boost or small spending decrease.

Closing Remarks

Saving a quarter million dollars per year isn’t for everyone. Some more, some less. It’s important to save the amount that aligns with your financial goals. If you are looking for ideas or another set of eyes on your personal financial books, that’s where the financial coaching comes in. As always, thanks for reading!