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caligas

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I think we've tried this before, but who cares:

I made $450k w2 last year, plus $52k in the retirement account plus full benifits. Took 10 weeks off, cat skiing in BC and played the ocean course at kiawah plus other adventures. Call is not bad, respected by surgical colleagues as a consultant. Do mostly my own cases. Live in a nice town except the ****ty airport. Have paid off my loans, bought a house, saved almost 2 million by 40th birthday. Could quit call any time if I wanted, hell, I could go part time if I wanted but I figure make hay while the sun shines.

Yes work is often stressful (all jobs that pay good are) and I was lucky to come out in a great job market over 10 years ago (admittedly way better than today). And I have enjoyed good stock market returns overall. And yes it all could blow up at any time for any number of reasons, but I wouldn't have done anything different.
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Agree. I work hard but I am compensated very well. I work full time at a respected Hospital, and do extra shifts post call and sometimes on the weekend. I am fairly young and do not mind working hard while I put money away, invest, and pay loans.

First Job same around 475K with full retirement and benefits.
Moonlighting around 75K.
 
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Jesus, no wonder I'm so miserable...
 
Well then put me on that list and I'll blow the dust off my snowboard!
 
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You guys making bank with 10 weeks vaca are probably all in BFE.
 
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Not sure if you represent the norm or the exception...

This is the first positive anesthesiology thread I've seen here. How many hours do you work OP and @mccar012 ?

Edit: Also, did you specialize?
 
Carbocation1 said:
You guys making bank with 10 weeks vaca are probably all in BFE.
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define BFE? I'm making bank 45 minutes from a major metropolitan area and within an hour of the beach. We don't have any pyramid scheme type partnership, yet we are now around $900K each total comp (haven't gotten taxes back from accountant yet to know the exact number).

There are plenty of great jobs out there. You just don't find them on gasworks because they don't need to advertise. It's 100% word of mouth and who you know. That's why you pick a good residency that has former grads that can hook you up with a sweet job.
 
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Mman said:
define BFE? I'm making bank 45 minutes from a major metropolitan area and within an hour of the beach. We don't have any pyramid scheme type partnership, yet we are now around $900K each total comp (haven't gotten taxes back from accountant yet to know the exact number).

There are plenty of great jobs out there. You just don't find them on gasworks because they don't need to advertise. It's 100% word of mouth and who you know. That's why you pick a good residency that has former grads that can hook you up with a sweet job.
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holy ****. This is actually a thing? Please explain more lol
 
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AlphaBeta<3 said:
holy ****. This is actually a thing? Please explain more lol
Click to expand...

work hard, have good contracts, continue to expand your business (pain, ambulatory centers, etc). There are more than a few out there just like ours. We just never advertise. We are never hiring. If we need to, we call you not the other way around.
 
Mman said:
define BFE? I'm making bank 45 minutes from a major metropolitan area and within an hour of the beach. We don't have any pyramid scheme type partnership, yet we are now around $900K each total comp (haven't gotten taxes back from accountant yet to know the exact number).

There are plenty of great jobs out there. You just don't find them on gasworks because they don't need to advertise. It's 100% word of mouth and who you know. That's why you pick a good residency that has former grads that can hook you up with a sweet job.
Click to expand...

Do you guys have a "list" too?!
 
Mman said:
work hard, have good contracts, continue to expand your business (pain, ambulatory centers, etc). There are more than a few out there just like ours. We just never advertise. We are never hiring. If we need to, we call you not the other way around.
Click to expand...

Call me any time. Don't worry about the time difference.

Same for you Noy.
 
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soorg said:
How'd you save 2 mil by 40?!
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Making 450k plus 50k retirement, take home about 300k, spend 120k, save the rest. Heck, I should have saved more by that math, especially with market gains. Need to audit my wife's spending I guess. Although paying off loans and buying/renovating a house hurt some.

Working average of 50 hours plus a call weekend about 1 in 6.

Generalist, but I do hearts.
 
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Agree. I am not in BFE. I did specialize in pediatrics. Love the hospital and the job. We work hard, but are compensated in different ways for the extra we do...call, etc. I work less than 40 hrs per week before call. After call, closer to 40-45.

And agree about great jobs. My group has zero turnover. No one leaves except for retirement.
 
Noyac said:
I can move you up the list fast if you bring Patti with you.
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She said she was never going back there "so long as that jackass long haired snowboarding anesthesiologist is working there!"

So maybe get rid of that guy and I can talk her into it ;).

Actually I don't think the small mountain town was really her thing. All she talks about is retiring to Cabo.
 
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Mman said:
define BFE? I'm making bank 45 minutes from a major metropolitan area and within an hour of the beach. We don't have any pyramid scheme type partnership, yet we are now around $900K each total comp (haven't gotten taxes back from accountant yet to know the exact number).

There are plenty of great jobs out there. You just don't find them on gasworks because they don't need to advertise. It's 100% word of mouth and who you know. That's why you pick a good residency that has former grads that can hook you up with a sweet job.
Click to expand...

If you are EVER hiring let me know....please!

Dear god this thread made me more depressed. My area sucks, COL is moderate but salaries and benefits suck. I have said this before but I am giving it about 3-4 more years and if it doesn't change then I am bouncing.
 
Mman said:
work hard, have good contracts, continue to expand your business (pain, ambulatory centers, etc). There are more than a few out there just like ours. We just never advertise. We are never hiring. If we need to, we call you not the other way around.
Click to expand...
+ supervise 4 rooms...
 
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dhb said:
+ supervise 4 rooms...
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2-4 rooms depending on the difficulty of the case. Average is 3, probably spend < 20% of my time at 4 rooms and really only when a couple are on long boring cases that will go for a while with minimal intervention needed.
 
Mman said:
2-4 rooms depending on the difficulty of the case. Average is 3, probably spend < 20% of my time at 4 rooms and really only when a couple are on long boring cases that will go for a while with minimal intervention needed.
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That's where my job trumps yours. I do all my own cases.
But I've supervised in the past at another gig. It can be a good deal ass well when everyone gets along and has the same goals. So I'm not knocking your situation at all. It still sounds quite good.
 
caligas said:
Making 450k plus 50k retirement, take home about 300k, spend 120k, save the rest.
Click to expand...


I don't think the math adds up. Your federal tax rate is 39% most likely. Add FICA, ACA, AMT, and state and city tax you end up paying over 55% in taxes.
 
Mman said:
define BFE? I'm making bank 45 minutes from a major metropolitan area and within an hour of the beach. We don't have any pyramid scheme type partnership, yet we are now around $900K each total comp (haven't gotten taxes back from accountant yet to know the exact number).
Click to expand...

Do you have any anesthesiologists that are employees only?
 
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caligas said:
I think we've tried this before, but who cares:

I made $450k w2 last year, plus $52k in the retirement account plus full benifits. Took 10 weeks off, cat skiing in BC and played the ocean course at kiawah plus other adventures. Call is not bad, respected by surgical colleagues as a consultant. Do mostly my own cases. Live in a nice town except the ****ty airport. Have paid off my loans, bought a house, saved almost 2 million by 40th birthday. Could quit call any time if I wanted, hell, I could go part time if I wanted but I figure make hay while the sun shines.

Yes work is often stressful (all jobs that pay good are) and I was lucky to come out in a great job market over 10 years ago (admittedly way better than today). And I have enjoyed good stock market returns overall. And yes it all could blow up at any time for any number of reasons, but I wouldn't have done anything different.
Click to expand...
Hard to believe..
caligas said:
I think we've tried this before, but who cares:

I made $450k w2 last year, plus $52k in the retirement account plus full benifits. Took 10 weeks off, cat skiing in BC and played the ocean course at kiawah plus other adventures. Call is not bad, respected by surgical colleagues as a consultant. Do mostly my own cases. Live in a nice town except the ****ty airport. Have paid off my loans, bought a house, saved almost 2 million by 40th birthday. Could quit call any time if I wanted, hell, I could go part time if I wanted but I figure make hay while the sun shines.

Yes work is often stressful (all jobs that pay good are) and I was lucky to come out in a great job market over 10 years ago (admittedly way better than today). And I have enjoyed good stock market returns overall. And yes it all could blow up at any time for any number of reasons, but I wouldn't have done anything different.
Click to expand...

Pull my other leg it plays jingle bells.
 
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criticalelement said:
Hard to believe..
Click to expand...

o-OSTRICH-IN-THE-SAND-facebook.jpg
 
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criticalelement said:
Hard to believe..


Pull my other leg it plays jingle bells.
Click to expand...

If the denial of the existence of better jobs helps you sleep, far be it from me to stop you. I actually don't think mine is even that spectacular, just better than what the average new grad, or somebody in academics, may get.
 
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Noyac said:
Wow, I thought I had the best job in the country. I guess it's all relative.
Click to expand...

Sometimes jobs just overlap...
This past week was good huh...?
Except... I was in need of that moto ride... F'er. :claps:

IMG_6171_zpsqzxuzkdp.jpg
 
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caligas said:
I think we've tried this before, but who cares:

I made $450k w2 last year, plus $52k in the retirement account plus full benifits. Took 10 weeks off, cat skiing in BC and played the ocean course at kiawah plus other adventures. Call is not bad, respected by surgical colleagues as a consultant. Do mostly my own cases. Live in a nice town except the ****ty airport. Have paid off my loans, bought a house, saved almost 2 million by 40th birthday. Could quit call any time if I wanted, hell, I could go part time if I wanted but I figure make hay while the sun shines.

Yes work is often stressful (all jobs that pay good are) and I was lucky to come out in a great job market over 10 years ago (admittedly way better than today). And I have enjoyed good stock market returns overall. And yes it all could blow up at any time for any number of reasons, but I wouldn't have done anything different.
Click to expand...

My man.

*waiting for all the debbie downers to come out of the woodwork to piss on your parade* :rolleyes:
 
There are plenty of practices out there with partners earning $600k plus. That said, there used to be even more of them.

Not to rain on Mmans parade but I've earned more than him in the past working 65 hours plus per week with extra call shifts. It's painful but the money adds up.

Overall, I recommend a good quality of life in the high 400s over just looking for the highest paying jobs possible. This means vacation, call, number of rooms you must cover, etc should all factor in your decision.

I absolutely recommend Residents seek out the better groups wherever they may be vs taking the typical AMC employee job.

The fact remains the best groups like Mmans are selling out at record numbers to secure their $3 million buyouts.

Finally, I'd rather do my own cases making $600 than cover 4 rooms of CRNAs making much more money even though I've spent the majority of my career doing the latter instead of the former. Money is just as addictive as drugs to some people.
 
Haven't posted here since I was a med student.

Blade, those salary numbers look amazing to me as a resident.

Do you think it's possible to be happy in anesthesia taking a relatively lower salary with less hours, call, etc?

Or will it be too hard to see your colleagues earning double or triple what you make?


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Definitely being paid below market (govt work,) but I have my life.

Hours aren't onerous (40-50hr/wk,) call is night float for a week once every two months or so (gives me time to keep the health issues in check during the daytime,) and the occasional weekend. Workload is not as breakneck as when I trained, but almost everything but hearts, heads, and OB is here.

Did the locums track for a few months that would have earned me up in the 360k+/yr had I continued, but the health issues, the breakneck call schedule, the poor travel, and the lack of social life were definite big factors in what made me choose where I am.

My debt load from undergrad/school is well below average (80K total,) due to spending time earning my Heinlein citizen franchise. They offer debt reduction that I will be able to enroll in next month that should make that go away.

No wife, no kids, no family, and no financial drain aside from what I need for living. I may consider a mortgage in the future, but right now, I am comfortable renting in a good neighborhood.

The one big drawback the lack of friends. It's nice and warm most of the year, snow is in the distant mountains away from me (which is preferred.) The drawback is that most of my friends are in two other locations in the country, and I can't see them as often as I would like to. Aside from work, there is not much I have in common with my peers, and would like to just be around people whose crazy syncs well with my crazy. They also helped me through some rough crises, and I would like to be around for them.
 
Ronin2258 said:
Definitely being paid below market (govt work,) but I have my life.

Hours aren't onerous (40-50hr/wk,) call is night float for a week once every two months or so (gives me time to keep the health issues in check during the daytime,) and the occasional weekend. Workload is not as breakneck as when I trained, but almost everything but hearts, heads, and OB is here.

Did the locums track for a few months that would have earned me up in the 360k+/yr had I continued, but the health issues, the breakneck call schedule, the poor travel, and the lack of social life were definite big factors in what made me choose where I am.

My debt load from undergrad/school is well below average (80K total,) due to spending time earning my Heinlein citizen franchise. They offer debt reduction that I will be able to enroll in next month that should make that go away.

No wife, no kids, no family, and no financial drain aside from what I need for living. I may consider a mortgage in the future, but right now, I am comfortable renting in a good neighborhood.

The one big drawback the lack of friends. It's nice and warm most of the year, snow is in the distant mountains away from me (which is preferred.) The drawback is that most of my friends are in two other locations in the country, and I can't see them as often as I would like to. Aside from work, there is not much I have in common with my peers, and would like to just be around people whose crazy syncs well with my crazy. They also helped me through some rough crises, and I would like to be around for them.
Click to expand...
I love this post!!!
So honest and so real
 
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Mman said:
define BFE? I'm making bank 45 minutes from a major metropolitan area and within an hour of the beach. We don't have any pyramid scheme type partnership, yet we are now around $900K each total comp (haven't gotten taxes back from accountant yet to know the exact number).

There are plenty of great jobs out there. You just don't find them on gasworks because they don't need to advertise. It's 100% word of mouth and who you know. That's why you pick a good residency that has former grads that can hook you up with a sweet job.
Click to expand...
Add me to that "list" too (advanced echo boarded:).
 
gasdoc77 said:
Add me to that "list" too (advanced echo boarded:).
Click to expand...

Add me to that list too. I'm not quite at $900 but it's in the zip code. Also echo boarded.
Also when I was looking for jobs I had no trouble finding over $500/year. There are plenty out there.
 
Ronin2258 said:
No wife, no kids, no family, and no financial drain aside from what I need for living. I may consider a mortgage in the future, but right now, I am comfortable renting in a good neighborhood.

The one big drawback the lack of friends. It's nice and warm most of the year, snow is in the distant mountains away from me (which is preferred.) The drawback is that most of my friends are in two other locations in the country, and I can't see them as often as I would like to. Aside from work, there is not much I have in common with my peers, and would like to just be around people whose crazy syncs well with my crazy. They also helped me through some rough crises, and I would like to be around for them.
Click to expand...

This alone is the most critical factor in regards to socking away large amounts of cash.
 
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