You can't compare making 250 k now vs 500 k in the past in PP, its apples and oranges. You're working more hours, supervising more, taking on more liability and responsibility, all with less job security. Its one thing to be humble and live modestly, its another to be downright foolish and not perform your due diligence on your worth in the market. Ignorance of what could've been is not an excuse, as the pacificity of your mindset and similar new grads with low expectations will only lead to a continued downward trajectory of reimbursement.
This is why physicians continue to get screwed when it comes to all matters financial. You are taught to be altruistic, trust your consultants, and do it for the good of humanity. Meanwhile, everyone has their hand in your pockets, looking for any angle with which to exploit you, and preying on your ignorance.
I recommend you read "The Successful Physician Negotiator"
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Reading SDN, WCI, bogleheads, etc are great resources for helping to manage your finances and plan for retirement, but the most important thing you can ever do in your career, which will cost you hundreds of thousands if not millions over the long haul, is negotiating your initial contract. And you can't do that successfully if you don't appreciate what your assets are worth.
Also read "The Rape of Emergency Medicine" for a brief history on ER being overrun by suits and taking a giant cut of your paycheck, and the foreshadowing of things to come in Anesthesiology.
http://www.aaemrsa.org/resources/rape-of-em