In our last video, we began a conversation on the unique financial journey of first-generation physicians. Now that you’ve put in the years of work and achieved your goal, a new challenge often arises: balancing your generosity to family with your personal financial safety.
It’s a delicate and important topic. That’s why I’m back with Part 2 of our video series. In this installment, I’ll walk you through a clear, practical strategy for tackling this head-on, including:
- Setting a sustainable support budget
- The crucial importance of prioritizing your own financial health (think retirement and debt)
- Building generational wealth for a lasting impact
Transcript:
Supporting Family as a First-Generation Physician
Hi, I’m Ben Martinek with Bona Fide Finance. I wanted to circle back to a challenging topic: maybe you’re a first-generation physician working through the complexities of having wealth for the first time and a robust income that you’ve rightfully earned and generated. Perhaps you have family members who helped support you along the way, and now you feel an obligation to help them financially because they helped you. How can you not reciprocate, especially when it’s your family? Let’s talk through what to do in that situation.
Understanding That Wealth Is Not Unlimited
One reality we have to say out loud is that your wealth is not unlimited. Thankfully, you likely have a high income and good things are happening for you financially. Now, especially if you’re an attending physician, you’ve made it—you’re finally making “doctor money,” as they say. Things are looking up, and you’ve been rewarded for all those years of hard work and sacrifice.
Still, it’s not unlimited income. It’s more than most people make, and it’s an incredible means to do well for yourself and to leave a lasting legacy for your family, for future generations, and for charities you care about. But it’s still not unlimited.
Setting Boundaries Around Family Support
The first step is to decide what you’re going to give back to the family who supported you. Let’s establish some boundaries, a budget, and a perimeter on it. As much as we love our family, and as much as they deserve some reward for their support, at the end of the day, they didn’t earn that MD—you did.
They were part of your journey, but they’re not the sole reason you’re now a physician. To give rightful credit, you achieved this and have the MD behind your name, not a family member. They gave a partial contribution to where you are today, so they deserve a partial reward—not an unlimited one.
If you offer open-ended, unlimited support, they could potentially exhaust you or even bankrupt you. That could create resentment, bitterness, and strain in the relationship. That’s why it’s important to establish clear limits on how much you’re willing to give.
Prioritizing Your Own Financial Well-Being
This may be a conversation you need to have directly with family, but the matter should be addressed. One way to set limits is to first prioritize your own financial well-being and your long-term goals.
We can work together to map out what you need, make sure you’re financially secure, and then determine what you can safely give without worry. At that point, the support you provide—whether it’s regular transfers or a one-time payout—will be clear and sustainable.
Thinking About Long-Term Legacy and Generational Wealth
We also need to think about the long-term reality: you are in a position to build and accumulate wealth. Any money that comes in the door and immediately goes back out is simply gone. But money that you keep, invest, and allow to compound can grow significantly and have an enormous impact on the future.
The goal is not just to help family today but also to consider what could be achieved one or two generations from now by making thoughtful decisions.
That’s the kind of work we do with our clients.
How Bona Fide Finance Helps Physicians
If you’re looking for someone to help walk you through this, let’s set up a time to talk. You can reach us at hello@BonafideFinance.com or call 701-203-3219 to schedule a meeting.
We love working with physicians, especially those who are first-generation. We understand the challenges because we’ve worked through many of them ourselves.
Thank you for taking the time to listen to my thoughts on this important topic.