giving up some precious and scarce
free time, or having the office staff
work more (and get paid more).
There is an old
saying “A penny
saved is a penny
earned.” But I say
“A penny saved is
better than a penny
earned. The penny
saved is not taxed.”
The option of spending less is a far
better solution. To overcome a deficit
of $100 in our family budget, reducing
spending by $100 over one or more of
our expense categories will balance the
budget without increasing the tax bill.
Many will read this and say, “But I
don’t have anything to cut. That’s
why I need more money.”
Often when I hear this, the person
saying it doesn’t keep a budget or
track their spending. In this situation,
they really don’t know if they have
something to cut because they aren’t
paying attention to where their
money is being spent. The simple
exercise of recording everything
spent for a month or two can be very
eye opening. Often there are many
things that could be cut back on
without even noticing a change.
When we begin to pay attention to
where our money is being spent, we
will notice some interesting things: “I
Dr. Cory S. Fawcett
even lose a few pounds.” “I had no idea
how much those premium TV
channels were costing me. I don’t even
watch them.” “I forgot I have two gym
memberships. I don’t even use one of
them anymore.” “I could have spent
half of what I just spent on that
vacation and had just as much fun.”
Earned income is taxed more than
any other kind of income and is the
There is an old saying “A penny saved
is a penny earned.” But I say “A penny
saved is better than a penny earned.
The penny saved is not taxed.”
Which would you prefer for the same
$100 return, working longer hours to
earn an extra $170, or tracking your
expenses and finding where you
could shave $100 off your spending?
Don’t work harder, most doctors
already work too hard. Physician
burnout is at an all-time high. Before
you go out and look for opportunities
to moonlight and increase your
income, think about ways you can
accomplish the same effect by
decreasing your spending. Then
maybe you could afford to take an
extra day off now and then.
spent more on my daily lattes than I
spent on gas for my car last month.” “I
didn’t realize how much I spent eating
out for lunch every day. I’m going to
pack a few more lunches and maybe
Find more helpful information from Dr.
most inefficient way to increase your Cory S. Fawcett by following his blog at
available cash. Cutting back spending DrCorySFawcett.com or by reading one of
his books in The Doctors Guide Series.
is extremely efficient. Thankfully, the
government hasn’t found a way to tax
Read this and other articles at
spending decreases yet.
www.PhysiciansOfficeNews.com
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