2 Things I Read For You, 2 Things For You To Read — Jan 30, 2018
This is TL;DR (Too Long, Didn’t Read) Tuesdays. I summarize and discuss two articles — one from a blogger, and from one a “traditional news” source. I also provide links to two other blogs you should read on your own.
This concept is inspired by my father, who sends everyone in the family articles links by email, by my older brother, who sends articles so long I never read them, and my wife, who became tired of me sending her articles, and has been telling me “TL;DR” for years.
I write these 1-4x/month. Click here to read all of them over time.
2 Things For You To Read:
#1: Actuary on Fire discusses One Essential Rule to Budget Like an Actuary
#2: “I’ve Stopped Fighting for Britain” is a post by Matthew Smith, a convert to Islam who lives in England — my own blog partially relates to religion, and I wanted to share some stories that aren’t about doctors or personal finance. This is a very short discussion of concerns over racism in England.
2 Things I Read For You
Sign up to receive email notifications of posts. Follow me on X, Facebook, or Instagram for entertainment and updates of new posts. Feel free to email me with comments, questions, or to ask about site sponsorship or public speaking.
#1
Source: Peerless Money Mentor
Title: No Vacations? No Thanks, Dave Ramsey!
Summary: Dave Ramsey suggests taking NO vacations if you are in debt. Peerless Money Mentor has wonderful memories of vacations from childhood to adulthood that would not have been possible following this motto. From a Motel 6 in Mississippi to seeing NBA games with his father, he cherishes the times that Dave Ramsey suggests his family should have skipped.
Conclusion: Dave Ramsey is anti-debt because he wants people to avoid the “hedonic treadmill,” constantly spending more so that even as you eliminate debt you end up immediately spending it and then needing more money to fund a high-end lifestyle. I’m a fan of time away from work, and do not believe all pleasure should be sacrificed on the altar of debt-reduction. We have a huuuge mortgage that is going to take a while to pay off, and while I plan to eliminate it well before the final payment is due (in 2046), I do not plan to skip all vacations until then. My wife and I took an amazing trip to England/Scotland last summer — we can’t take an international vacation every year (not just money — three little kids), but we always plan to do something. Even if it’s cheap, it’s worth doing. We’re not just building equity and net worth, we are building a life worth living.
Read This Also: Money I’ve Made Reading Finance Blogs
#2
Source: New York Times
Title: For Doctors, Age May Be More Than a Number
Summary: Studies show younger doctors have better patient outcomes and order fewer unnecessary tests, as well as other positive outcomes. Less experience apparently = better care. Given that age is a venerated quality in medicine, this is a striking finding, as it cuts against the grain of the culture of healthcare. It turns out not only can the old teach the young, but maybe the young can teach the old.
Conclusion: One of my favorite parts of working in a teaching hospital is I am continuously exposed to physicians (and medical students and nurses and nursing students etc) of all levels of experience. It pushes me to be a better clinician, because I am continuously being exposed to people of great tenure who can teach me about things I never see, and younger individuals who are learning the most cutting edge techniques/research/medicine. If I don’t learn from the old AND the young, I’ll be left behind.
Share your thoughts in the comment section below, and share these posts as well!
Thanks for including me! Great read
Great summaries. Thanks for posting. I enjoy the TLDR Tuesday’s.
Good! I am actually considering tweaking or even overhauling the format because they just are not generating significant readership. If you have thoughts on how to improve on it let me know.
For the article on vacations and debt:
I’ve listened to Dave Ramsey on the radio for a while since he used to be on during my drive home. Being a bit of a personal finance hobbyist I’ve read the heavy hitters in both medical and non-medical personal finance advice. I feel like what’s missing is a “middle ground”. Somewhere between the hedonic treadmill and rewash ziplock baggies and drive a car till the wheels fall off. Especially with vacations there’s certain ages when you can do certain things. A trip to Disney isn’t the same with 20 year olds as it is with little kids. Going to Cancun and partying till 4am isn’t something you’re going to do at 50.
I have to say — I’ve never listened to a single second of Dave Ramsey on the radio. I think now especially there is enough good advice out there that someone willing to put in the tiniest bit of effort can get better advice elsewhere. Not that all his advice is bad, but it’s meant for a mass audience. We are trying to plan the our first Disney vacation — timing it with an 8,4, and 1 year old is difficult. My wife had already told me we have to go twice — we are hoping to go in November (during AAP conference if I can get the time off).
I think Dave’s advice works for a certain subset of folks. His message definitely has a Christian flavor (his classes are often taught in Churches). He is rabidly anti-debt. I think many people need that heavy handed approach to get their situation in order. However, I’m not sure it works for everyone.
Ah — didn’t realize he had a Christian focused education. I have become anti-debt, but as I’m not going to get my mortgage paid off in the next 2-3 years, I need to have some level of comfort with it for now. 🙂
For those that need a strict approach to get things on track then his approach probably works.