Medical students can't manage money

I've noticed that there are extremely few blogs out there addressing what it takes to get out of debt quickly on graduation.

Like I said in a previous post, physicians and surgeons are notorious for being poor money managers. There's this myth that entering the pearly gates of medicine brings you all the wealth in the world.

But take me as an example: I'll be 26 when I graduate, with about $100,000 in debt. Due to low pay in residency, I'll earn only $45,000-$65,000 gross until I'm at least 31! That's standard, whether I become a family doctor or a neurosurgeon. Neurosurgeons earn these paltry amounts for between 7-10 years.

Talk about sacrificing our youth.

I'm dreaming of travel, living abroad, and being debt-free while still in my 20s. And I'm wondering whether any of that is still possible.

Makeup essentials

Girls love makeup.

It makes our eyes look bigger, our face look brighter, and can make our demeanor more seductive and sexy.

Some surveys suggest that men take women more seriously in their jobs if they wear at least a little makeup.

Personally, I believe girls should wear a little makeup. If you live in a big city and go out at night time, you already know that makeup is an essential for looking good at nighttime.

But go into a Sephora and you'll find everything costs $20 or more! Plus drugstore cosmetics sometimes just don't cut it, like for mascara, foundation, and eyeliner.

A look into a girl's makeup cabinet can reveal purchases totalling easily $300 or more. Budget-conscious beauties are going to wonder: What do you really need?

*Note: this is for my individual case, everyone should do this exercise for themselves.

The bottom line is that you should have the BASICS with a little FLEXIBILITY, and one DAY look and one NIGHT look.



1. Eyeliner ($15-20). Pencil, gel or liquid, and black or your color of choice.








2. Versatile 4-shadow palette ($15-20) with:
a) Black for blending eyeliner
b) Brown for shading, doubles as brow powder
c) White for highlighting
d) Color for fun





3. Concealer ($20). Some people don't need it but I have some rosacea (a red nose) so I need this cover.

4. A good eye makeup remover ($35)- to prevent clogged eye glands and nasty infections

If I go anywhere, I bring along these things and I will be fine. Sometimes I like to play around with other colors or combinations, but realistically, you don't need much else.

NIGHT LOOK EXTRAS

95% of the above makeup should also cover you for night. For smokey eyes, I shadow and define more with the darker colors. For the other 5% I like to add:

1. False lashes ($10). They just add that extra oomph, especially on people with smaller lashes like me.









2. Lipstick (Cheap to free). Bold lips work well with less-defined eyes, and soft pink lips with big shadowy eyes. I don't use lip liner, lip prep, lip gloss over lipstick or any of those other frills - I find I do very well with a moisturizing lipstick on its own or tinted lip gloss on its own.







3. Mascara ($20). If you're wearing falsies, wearing mascara is almost a must.










Assuming you are starting from scratch, this makeup basic set costs you $110. Let's face it, most girls have most of this already. If you go with drugstore brands (Maybelline, Rimmel, Revlon, Cover Girl, ELF, NYX), it should be even cheaper, almost by half.

I hope this helps as a guide for some of you, and for others to encourage you to cut back on your beauty-junkie habits.

Secrets to maximizing your hotel dollar

Ok, not really a cheap hotel.

I'm writing this from Las Vegas, where we're staying at the Palazzo, the Best Hotel in Las Vegas as ranked by Travel and Leisure magazine. On Saturday we're going back to Miami.

Although I'm a student, I'm a big big traveller. My family never took me anywhere, but I've managed to go to 21 countries on my own, finding money from external sources that allowed me to have a great time while spending very little of my own resources.

I'm travelling with friends who work in the hotel industry on Miami Beach. They're the best of the best. Here's how to get the most of your time in the hotels:

1. Forgot your toothbrush? Ask for a free one at the front desk. They stock extra toothbrushes, toothpaste, mouthwash, floss - everything you need.

2. In-suite refrigerator not included, and they're charging you $20 per night for a fridge? You can ask for a free one if you need it for health reasons. For example, if you're diabetic and you need to store your insulin in a cold place, this is a great place to store it.

3. Negotiate upgrades! Just a bit of discussion with the front desk got us a free upgrade to bigger beds, a view of the Vegas strip, and a higher floor - FOR FREE. If it's not high season, hotels should have no problem giving you an upgrade.

4. Stock up on water and night-time snacks. Hunger and thirst are what rack up the hotel bill. Save yourself some money and plan ahead.

Cautionary tale of debt from a Harvard lawyer

A lot of people I know in medical school are spending a lot of money right now.

J just bought a brand-new car, to drive to a 9-5 rotation at a clinic 15 minutes' commute from his house.
M wants to live downtown VANCOUVER, spending around $1500/month for a beachfront view.

Everyone does this thinking there's going to be a lot of money coming down the pipeline a couple years down the road.

But is there?

Here, a really interesting post by a Harvard-trained lawyer speaking about his view on debt a couple years down the line:

http://abovethelaw.com/2010/01/debt-the-silent-killer/

October

Debt: $30,000 (not counting January instalment of funds)
September expenses: $50 cell phone bill, $150 eating out, $100 during time in Saskatchewan for conference.
Current bank account: $6800

Crap - I still have to buy a plane ticket for my trip to Europe. Splitting it still brings the cost to about $800. Craps!

Update on the phone bill

My phone bill for the last 3 months:

July: $11.40
August: $26.54
September: $9.79


Ahh, peace.

Why high-savings department stores are not your friend

Right by the hospital where I work, there's a Winners. For those of you who don't know, Winners is a chain of off-price Canadian department stores - where moderately high-end products are sold at a discounted price, like Marshalls in the United States.

Bottom line, people shop at Winners because they feel like they can get a good discount, and they feel like they're saving money.

But is this really the case?

Case study: Beauty products

In many Winners stores, the first things you see are the beauty shelves. Mounds and mounds of makeup, nail polish, creams, lotions, powders, bath salts, and everything to tickle a girl's inner pamper. All of these products claim to be sold at a discount - for example, a Joico shampoo I saw claimed "$16.99 - compare to $22.00 regularly!"



Now I'm totally open to the idea of good-quality hair care products. I notice the difference in my hair texture when I use a $16 Redken shampoo versus a $2 Herbal Essences shampoo. But is Winners really the best place to go for bottomed-out prices??

While I was at the mall, I went to a hair salon on the way. They were selling the same shampoo for $14.99.

Key lesson here: don't think Winners has the best deals on products - in fact, most of the time you can buy products elsewhere for much cheaper. The only exception to this rule is the "Clearance" rack - where you can find products at a much more appropriate price range.