Most dentists rely on conventional wisdom when it comes to financial planning. Unfortunately, the conventional strategies taught by most financials may not be the best retirement plan for dentists. Dentists who are successful in their practice careers have the advantage of a significant economic engine (their practice) fueling their investing… so why is the average retirement age for dental practitioners rising (the average has almost reached 70 years of age). The answer? Most practitioners are using the wrong model.
Assets Instead of Wages
Most people who talk about retirement planning talk about savings goals: how much money you have saved up by certain dates. Dentists should actually be thinking about something different: Creating cash flow (not dependent on their practice). This cash flow is how you can start making your money work for you, rather than you working for your money. At Freedom Founders, we start every retirement plan by setting goals for cash flow, so that your retirement plan is based on assets over market volatility and savings with low growth.
Start with your Practice
Most financial planners won’t tell you this, but the best retirement plans for dentists don’t start with a 401k or a real estate investment. They start with a dentist’s most important asset: their practice. Strategic investments in your practice early on are the best ways to create a steady cash flow that you can use moving forward. Once your practice is yielding a certain cash flow, then you can start looking to other places to invest, rather than save.
Be Wary of Traditional Financial Products
If you head to a financial planner, they will offer you a wide variety of options to help you save for your retirement. Some of these products can perform, but most will offer relative stability over promising growth. Take, for example, the 401k. Many planners will tell you that these are the best retirement plans for dentists because they sell them as the best retirement plans for everyone. In practice, however, these products lock up your money, limit your investment options, and do not help generate the assets you need for better retirement planning. Instead of heading to these traditional products, focus on what makes your career uniquely situated for a better retirement.
Your Network is your Net Worth
Have you headed to any conferences or networking events lately? Did you use that time not just to find business associates and new skills, but also to look for new opportunities to grow your wealth? Networking, especially in an age where more people are working from home, is key to growing your career and your retirement savings. By surrounding yourself with people who are career-driven and thinking about the future, you can take advantage of more opportunities to succeed.
The Best Retirement Plans for Dentists
Freedom Founders is dedicated to non-traditional retirement planning for dentists that works. We have developed the best retirement plans for dentists because they are built from the ground up by a dentist who understood that traditional retirement planning didn’t take into account the advantages dentists have to create assets and cash flow. If you are a dentist who wants to retire early and still have an amazing lifestyle, then give us a call. We can start planning for your future today.
