Retire by 30, thanks nursing!

[ThePrestige]

Ok check this out, i have a plan to retire by the age of 30:

I'm 21 yrs old and about to graduate a ADN program

i will spend 1 year gaining experience in the ICU, then i will spend the next 8 years as a per-diem or traveling nurse, working no less then 60 hrs a week, 11 months a year.

so heres the math:

40hrs X $43hr = $6880 month

20hrs X $65 hr = $5200 month

total (net income) $8100 month

$2500 month living expenses so $5600 month to invest

Starting with $5,000 and depositing $5,600 monthly over 8 years (at a rate of return 12%, compounded monthly and taxed at your marginal rate of 28%), you will save $769,593.Initial balance:$5,000Total deposits:$537,600Total interest earned:$315,268Total taxes paid:$88,275Total Saved: $769,593

Now i understand that 769K will be different due to inflation 8 yrs from now, so we will say 669k so at 10% a year $66,000 a year!

Now for 8yrs i will work my ass off and be traveling and have little social life, but at age 30 i will never have to work again, and i will probably never want to in nursing cause i will be burnt out, but i think it would be worth it, what do you think?

[jackson145]

Doesn't really matter, just curious. One of my biggest reasons to choose nursing is financial security, after all. But, when you get into something for the wrong reasons, sometimes it makes you miserable. I think nursing is something you at least have to be interested in to be able to put up with its unique challenges.

[SharonH, RN]

I admire your optimism and I appreciate your planning for the future. So many people have the mentality that they will always have bills so there is no use in even attempting to be financially solvent.

I will admit that I do think that you are being somewhat unrealistic in regards to the amount of monies you will need to retire as well as many variables unaccounted for such as investment returns not being guaranteed, burnout, etc.

Having said all that, the worst thing that can happen is that you will need to keep working for a few more years than planned so go for it!

[suni, BSN, RN]

I think that it would be nice but you certainly are setting yourself up for a major error and hence a major lawsuit. Not to mention having to live with that for the rest of your life. Nursing is a tough job and if you are only in it for the money you need to get out now. We deal with people, most of the time in crisis and you need to be on top of your game all the time.

I don't care how great a nurse someone is, 60 hours a week does not allow you to process information accurately and someone may die, and that someone may be you.

Driving home from work exhausted, or setting yourself up for some type of dependency to stay awake.

You need to re-think this plan.

[CyndieRN2007]

I hope your plan works. Even if it doesnt, reach for the stars! You would be amazed how much I have in my 401k account and I have only been saving for 5 years. Retirement, here I come! LOL!

[James Huffman]

I think that it would be nice but you certainly are setting yourself up for a major error and hence a major lawsuit. Not to mention having to live with that for the rest of your life. Nursing is a tough job and if you are only in it for the money you need to get out now. We deal with people, most of the time in crisis and you need to be on top of your game all the time.

I don't care how great a nurse someone is, 60 hours a week does not allow you to process information accurately and someone may die, and that someone may be you.

Driving home from work exhausted, or setting yourself up for some type of dependency to stay awake.

You need to re-think this plan.

Wow, I can hardly live with this kind of optimism.

Lawsuits? Nurses worry incessantly about lawsuits, while hardly any nurses are ever sued. It's very easy to deal with, if someone is that worried: buy some Liability Insurance (for almost everyone reading this, less than $100 a year) and forget about it.

Mistakes? Everyone makes them. Even those who work 8 hours a week. Or whatever. The rule is be the best nurse you can be, do the best you can be, and, again, don't worry about it.

In it for the money? Who cares? I'd far rather see someone in it for the money, than the crusading do-gooders who are there "to help people." Those "in it for the money" are usually competent, qualified, organized nurses who don't operate with the illusion that nursing is some kind of religious order.

Just for the record, I routinely work 60 hours a week. I'm self-employed and I love what I do. People who are chronically exhausted aren't usually over-worked -- their problem is that they don't like what they do and don't have a goal. Get a goal, get a plan and aim for it. You might not hit it -- that's the risk you take with a goal -- but you'll go a lot further than someone who's just putzing along.

[cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN]

Excellent job performance can be maintained working 60 hours a week; it is all dependent upon the individual themselves. .

I see that you have zero listed for your experience as a nurse. So how would you even know what it's like, or how safe it is, to work 5- 12 hr shifts each and every week?

These shifts aren't easy. Otherwise, we'd all work 5 12's a week. And shifts typically run >12hrs.

This plan is naive-at best.

Great that he's(the OP) an optimist, but he's not a realist, and you need both to be the next "Buffett or Trump"

We should all be saving what we can----but not at the expense of our patient safety.

[RNperdiem, RN]

The OP seems to have a financial attitude more commonly found in entrepeneurs than nurses. How often have you heard of nurses planning to amass a large fortune and retire at an early age? Amassing large fortunes is the passion of self-employed go-getters. Don't rule it out.

[Skeletor]

I think that it would be nice but you certainly are setting yourself up for a major error and hence a major lawsuit. Not to mention having to live with that for the rest of your life. Nursing is a tough job and if you are only in it for the money you need to get out now. We deal with people, most of the time in crisis and you need to be on top of your game all the time.

I don't care how great a nurse someone is, 60 hours a week does not allow you to process information accurately and someone may die, and that someone may be you.

Driving home from work exhausted, or setting yourself up for some type of dependency to stay awake.

You need to re-think this plan.

It's negativity, fear of failure, and pessimism just like this that keeps many members of society from reaching their goals in life. Attention to detail, impeccable work ethic, and dedication to one's "chosen" field play a major role in reducing errors and avoiding the lawsuits that which you speak of.

I don't see a need for a plan revision, just like I don't see the need for the OP to "get out now.":nono:

[Skeletor]

I see that you have zero listed for your experience as a nurse. So how would you even know what it's like, or how safe it is, to work 5- 12 hr shifts each and every week?

These shifts aren't easy. Otherwise, we'd all work 5 12's a week. And shifts typically run >12hrs.

This plan is naive-at best.

Great that he's(the OP) an optimist, but he's not a realist, and you need both to be the next "Buffett or Trump"

We should all be saving what we can----but not at the expense of our patient safety.

Forgive me, for I am not the typical older and weathered battleaxe that lusts for the day I can retire; however I am very familiar with working consecutive 12 and 20 (yes you are reading correctly) hour shifts while serving our Great Country in the military. I do know that it isn't safe doing such as I did, but I did it, and I did it with great pride and attention to detail.

By the way, I did it for the same country where optimism "afforded" us the freedoms which we partake in on a daily basis.

[cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN]

Optimism and realism are two different things.

My entire family is comprised of veterans, so I am familiar with what it's like to work 7 days a week under the Hot Saudi sun, as told to me by my husband and brothers.

That being said, it's still not safe for patients when nurses are working 5 12 hour shifts each and every week for 8 years straight. Sorry, it's just doesn't work. It's a mistake waiting to happen...

[Skeletor]

Optimism and realism are two different things.

My entire family is comprised of veterans, so I am familiar with what it's like to work 7 days a week under the Hot Saudi sun, as told to me by my husband and brothers.

That being said, it's still not safe for patients when nurses are working 5 12 hour shifts each and every week for 8 years straight. Sorry, it's just doesn't work. It's a mistake waiting to happen...

So you're not a veteran, your family members are. They told you what it's like to work in the desert, but you haven't actually experienced it yourself? Did I read that correctly?

By the way, the reality of it all is that optimism is healthy, plain and simple; and negativity, well that's just a virus waiting to be spread.

Stay focused OP.

[cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN]

And have I read correctly that you are not a nurse and have no idea what it's like to work in nursing? Did I read that correctly???