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?

[arelle68]

Ahhh! The naiveté of youth!

[cila]

I think you are moving to fast. you should take one day at a time. The investments sound great, but you will see after you get to working that money is not all what you think. I have been a nurse for 3years and i thought the same way you did, but I relized that it was not all that I expected, when you pay mortage, and car note and take care of a child and I did agency nursing as well and it's not what's it's cracked up to be. So just enjoy nursing and take one day at a time.

[sziq1]

WOW this is one of the most negative threads I have read on this site.

We should all be glad that a young person is thinking of their retirement. There are soooo many people who go through life not worrying about tomorrow and just think that some how there will plenty of money at the end of the retirement rainbow.

I do however hope that there is more to becoming an RN for this person than money. I don't think that any of us would do this for free so technically we are all there for the money in some respect. If nursing was all about caring it would be a totally voluntary profession.

I have a feeling that after being on the job for a while they will relax and continue to save and enjoy being an RN and not be so hot to retire at 30.

[mvanz9999, RN]

Yes, did mention those concerns and I think we pretty much covered all angles in the 24 pages of this thread. :) The op is a male btw, and he stated the only way to know if he can't handle it is to try. Gotta give the guy his props for trying.

This is my take on it. So he tries this, it goes according to plan, and he retires at 30...OR...he tries this, it does not go according to plan and he keeps working. The point being...what has he lost exactly? Perhaps a few pounds? I don't get all the criticism.

[Karen]

DEFINITELY start saving as soon as you start working. I wish I had when I was a fresh ADN grad at age 20! You may not be able to retire at age 30 or sustain a 60 hour work week for eight years but consider that by traveling you can really experience the United States. I travelled with a friend for a year and saw so much of the US as we were tourists every day off. By saving early on maybe when you are 30 you can just work part time or afford to take a rewarding but lower paying position that fits your life then like public health, school nursing, or something outpatient with nice hours.

[Dempather, RN]

How can you be sure that what you want when you're 21, you'll want when you're 30?

And extra spending during your 20's? Just not gonna happen so you can retire?

Money goes a WHOOOLE lot faster when you're not working.

Sorry to burst your bubble. I guess if you can find a way to work, share it with the rest of us. :)

[mikethern]

Well then perhaps you are in the wrong line of work. I have worked in a hospital labor and delivery unit for over 2 years and I don't see things the way you do.

Well then L&D nursing must be easy. It would be interesting to see if you still love nursing 10 years from now.

[mikethern]

Money goes a WHOOOLE lot faster when you're not working.

Not if you know how to invest correctly. If you save a nest egg of a million dollars and then keep it invested at 10% a year, you will reap $100,000 new income every year forever. If you can live on slightly less than $100,000, and keep the rest invested, your million dollars will keep growing so you can easily keep up with inflation.

[love-d-OR]

Atlhough I think it might be fairly impossible for the OP to retire at 30, I dont think he is doing wrong by planning early. I started saving for retirement when I was 20. Now Im 22 (will be 23 on the 25th, yay1), and investing and saving is something that comes out of my paycheck first. At times I get bashed by people my age because "you are too young to be thinking of that stuff" and "you are reading suze orman, that sounds boring." Why is it wrong for a 21 year old to think of his future? So what if he does not know enough at 21, does that mean he cant take initiative and try? The economy is changing, and so are the attitudes toward money among college students. Pretty much every college student has a credit card and even more of them have defaulted on them. Have you seen the stats on college loans, and the increasing difficulty on paying those loans off?

Earlier someone stated that 1/3 of baby boomers did not have money for retirement, why do you think that is? Who do you think is going to pay for their medicaid and medicare? Now on the other hand you have someone planning ahead, and it is wrong?

So maybe his plan is a little sketchy and maybe unrealistic (60/wk x 8yrs in ICU), but its better to aim higher and achieve less.

I know of nurses at my hospital that have worked 12 days straight, I also know of nurses that work more than the typical 3 days a week. I dont know how healthy it is, because Im a student nurse. But I have had weeks where I worked four 12's straight and I was fine, but then again its ddifferent responsibilities.

My point is, instead of crushing the OP why not advice him on a better saving strategy or on the challenges he may face working 60hrs/wk.

Nursing is a caring profession, we all know that, but you cant fault someone for wanting to get paid for it!

OP good luck! To all those that included educational and positive advice thank you. It helped.

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

Well then L&D nursing must be easy. It would be interesting to see if you still love nursing 10 years from now.

There's no need to criticize us lifers in love, or satisfied with nursing. So you don't love nursing and want to get ASAP and retire ASAP, that's fine.

I feel about the same as I did when I started nursing 16 years ago, in fact I'm going for a Masters to Educate others into this profession I'm fond of and proud to be a part of. My goal is definately to retire ASAP as well, but it wont' be because I hate nursing. It will be because I'm a lazy slob and don't want to work.

[treysdaddy08]

Well then L&D nursing must be easy. It would be interesting to see if you still love nursing 10 years from now.

Just because someone loves their work, then it 'must be easy'? I have a friend who is an infantryman in the army, and he loves his job. Are you saying his job is easy? Just because you dislike your job doesn't mean that everyone else will. In every profession there are people taht hate it, people that love it, and people that are in the middle. There are great days, horrible days, and days that don't make a difference. It (usually) isn't about the job. It's about the attitude that you bring. THAT is what determines how successful, and more importantly how happy you are in life.

[treysdaddy08]

There's no need to criticize us lifers in love, or satisfied with nursing. So you don't love nursing and want to get ASAP and retire ASAP, that's fine.

I feel about the same as I did when I started nursing 16 years ago, in fact I'm going for a Masters to Educate others into this profession I'm fond of and proud to be a part of. My goal is definately to retire ASAP as well, but it wont' be because I hate nursing. It will be because I'm a lazy slob and don't want to work.

BRAVO!!! Well said!