OT - Economy Poll Regarding YOU and only YOU

[BunchOBull]

That is probably the greatest post I have read on here in a long time. Kudos to you for wanting to save a million by 30 and though you may have a pay cut now, the teaching job is very steady and can turn into a good job as you move up the ladder. I am assuming your benefits for you and your wife are very good.
Just because you have taken it on the chin from the current economy doesnt mean you have to take it lying down. It will all pay off handsomely for you that you didnt have to dip into your savings etc...

TK

I appreciate the words of encouragement. I'm not sure how long I'll stay in the profession, but it will afford me the time to finish an MBA program, resume a solid savings/investment plan, do a couple of months contract labor overseas every summer, and/or do some travelling for enjoyment. I can't complain overall.

 

[trevordchi]

That is probably the greatest post I have read on here in a long time. Kudos to you for wanting to save a million by 30 and though you may have a pay cut now, the teaching job is very steady and can turn into a good job as you move up the ladder. I am assuming your benefits for you and your wife are very good.
Just because you have taken it on the chin from the current economy doesnt mean you have to take it lying down. It will all pay off handsomely for you that you didnt have to dip into your savings etc...

TK

I appreciate the words of encouragement. I'm not sure how long I'll stay in the profession, but it will afford me the time to finish an MBA program, resume a solid savings/investment plan, do a couple of months contract labor overseas every summer, and/or do some travelling for enjoyment. I can't complain overall.

Sounds like we are in the same boat. I have a couple interviews next week and if I don't like what they are offering I will pursue an alternative teaching certification so I can work on getting an MBA.

What state do you live in? I haven't fully researched the ATCP here in Texas but I am pretty sure that if I start in the next month I will be able to teach high school in the fall. If I'm only going to make 40k or less I'd rather have good hours and summers off then work my ass off for some big corporation and not get paid over-time.

 

[notjomommasclint]

my life has been altered in a major way since 1-6-9. due to the sub prime lenders pulling back their funds my wife lost her job. we are living on 1 income for now and while we are making due with our dwindling financial reserves and my income its quite difficult since she made 2x what i do. the day after she was fired we found out we are having our 1st baby and that has been hard since we can literally see our savings deplete weekly and dont have the chance to save for the little one. we are however more fortunate than most in this situation because my income and the savings are enough to cover our bills and keep us a float until she can find a job as long as when she starts to show people dont avoid hiring her. if that is the case we are SUNK!!!

 

[wolfmanalfredo]

I have alot of money in a certain company in the NYSE that is my college fund. The original plan was that I had enough to pay for my 4 years and have enough left over for a down payment on a house. Well what ended up happening is the company's stock has lost 40% or so, and it looks like I may not even have enough to finish my final year and a half or so. I had to put collecting on hold so I can make sure the more important thing gets done. I've even been selling some cards that were to never leave my PC.

Anyways, long story short, I voted yes I've been affected, and I do lose sleep over it at night.

 

[RL24]

Since I made the poll I should probably give my answer...I voted no as well. Both my company and my wife's are doing very well and actually hiring at the moment. Personally, I know no one who is being severly affected by this recession. I've heard the stories and see it in the news every day, but knock on wood I have not been affected in the least as of yet.

I voted yes, I've been making minor sacrifices. I have not been directly effected by the bad economy yet, but the bolded part started to get to me. Then this guy Steve Forbes told me that this is just the beginning, things are going to get worse, and it could take 10 years to bounce back from this economy. That's when I decided to make like a squirrel and start getting ready for the long winter.

And hey, if it turns out all this scare is for nothing, I'll just have some extra money in the bank. Not a bad thing at all...

 

[BunchOBull]

That is probably the greatest post I have read on here in a long time. Kudos to you for wanting to save a million by 30 and though you may have a pay cut now, the teaching job is very steady and can turn into a good job as you move up the ladder. I am assuming your benefits for you and your wife are very good.
Just because you have taken it on the chin from the current economy doesnt mean you have to take it lying down. It will all pay off handsomely for you that you didnt have to dip into your savings etc...

TK

I appreciate the words of encouragement. I'm not sure how long I'll stay in the profession, but it will afford me the time to finish an MBA program, resume a solid savings/investment plan, do a couple of months contract labor overseas every summer, and/or do some travelling for enjoyment. I can't complain overall.

Sounds like we are in the same boat. I have a couple interviews next week and if I don't like what they are offering I will pursue an alternative teaching certification so I can work on getting an MBA.

What state do you live in? I haven't fully researched the ATCP here in Texas but I am pretty sure that if I start in the next month I will be able to teach high school in the fall. If I'm only going to make 40k or less I'd rather have good hours and summers off then work my ass off for some big corporation and not get paid over-time.

I actually live in Katy. I'm enrolled in the ACTHouston program. They're also located in Dallas and maybe Austin.

And yes, if you enroll now, you'll teach in the fall. I'm being told I can probably be hired in May officially. ACTHouston is a 2 month school that teaches the nuances of being a professional teacher...lesson planning, basic psychology...that type of thing. They also prepare you and give practice tests for the Board exams. Depending on what subject you teach, it is very likely you may do better than $40k. With bonuses, you can bring in more than $50k in the right school district.

 

[rainmanesq]

Not impacted personally, but part of that is b/c-

A. I’ve always led a minimalist lifestyle which means most of my $ goes towards savings

B. I’m self employed + have multiple income streams

C. I have a graduate degree/professional license in a field that tends to be fairly recession proof (law) + have an extensive network of contacts that are regularly offering me contract work. That contract work is considered ‘free $’ by me + put in savings rather than spending it.

D. I have no major debt- ex., car’s paid off (though I need a new used 1 ASAP), credit cards are always paid off, etc.

E. I use coupons for groceries + grow the majority of my food, so the $ I save from not having to buy most of my food goes into savings

F. I did NOT rush out and buy a house w/1 of those ridiculous interest only mortgages. Good thing b/c the real estate market’s tanking in so cal.

G. I’ve always lived well within my means.

I know people who are personally impacted- laid off, losing their homes, etc. Part of it seems to have been their own doing- e.g., little to no savings, high credit card debt, lots of $ spent on materialistic things rather than saving, etc.

 

[BunchOBull]

I voted yes, I've been making minor sacrifices. I have not been directly effected by the bad economy yet, but the bolded part started to get to me. Then this guy Steve Forbes told me that this is just the beginning, things are going to get worse, and it could take 10 years to bounce back from this economy. That's when I decided to make like a squirrel and start getting ready for the long winter.

And hey, if it turns out all this scare is for nothing, I'll just have some extra money in the bank. Not a bad thing at all...

I will say, I don't believe the economic situation is all media hype. I believe there are sectors of the economy that haven't been sucked into the cesspool yet, and as long as we can keep the automobile, banking, lending institutions from complete collapse, those sectors never will feel the major crunch...if we can't turn these organizations into money making institutions by 2011...we're all screwed.

I do not believe we are at the bottom of the barrel yet, but I don’t believe we’ll necessarily have to be if we make the right choices now.

 

[fengzhang]

I've been completely insulated from the economic pressures, part of the joys of being in grad school. There are two things that are great about being a physician:

1. Ridiculous job security; in fact, there is a HUGE shortage of physicians; the AMA made some bad projections back in 1990 which led to medical schools not increasing their class sizes over the last 20 years. This has made med school very hard to get into but has also limited the supply of physicians which keeps salaries up and job opportunities plentiful. You will never find an out of work doctor.

2. Pretty decent income; median physician income is around 220,000. The speciality I'm interested in (interventional radiology) has an average income of $400,000.

It's been hard work making it to med school and getting through med school. It will soon be time to reap the rewards.

 

[pujolsthomefan33]

I've been completely insulated from the economic pressures, part of the joys of being in grad school. There are two things that are great about being a physician:

1. Ridiculous job security; in fact, there is a HUGE shortage of physicians; the AMA made some bad projections back in 1990 which led to medical schools not increasing their class sizes over the last 20 years. This has made med school very hard to get into but has also limited the supply of physicians which keeps salaries up and job opportunities plentiful. You will never find an out of work doctor.

2. Pretty decent income; median physician income is around 220,000. The speciality I'm interested in (interventional radiology) has an average income of $400,000.

It's been hard work making it to med school and getting through med school. It will soon be time to reap the rewards.

yes, but I hear malpractice insurance isnt cheap....LOL!!!

 

[fengzhang]

I've been completely insulated from the economic pressures, part of the joys of being in grad school. There are two things that are great about being a physician:

1. Ridiculous job security; in fact, there is a HUGE shortage of physicians; the AMA made some bad projections back in 1990 which led to medical schools not increasing their class sizes over the last 20 years. This has made med school very hard to get into but has also limited the supply of physicians which keeps salaries up and job opportunities plentiful. You will never find an out of work doctor.

2. Pretty decent income; median physician income is around 220,000. The speciality I'm interested in (interventional radiology) has an average income of $400,000.

It's been hard work making it to med school and getting through med school. It will soon be time to reap the rewards.

yes, but I hear malpractice insurance isnt cheap....LOL!!!

Malpractice insurance for a neurosurgeon is $200,000/yr. That's not the amount you have to pay if you lose a lawsuit. That's just the premiums you have to pay normally just as we all pay our car insurance premiums every 6 months. Scary stuff.

On the other hand, average malpractice insurance premiums for a pediatrician is only around $8000/yr. Guess children aren't that precious after all.

But, the income information I quoted is after malpractice and before taxes.

 

[BunchOBull]

I graduated with a BS in Biology (entomology and molecular genetics)...med school was my original desire...my own family physician is who talked me out of it lol. It's still a viable option, but honestly, it clashes with the timeline I've set upon my political ambitions.

 

[fengzhang]

I graduated with a BS in Biology (entomology and molecular genetics)...med school was my original desire...my own family physician is who talked me out of it lol. It's still a viable option, but honestly, it clashes with the timeline I've set upon my political ambitions.

Right now, it is extremely difficult to be a primary care physician (pediatrics, family medicine, internal medicine, Ob/Gyn). The salaries are just too low and a lot of family med docs are disgruntled with their life. Right now, nearly 1/2 of all of our resident physicians in those fields are foreign medical graduates (meaning they did not attend med school in the US). The graduates of US medical schools are choosing the more lucrative specialties and letting the foreign docs take over the jobs we don't want. The two most competitive fields right now are dermatology and plastic surgery. I personally would find little enjoyment doing botox injections and boob jobs for the rest of my life but US medical students are fighting and clawing to get into these fields. They're the two fields that are largely insulated from insurance companies because most of the procedures are elective procedures that aren't covered by insurance in the first place. The sky is the limit in terms of income potential for a plastic surgeon or a dermatologist. In contrast, the insurance company will only reimburse me a set amount for each film that I read regardless of how much time I spend per film or how accurate my diagnoses are. The only way to increase my income is to read more films.

 

[darocker80]

my daddy could've bought me a car

 

[predatorkj]

That is probably the greatest post I have read on here in a long time. Kudos to you for wanting to save a million by 30 and though you may have a pay cut now, the teaching job is very steady and can turn into a good job as you move up the ladder. I am assuming your benefits for you and your wife are very good.
Just because you have taken it on the chin from the current economy doesnt mean you have to take it lying down. It will all pay off handsomely for you that you didnt have to dip into your savings etc...

TK

I appreciate the words of encouragement. I'm not sure how long I'll stay in the profession, but it will afford me the time to finish an MBA program, resume a solid savings/investment plan, do a couple of months contract labor overseas every summer, and/or do some travelling for enjoyment. I can't complain overall.

Sounds like we are in the same boat. I have a couple interviews next week and if I don't like what they are offering I will pursue an alternative teaching certification so I can work on getting an MBA.

What state do you live in? I haven't fully researched the ATCP here in Texas but I am pretty sure that if I start in the next month I will be able to teach high school in the fall. If I'm only going to make 40k or less I'd rather have good hours and summers off then work my ass off for some big corporation and not get paid over-time.

I actually live in Katy. I'm enrolled in the ACTHouston program. They're also located in Dallas and maybe Austin.

And yes, if you enroll now, you'll teach in the fall. I'm being told I can probably be hired in May officially. ACTHouston is a 2 month school that teaches the nuances of being a professional teacher...lesson planning, basic psychology...that type of thing. They also prepare you and give practice tests for the Board exams. Depending on what subject you teach, it is very likely you may do better than $40k. With bonuses, you can bring in more than $50k in the right school district.

From what I have heard Katy and also Fort Bend ISD are both really high paying when it comes to teacher salaries.

As far as me...I have not been hit yet but mostly due to my being injured.I do anticipate when I do get back I will be axed as soon as possible but from what I have heard the bench isn't too loaded so it does not worry me too much right this minute.What worries me is later on in the year.I worked in the office a while back and the guy in the next cubicle was always getting into a tirade about non union contractors winning all the work because of their really low bids.He even told one guy that if they did any of these jobs at the same bid that the non union companies did that they would actually lose money and not make a dime.Basically they would be doing the job for free.That combined with the fact the union only has around 10% of the overall work and the fact that most of our work is new construction projects which funding will slow to a crawl for...scares me.

 

[pujolsthomefan33]

my daddy could've bought me a car

So, why dont you go buy one on your end then????


TK

 

[MattinglyAlexander]

With all the "no" answers, it almost makes me believe the conspiracy "enthusiasts" are on to something.
They've warned for a long time that a manufactured market crash/repression/depression would lead to the government taking more controll...
is that not what seems to be taking place? I'm just saying.... it's not what I believe, but an argument could be made by those who do.


If I'm not mistaken, NASDAQ was over 13,000+ this time last year... Unemployment was at 4.8%

[youtube:27o7j41p]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usvG-s_Ssb0[/youtube:27o7j41p]

 

[predatorkj]

With all the "no" answers, it almost makes me believe the conspiracy "enthusiasts" are on to something.
They've warned for a long time that a manufactured market crash/repression/depression would lead to the government taking more controll...
is that not what seems to be taking place? I'm just saying.... it's not what I believe, but an argument could be made by those who do.


If I'm not mistaken, NASDAQ was over 13,000+ this time last year... Unemployment was at 4.8%

[youtube:1xksoh58]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usvG-s_Ssb0[/youtube:1xksoh58]

So you think an argument could be made that this is all a big scam and that we really are not in a bad economic crisis and that this was all done to initiate more governmental control over the economy?Not saying you believe it but just making sure I know what your saying.


Either way...if greed gets as bad as it has...I would be all for governmental control.But seeing as how I don't make a whole lot to begin with considering what I bring home a year...I wouldn't expect to be too personally affected by it anyway.

 

[pujolsthomefan33]

I highly doubt our government really wants to have control of much of anything.....from what I have seen lately, they are more interested parading around with celebs, partying it up, and worrying about who the latest steroid user was in sports......Control is just not in the equation these days.....oh yeah, and add printing money----what are we about 5,000 times over the amount in circulation backed by gold.



TK

 

[bballcardkid]

Medical school was an option early in my career however I quickly realized that it wasn't something that I would enjoy doing the rest of my life. I personally prefer being locked in a lab all day attempting some kind of a reaction, seperating compounds, or identifying compounds, thus I'll probably be applying to the College of Pharmacy School next year for Fall 2010. It's benefical for me because that is the year UK opens their new Pharmacy School building, and they are increasing their spaces available by roughly 30 seats. Plus 80% of accepted students come from inside the state. Now if I can just get through Organic Two I will be happy.