The 3 Numbers Every Woman Physician Needs to Know (Yes, Even If You’re “Bad with Money”)
September 24, 2025
We weren’t taught this — but we need to know it
Like many of you, I was taught how to care for others. Diagnose rare diseases. Deliver babies in chaos. Lead teams. Save lives. But what no one ever taught me?
How to manage my money.
Not just how to pay my bills — but how to understand, protect, and grow my finances in a way that gave me freedom, not just survival.
For a while, I did what I thought was “smart.” I had a financial advisor. I had insurance. I was investing. I was earning good money.
But I didn’t really know what was going on with my money.
And that meant I wasn’t truly in control.
Why this matters more than ever
If you're a physician mom in 2025, you're navigating a complex and demanding life. You're probably earning more than most people you know. But that doesn't mean you're set up to thrive.
Here’s the truth:
You can make a lot of money and still be disempowered.
You can be “good on paper” and still feel trapped, unprotected, or out of control.
That’s why I want you to stop saying “I’m bad with money.”
You're not bad with money. You’re just untrained — and probably overwhelmed.
But you’re also brilliant. So let’s fix that.
The 3 Numbers Every Woman Physician Needs to Know
This is the baseline — the absolute minimum knowledge you should have about your household finances, even if someone else “handles it.”
You don’t need to take over everything.
But you do need to know what’s going on.
1. Your Debt
Yes, that includes your student loans.
But it also includes:
Your mortgage
Car loans
Any credit card balances
That personal loan you took to renovate the kitchen
That HELOC you forgot about
Write it all down. Total it. Understand the interest rates.
Know what you owe — not just what you hope to pay off someday.
2. Your Cash Flow
This isn’t about budgeting perfectly.
It’s about knowing what’s actually happening with your money every month.
Ask yourself:
How much is coming in? (After taxes)
What are we spending, on average?
Where is it going?
Are we operating with margin — or cutting it close?
Cash flow is the lifeblood of your household. You don’t need a fancy spreadsheet — just clarity. Because you cannot grow what you cannot see.
3. Your Runway
If your income stopped tomorrow — how long could you sustain your life without panicking?
This is your financial runway:
How much liquid (accessible) money do you have?
How many months could your family function — mortgage, food, bills, childcare — with no new income?
Don’t overthink the “realism” of this question.
Just find the number. And from there, you can make it longer.
If your husband handles the money — you still need to know
This isn’t about control. This is about protection, partnership, and peace of mind.
You don’t need to “take over.” But if you have no idea what it takes to run your household… if you don’t know where the money is or what your backup plan is… that’s a problem.
Not because you’re doing anything wrong. But because your knowledge protects your future.
I’ve seen too many stories — even among physicians — of women being blindsided by:
Debt they didn’t know about
Taxes that hadn’t been paid
“Separate” accounts with secrets
Or simply being left to manage everything with no access or awareness
You deserve better than that.
This is your power
Knowing your debt, your cash flow, and your runway doesn’t just give you clarity.
It gives you choice.
It gives you leverage when negotiating contracts.
It gives you calm when the unexpected happens.
It gives you the ability to dream bigger because you’re not flying blind.
You don’t need to master it all — just start here
Start by writing down these three numbers — or figuring out how to find them.
You don’t have to do it perfectly. You don’t have to make any big decisions yet.
But I promise you: once you see what’s really going on, you’ll feel more in control — no matter what the numbers say.
You’re a physician. You’re a mother. You’re capable of so much.
You deserve to feel powerful in this part of your life, too.
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