When I was a practicing surgeon, I never imagined that one night I would be standing barefoot in my driveway, watching flames consume my home. A faulty dryer switch ignited the fire that destroyed nearly everything I owned. You can watch a video of me telling the story here.
Fortunately, I was well-insured, supported by friends, neighbor, friends and therapists with lots of resources to rebuild. But the experience taught me lessons about preparation, resilience, and recovery that apply far beyond home ownership. In fact, these lessons translate directly into the financial lives of your physician clients.
As a financial advisor, you’re not just managing porfolios—you’re helping doctors prevent financial “fires” and recover stronger when setbacks strike. Let me share ten lessons from my house fire that you can adapt to conversations with your physician prospects and clients.
1. Check for Hidden Risks
The fire inspector told me the culprit that caused the fire was ignited lint–but it wasn’t the lint in the lint trap. Rather, the offending problem lay hidden lint deep inside the dryer coils. And most people do not know that annually they should remove the dryer from the wall, and do a thorough internal cleaning.
Physicians often have hidden financial risks smoldering beneath the surface. Maybe it’s a lifestly inflation quietly eating away at cash flow, underperforming insurance, or unrecognized tax inefficiencies.
Your role? Be the inspector. Help your clients find and clear these risks before they ignite. An annual “financial fire safetly check” is one of the most valuable services you can offer.
2. Plan for the What-Ifs
When the firefighters arrived, I had just seconds grab what mattered.
Most physicians are diligent about contingency plans for their patients but not for themselves. Encourage your doctor clients to create a financial go-bag: updated wills and trusts, insurance policies, account logins, and essential legal documents.
When life changes suddenly, these preparations can mean the difference between chaos and calm.
3. Take an Inventory
In the aftermath, I couldn’t remember half of what I had lost.
Doctors often have the same problem with money—they accumulate assets, accounts, and debts without a clear inventory. By guiding clients through a “financial walkthrough”, you give them clarity about what they actually own, what they owe, and what’s at risk.
The steps creates both peace of mind and a foundation for better decision-making.
4. Build a Dream Team
I couldn’t have rebuilt without firefighters, contractors, and insurance reps.
Doctors need the same kind of support in finance: a coordinated dream team that includes their advisor, CPA, estate attorney, and insurance professional.
When you position yourself as the team leader who curates and coordinates these experts, you’re no longer “just another advisor.” You’re the trusted captain of their financial recovery crew.
5. Fund Joy on Purpose
During the rebuild, my son begged me to go to a Mariners game. My to-do list was endless, but I relented. At the ballpark, he looked up at me and said, “Mom, this is the best day of my whole life.”
Doctors often sacrifice joy in pursuit of achievement. But TrueWealth isn’t just about financial security—it’s about freedom to enjoy life.
As an advisor, help clients carve out money for joy on purpose. Vacations, hobbies, sabbaticals, or special family experiences aren’t “extras”—they’re essential fuel for resilience
6. Be Willing to Receive Help
As a surgeon, I wanted to fly to New Orleans after Katrina to volunteer. Instead, I had to admit this was a season to receive, not to give.
Doctors often struggle with the same issue around money—they’re used to being givers, problem-solvers, decision-makers. Receiving financial guidance can feel uncomfortable.
Your job is to normalize it: let them know that asking for help is not weakness, but wisdom.
7. Practice Gratitude
Even in the ashes, I looked for miracles—like finding a handmade silver dreidel in the thrown away pile of smoke-damaged plastic dreidels in a trash bag just about to be thrown away.
Gratitude shifts focus. When doctors move from “never enough” to “look what I already have,” their financial choices improve. They spend more intentionally, save more consistently, and give more joyfully.
You can coach clients to practice gratitude by celebrating wins, acknowledging progress, and reframing challenges.
8. Don’t Skip Grief
As I rebuilt from the house fire, I thought I could push past the sadness, but grief caught up with me later.
Physicians often carry financial grief—bad investments, lifestyle regrets and COVID-related financial losses. If ignored, these losses quietly undermine confidence and decision-making.
Advisors can help by acknowledging the pain without judgment, reframing setbacks as lessons, and guiding doctors toward healthier financial habits.
9. Respect Money Trauma
My son was diagnosed with PTSD after the fire. Trauma isn’t about the event itself—it’s about how it changes us. Our brains don’t know the past is over. Many people sustained childhood financial trauma. The as they face financial losses as an adult, they revert back to the person they were at the time of the traumatic event. No one wants a 7-year-old managing their money.
Please know that if your doctor clients are not acting like themselves, the could be responding to an event from the distant past–and not today’s circumstances.
If you find yourself in this situation, say to your doctor client, “How was money handled when you were a child? Do your current circumstances remind you of anything from your childhood?”
Trauma rarely gets better on its own; however, therapeutic interventions like EMDR can lead to healing, just as it did with my son. As you navigate this delicate conversation, you can guide clients and build trust in a way that sets you apart from your competition.
10. Remember Your Resilience
At the end of it all, I rebuilt stronger. Like a phoenix rising from ashes, I discovered resilience I didn’t know I had.
Doctors are among the most resilient people on the planet. Yet they often forget it when facing financial setbacks. Your role is to remind them: one mistake, one crisis, or one bad year doesn’t define their future. With the right plan, they can always rebuild and come back stronger.
Why This Matters for Advisors
Physicians are trained to expect crises in medicine—but they’re often unprepared for crises in money. By sharing metaphors like these, you connect emotionally in ways spreadsheets never could.
- You position yourself not just as an advisor, but as a financial first responder.
- You show doctors that you understand both the technical and the emotional sides of money.
- You differentiate yourself from competitors by telling stories that matter.
In the end, the most important lesson is this: fires, whether literal or financial, are survivable. With the right preparation, the right support, and the right mindset, physicians can not only recover but emerge stronger than before.
And when you guide them through that process, you’re not just managing their money—you’re helping them build TrueWealth.