[hobbes9324]

I'm one of the other 5% - 51, happy and successful. I think.
ER MD, chief of group, make somewhere north of 300k a year, married for 22 years.

Anyway, a few thoughts. The amount of $$ you'll need to keep you happy varies tremendously - you're the only person who knows what your zone will be - and that zone will likely change as you get older. A couple of weeks ago, a poster talked about wanting to be VERY rich, and got some heat for it. I wouldn't want to be poor, but I'm not conviced I'd want the baggage that comes with an eight figure income. (Like to try though) Anyway, you'll figure this out for yourself, and if you're reasonably bright, find a way to get there - making money isn't much of a skill, to be honest.

Probably the most important thing you can do is choose your partner well. I have 44 docs in my group. Probably 30 of them have been divorced, mostly with kids. They're uniformly unhappy, ranging up to miserable. A bad marriage hits your wallet, your psyche, and your future. BE CAREFUL.
And the old line about looking at the mother of your prospecive has a LOT of validity. The guy who wants to marry the "perfect" girl is a horses ass - none of them are perfect. Neither am I, or you, or he.

And if you're lucky enough to find a great partner, treat her (or him) like gold. Don't cheat on them - it isn't worth it in the long or short run. If nothing else, when they find out (and they will), you're going to spend 10000x the amount of time spent cheating trying to repair your relationship.

Treat other people well, even if they don't deserve it - good things do come back around. If you're in a position of authority, treat the people "under" you at least as well as your peers. You'll be happier for doing it, I promise.

Or you could just go with the old standby "do unto others...." - life flows pretty smoothly when you do.

Anyway.....good luck.....

MM MD