1. Get Acquainted
Personal financial planning is all about communication and this initial meeting – our “get acquainted” – is where we take time to learn about each other. We discuss what’s most important to you: family, travel, hobbies, or perhaps your favorite restaurant? We’ll ask a lot of questions about what you’re feeling, what you’re worried about and what you’ve accomplished so far. We gather enough information at this meeting to provide you with a proposal for our services. We’ll decide if working together makes sense and discuss next steps.
2. Data Gathering and Goal Setting
“If we don’t know where you are, we can’t get you to where you want to go.”
We begin to gather information about your current finances and talk with you about your needs, priorities, and goals. We provide a detailed questionnaire and spending worksheet for you to complete. The more information you provide the better financial advice we can offer.
3. Analyze Your Financial Health
We will go behind-the-scenes to evaluate your financial strengths and weaknesses to determine where we can help you improve. This includes your cash flow, asset protection, employee benefits, emergency funds and other financial data.
4. Develop Recommendations and Plan Presentation
The next step is to develop recommendations to help you pursue your goals, explain the assumptions that are used to develop the plan and offer strategies. The process is designed to give you the opportunity to provide feedback and ask questions.
5. Implement Your Plan
When you are comfortable with our analysis, we will begin to implement the recommendations and monitor them over time, reviewing with you regularly and making adjustments as necessary.
6. Monitor and Update
Financial Planning is ongoing. We will work together to review the performance and progress of your plan through time. When there are changes in your personal circumstance (job changes, a move, grandchildren, a vacation home), that may call for adjustments to your plan or portfolio. Our job is to help evaluate the impact of those financial decisions.
