Not all financial planning firms approach this work in the same way, which is why I thought it would be helpful to explain how we think about and approach the financial planning process. As the new Director of Client Care at Thinking Big, I act as a guardian of this process; I make sure we deliver on our promise of partnering with clients to build wealth for the long-term and achieve big life visions. 

Along with honoring the complexity and transitional nature of life, we believe the work we do with clients should be simple, transparent, and educational. As Elizabeth Jetton, M.Ed, CFP®, says in one of her articles, “At its core financial planning is about helping clients make smart decisions and to cope and thrive in a world of uncertainty.” 

Just like the natural twists and turns of life, financial planning is a dynamic, ongoing process. We structure the work to be long-term so that we can build a concrete path toward your goals — because we measure true progress by the little actions that add up over many years. Let’s dive in.

The Financial Planning Process 

Everything we do in financial planning is about helping you navigate life decisions, which is why financial planning is a process, not a transaction. Our work is collaborative, ongoing, and tailored to each client. Our process doesn’t have a stopping point or a “final product.” As change happens in your life, we manage it together. 

Our First Steps

So, what does this look like in practice? Think of it as an ongoing series of conversations, beginning with the first meeting. To quote Elizabeth Jetton again, “The conversations we have with our clients shape the quality of the relationship and ultimately determine the level of success of the engagement as we move through the financial planning process.” The meetings we have together are at the heart of our process and are what drive the work.

As our client, you can have an unlimited amount of meetings with us, which ties into the reason we charge a flat fee for our services, instead of an hourly rate. You’re paying for us being at the ready, whenever you need us. We meet at whatever pace is most comfortable for you, depending on what’s going on in your life. 

In the first meeting, we check to see if you have any top priority items that need to be addressed right away. Maybe you need to strategize about  imminent stock compensation or have a pending home purchase (or sale) with a lot of moving parts. Whatever the case, we start the process wherever you are. Along with checking in on priority items, we begin our work with a discovery process that is all about you: What values are important to you? What is your vision for your life? We want to have a rich understanding of who you are and what’s important to you so that we can integrate it into our work together. This initial discovery process may span a few meetings.

Setting Up a Strong Financial Foundation

After our initial discovery process, we start to make sense of your current financial situation by organizing your accounts. We’ll meet to look more closely at your cash flow. Then, we’ll design an easy system to help you manage your money on a monthly basis. All of these meetings are structured as conversations. We won’t use PowerPoint decks or fancy charts and spreadsheets (sometimes we’ll bring in a spreadsheet to facilitate a conversation, but only if it helps!). We want to talk with you, not at you. In this step, we make the work transparent and educational. We want you to always understand the “why” behind each analysis, recommendation, and option. 

In our early work together, we build a strong financial foundation by:

• Determining the right level of cash reserves you need.
• Reviewing your insurance coverage to see if you’re properly protected.
• Laying the groundwork and mapping out the stages for achieving short- and long-term visions.
• Checking up on all your assets and liabilities to identify “danger zones.”
• Facilitating a discussion about estate planning to ensure your wishes are documented.

Achieving Goals

In most cases, the early work we do overlaps with making progress toward your goals. nce the financial foundation is established, clients will rapidly start to work toward their bigger visions. Meetings in this part of the financial planning process involve looking more closely at achieving goals, determining actionable steps, and implementing them together. 

Checking In, and Beyond – Caring For and Updating the Financial Plan

Life is always changing, and a good financial plan will change with it. We’re available year-round to check in by phone, email, and face-to-face meetings to talk through anything. If you reach a point where you’re meeting with us less frequently, we’re still working behind the scenes to take care of your plan throughout the year. You have an online portal in which to store all of your documents and see updated financials in real time, which we monitor to help keep you organized. We keep an eye on a whole checklist of things on your behalf and will reach out to you to check in on taxes, certain kinds of stock compensation, changes in employee benefits, or other yearly maintenance.

Again, how often we meet is up to you, but we try our best to meet with each of our clients at least once a year for an Annual Update Meeting. The Annual Update Meeting is a time for us to pause and reflect on the planning over the past year, review investment performance and strategy (if applicable), check in on life changes/updates, and get grounded in the plans for the year ahead. To help guide the discussion and to document our progress together, we prepare a two-page document that lists out specific goals, values and accomplishments, any pertinent discussion items, and a chart that shows and explains year-to-year changes in net worth.

Looking Ahead

Our financial planning process will continue to evolve as we look for ways to improve. As a holistic financial planning firm, we deliver planning — not plans. This means our work is structured so that we can focus on co-creating long-lasting, trusting relationships with clients, built on deep and active listening. As we often say, we think of ourselves as thought partners for clients. The more we can tailor our process and guidance to your life, the better we can help you build a bridge from your finances to your intentions for your life.