.How To Build A Financial Plan Without A Professional Financial Planner

Jim Wang

Years ago, I dropped my business card into one of those fishbowls near the front door of a restaurant. You've probably seen them too – put your card in to win a free dinner for you and eight of your friends!

I just graduated college, was working for the first time, and I had a box of a thousand business cards. Certainly it was worth it to drop one in the bowl!

It turns out the meal might have been free but it still cost me. It cost me over an hour talking with a “financial planner” who was more sales person than planner.

After realizing I was simply parrying offers of life insurance and overpriced mutual funds (even back then, in my naivete, I knew that paying 1%+ in annual fees plus a sales load/commission was a bad bad bad idea), I thanked the young guy for the food, the pitch, and for remembering that there's no such thing as a free lunch after all.

A financial plan is so important yet so few people have them. You don't have to hire a financial planner to build one of your own, this site will show you step by step how to do it today! He did give me one gift though – I knew I didn't have a financial plan. I wasn't married and I didn't have kids, so not having a plan wasn't a big deal. Fast forward a few years, marriage, and two kids; a financial plan is crucial.

But you don't necessarily need a “financial planner” to help you develop your plan. You have all the tools already, you simply need to learn how to fit it all together. I'll show you today.

.Obvious Things That Are Easy To Ignore in Finance

Sep 16, 2020 by Morgan Housel

“The world is full of obvious things which nobody ever observes,” says Sherlock Holmes.

In a different scene he tells a friend while thinking about a crime: “It seems, from what I gather, to be one of those simple cases which are so extremely difficult.”

Lots of things work like that. Learning from something has two parts: whether it’s important and whether it captures your attention. The number of things that check the first box but not the second are higher than any of us want.

It’s not that the simple things are hidden. It’s that our attention is drawn to things we assume make the biggest difference, and the idea that obvious equals ineffective is more powerful than the reverse.

Two examples of obvious things that are easy to overlook in finance:

.12 Personal Finance Skills Everyone Should Master

By Dr Penny Pincher

I was happy to see that my son signed up to take a personal finance class in high school next year. I think mastering basic personal finance skills is one of the most important things you can do to improve your happiness and quality of life. But you're a full-fledged adult. If you haven't already, the earlier you start developing and using personal finance skills, the more time you have to reap the benefits.

Here is my list of personal finance skills every frugal person should master.

1. Budgeting

Setting and following a budget is probably the most basic personal finance skill, yet only about one-third of people actually have a detailed budget. I went for years without an accurate budget, using my checking account balance as a rough gauge of how much money I had available to spend.

.The 5 Biggest Success Factors of Self-Made Millionaires

By Nate Lee

It was after my first “real job” out of college that I became a true student of success and wealth. Just days after graduating I found myself employed and living in a completely different city.

Corporate Self-Made Millionaires?

It was a great experience, but that job lacked something. Good money…big money. The job I landed paid me according to current market rates for recent college grads. However, I was convinced I wasn’t being paid enough. After spending four hard years with my nose to the grind, there was an expectation that I was to come out of the gates, guns a blazing, and making some real money. But that didn’t happen.

As soon as I got my hands on that first paycheck, my dreams felt dashed. Let’s just say, that first paycheck was nothing to brag about. Maybe you can relate?

It only took a few weeks of receiving that pittance of paycheck from the fortune 500 company I was employed with, that I realized, “This is not what I went to school for”.

It was in that moment that I decided to learn how to start making the real money. So, I became a student of success and wealth. I put all of my attention on what many other self-made millionaires were doing.

And, to my delight, what I’ve learned so far has been paying off.

.5 Great Success Lessons We Can Learn From Jim Rohn

Jim Rohn is one of the best motivational speakers in the world;

If you’re looking for an advancement in your life (be it in your professional life, your relationship or simply your well-being) one of the fastest ways is to learn things from a mentor of your own. If you’re looking for a great mentor to learn more from, then Jim Rohn is definitely one of the greatest mentors out there.

It never used to be very easy to find a mentor of your own that you can look up to and gain knowledge from. Nowadays however, all you have to do is just take a book, watch a video on YouTube, have a quick search on the web or buy a video program made by your desired mentor.

So, this article outlines 5 great lessons you can learn from Jim Rohn, one of the most influential America’s business and life philosophers, and shows exactly why you should have someone like him as your mentor.

.11 Myths About Personal Wealth You Shouldn't Believe

By Forbes Finance Council

Successful accounting, financial planning & wealth management executives from Forbes Finance Council share trends and tips.

For many people, a long-term goal is to amass and maintain personal wealth for financial security. There are many different paths to get there -- savings, investments, passive income, etc. -- and there are plenty of "rags to riches" success stories to inspire people's financial aspirations. But there are also many myths about wealth that color the perceptions of those who wish to attain it.

We asked a panel of Forbes Finance Council members about the biggest and most common misconceptions about personal wealth and the important correct information individuals should have instead. Their best answers are below.

Money Story: I Was a Frugal Jerk

Written by GUEST AUTHOR| Published: 14 January 2018 – Updated: 23 February 2020

This guest post from the Frugal Jerk is part of the “money stories” feature at Get Rich Slowly. Some stories contain general advice; others are examples of how a GRS reader achieved financial success — or failure. These stories feature folks from all stages of financial maturity. Today, the Frugal Jerk — who has asked to remain anonymous for now — shares the first half of his story about going from internet entrepreneur to busted and broke.

You might know me. I’m a blogger and entrepreneur. I've had tens of thousands of customers during the last decade, so it's very possible that you've purchased something from me in the past.

I've been read by millions of readers on my own sites and I’ve appeared as a guest writer on popular websites you’ve surely heard of. I've also been featured in New York Times bestselling books that may sit on your shelf. At my peak, my income was $300,000 per year. By many accounts I would be considered successful. But I’ve made many dumb mistakes with money.

.Why You Should Raise Millionaire Children Part 2

By Jerry Norton

This is Part 2 of “Why You Should Raise Millionaire Children” If you missed part 1, be sure to read it now. In Part 1, I discussed the importance of teaching our kids to have a healthy mindset about money. In Part 2, I’d like to explore 3 reasons why you as a parent should want your children to become rich and what you can do as a parent to implement wealth-building principles.

Reason #1: Lifestyle The first is an obvious one – lifestyle.

Having money gives you more choices in life. Why shouldn’t you have and do everything you want in your life? Whoever said you can’t have and do everything you want? God meant for you to have it all.

I don’t let anyone tell me or my kids that we can’t have or do something that is important to us. One of the worst things you can say to your kids is, “We can’t afford it” or “That’s too expensive” or “That costs too much money.” Saying those things reinforces that you cannot have the best things life has to offer.

Now before you yell at me, I know what you’re thinking. What if it’s true and you really can’t afford it and it really is too expensive? You might also be thinking that you want your kids to learn delayed gratification and to appreciate what they have. You also want them to understand family finances. So do I.

A few simple changes in how we phrase things can make all the difference. Rather than saying, “We can’t afford it,” say, “When we can afford it.” Instead of saying, “That’s too expensive,” replace it with, “We choose not to spend our money on that right now.”

.Surprising Secrets of The Cheapskates Next Door

Written by GUEST AUTHOR| Published: 28 July 2010 – Updated: 29 August 2020

This is a guest post from Jeff Yeager, author of the newly-published The Cheapskate Next Door. Yeager calls himself the Ultimate Cheapskate — and his wife agrees. Yeager is also a contributor at Wise Bread and on the Early Retirement forums.

The Cheapskate Next Door“Sure, we could afford to spend more, but why would we? It wouldn't make us any happier.” — Those are the words I've spent the last two-and-a-half years traveling the country to hear. It's a simple but rare statement, given that nearly half of all Americans say that they literally live paycheck-to-paycheck and have little if any savings.

How can some people live not only within their means, but substantially below their means — even when their incomes are often less than the national average? And here's the biggest question of all: How can some of those same people insist that they're happier — joyous, really — because of their thrift and frugality?

.Why You Should Raise Millionaire Children - Part 1

By Jerry Norton

Recently, good friend and parenting expert Nicholeen Peck invited me to be a guest on a weekly group call she conducts with parents. She asked if I’d share some ideas for teaching children about money and wealth.

As a home school father of six, entrepreneur and real estate investor, this is a topic very near and dear to me. I accepted her invitation, but was a little apprehensive as to how my message would be received. In my business I train individuals from all over the world on how to invest in real estate. Typically, the people I work with are eager to improve their financial situation — get out of debt, quit going to a job they hate, and start making money doing something they enjoy. Some are looking for a better lifestyle and others are looking for a way to speed up retirement.

Almost all want more time to pursue their goals and dreams and they realize that money plays a vital role in accomplishing them. In my training programs it is very natural and appropriate to talk about money, investing and wealth creation.

.18 Favorite Financial Rules Of Thumb (and some useful money guidelines)

By J.D. Roth

Financial Rules of ThumbAfter twelve years of reading and writing about money, I’ve come to love financial rules of thumb.

Financial rules of thumb provide helpful shortcuts for making quick calculations and decisions. You don’t always have time (or want to take the time) to create elaborate spreadsheets when choosing a course of action. In these cases, it’s nice to have some rough guidelines you can rely on.

You’ve probably heard of the “rule of 72”, for example. This shortcut says that if you divide 72 by a particular rate of return, you’ll get the number of years it’ll take to double your money. If your savings account yields 4%, say, it will take about 18 years for your nest egg to increase by 100%. But if you were able to earn 12% on your investment, that money would double in six years.

Like all rules of thumb, the rule of 72 isn’t precise. It doesn’t give an exact answer but a ballpark figure. Financial rules of thumb don’t always hold true. But they’re true enough for us to make loose plans based on them.