Planning for life events
The second question is always the money one
Twelve life events, and what each one puts in financial play. Her example, and the one that became a book: a cancer diagnosis. The first question is the diagnosis. The second, days later, is who takes care of the family and what happens to the income — and that second question is almost never in anyone’s plan.
“How do we create a strategy to begin to rebuild, even if the worst thing has happened?”
Dr. Nicole B. Simpson, CFP®
The set
Twelve events, twelve second questions
Planning after a serious diagnosis
“Who takes care of the family, and what happens to the income while they do?”
FreezeAvoidPlanning for aging parents
“Not if they die, but what if they live — and how does that land on everyone else?”
AvoidFreezePlanning after losing a job or an income
“How long do we actually have, and what do we protect first?”
FreezeSpendPlanning after the death of a spouse or parent
“What has to be decided this month, and what can safely wait a year?”
FreezeAvoidPlanning after a disability or health event
“What can still be earned, and what has to be replaced?”
FreezeOver-controlPlanning through a divorce
“What does one household look like, on this income, from here?”
AvoidOver-controlPlanning after a disaster or a sudden loss
“How do we create a strategy to begin to rebuild, even if the worst thing has happened?”
FreezeSpendPlanning around an inheritance
“What is this actually, and what does it oblige me to do this year?”
SpendFreezePlanning as retirement gets close
“What does this become, as income, and for how long?”
Over-controlAvoidPlanning for long-term care
“If care is needed for years rather than months, who pays, and out of what?”
AvoidOver-controlPlanning around starting or selling a business
“What happens to the household if the business stops?”
Over-controlSpendPlanning for a family member with special needs
“What happens to them when we are no longer here to manage it?”
Over-controlAvoid
What ties them together
Every event trains a response
Freeze
The decision keeps getting deferred.
Spend
Something hurts, so something gets bought.
Avoid
Money is the one subject nobody raises.
Over-control
No amount saved is ever enough.
Common questions
Planning around life events
It is planning organized around what actually happened rather than around a product. The event — a diagnosis, a death, a job loss — is treated as the starting input, because it determines both what the household needs and how it will behave while deciding.
Because goals assume stability and events remove it. Most people arrive at a planner in the weeks after something happened, not during a calm year, and a plan that quietly assumes rational behavior under stress fails at exactly the moment it is needed.
No. There is one published engagement — an initial planning engagement of 60 to 90 days producing a written Financial Freedom Roadmap, then an ongoing planning relationship. The first stage is where it is established which of these considerations actually apply to you.
No. These pages exist because most people arrive after something happened, but the same engagement works perfectly well for a household in a stable year that simply wants a plan.
I am credentialed, I’m credible, and I’m called.
Whatever happened, the first hour is free
You do not need numbers, statements or a tidy summary. Bring the situation.