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What is personal financial planning

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Modified on May 12, 2023

Financial planning is exactly what it sounds like, coming up with a plan for your money, whether you are spending, saving, working on financial health, or investing. These areas of finances are just the tip of the iceberg when discussing financial planning. There is a lot more to know and learn, and you’ll get some of those basics right here.

Continue reading to learn more about the ins and outs of financial planning.

An Overview of Financial Planning

Financial planning is an important thing to be aware of and to start doing; regardless of where you are in your life or what kind of relationship you have with money, financial planning can help you out.

As mentioned above, financial planning will touch on things like savings, investing, debt like installment loans, spending, and financial health, but these are just the major categories that have much more to them, and so they encompass a few different things:

Savings

Saving is a huge part of financial planning, without it, it can be challenging to reach any short-term or long-term financial goals. Here are some of the different areas of savings you will likely come across when navigating personal finance:

Budgeting

Budgeting involves making a plan for your money. These plans can be as short as a few weeks or as long as a year. To begin budgeting successfully, you will need to track your income and expenses. Then you can devise a plan for your money based on your financial goals. For example, some people may want to focus on savings, while others may want to focus on paying off debt. There are all kinds of budgeting plans that can hone in on those goals; here are some examples:

The 50/30/20 Budget

The 50/30/20 budget is fairly simple; you divide your income into different increments. 50% of your income should go towards your necessary expenses, 30% should go towards the things you want, and 20% should go towards savings. This is a great method for beginners who are trying to organize their income.

The Pay-Yourself-First Budget

The pay-yourself-first budget involves putting your money towards savings and paying off debt before you spend money on anything else. It is up to you how much you want to allocate towards savings or debt payments, but that is the first thing you should do when you get paid. Although this may seem like a lot of freedom, for some people, it is hard to prioritize these critical parts of their finances, and this budgeting method helps with that.

Zero Sum Budgeting

With this budgeting method, you will have to allocate all your income until you hit zero. This doesn’t mean spending all your money; it means taking that extra after necessary expenses and making good use of it. This method will force you to prioritize leftover funds into something beneficial like savings or paying off debt—which many people have trouble with.

The “No” Budget

Another popular budget is the “no” budget. With the “no” budget, you will have to automate your necessary expenses. For example, you would automate your savings and all minor and significant bills (rent, utilities, car payments, phone bills, installment loans options, credit cards, subscription services, etc.). And then, once that money is allocated, you can use the remaining funds however you like. This can be a great budget if you want to have a hands-off approach!

The Envelope Method

The envelope method involves labeling actual or digital envelopes into different categories, setting limits, and allocating your income based on those. Once that money in the envelope runs out, that is it for the month. It will be up to you how much you want to add to each category, but it will be helpful if you have a goal in mind. Examples of categories include rent/mortgage payments, debt payments, groceries, savings, fun expenses, etc.

Creating An Emergency Savings/Emergency Fund

An emergency fund is an essential part of any financial plan. Creating an adequate savings fund—ideally a minimum to cover three months of expenses—will be crucial to financial success; especially in case your income changes or an unexpected expense comes up. Starting savings is pretty easy; all you have to do is take some money out of your income and allocate it into a savings account. You can add as much as possible, but if you don’t already have the minimum amount that many experts advise, you may want to prioritize savings!

Retirement Savings

Although most retirement accounts are technically investment accounts, they also overlap with savings because you will need to put money aside actively to get the best use out of it. Many employers offer their employees a 401k plan in which they may match deposits up to a certain percentage and amount. Roth IRAs are individual retirement accounts you can set up independently.

Investing

Investing can be a great source of passive income. Essentially it is letting your money earn on itself. There are kinds of investments out there; a few include real estate, bonds, CDs, stocks, and bonds. Some investments are riskier than others, but sometimes those risks can pay more than safer ventures.

Wealth Management

Wealth management is keeping track of where all your money is (different investments and savings) and trying your best to optimize it via strategic accounts and actions.

Your Investment Portfolio

Your investment portfolio is made up of the different types of investment and savings accounts you have; it goes hand in hand with wealth management.

Spending

Spending may seem like the most straightforward category of financial planning, but it covers more than just what you actively spend:

Income

Spending goes hand in hand with income because how often you get paid and how much income you have will determine what kinds of ventures you can pursue. Tracking your monthly cash flow is a good place to start.

Loans, Credit Cards, and Other Debts

Another thing that can be categorized under spending is any debt, including loans, credit cards, etc. When you borrow money, the original amount won’t be the only thing you’ll be responsible for paying back; you will also have to pay interest—which you probably already know if you’ve taken out any loan before. Personal financial planning will definitely take into consideration debt and will probably include some type of debt management plan.

Financial Health

Your financial health is a crucial part of your life and can help with financial security. For many people, improving poor financial health or maintaining a positive state will be a part of their financial plan. Financial health can cover things like credit scores, credit history, credit utilization, debt-to-income ratio, etc. Here is more information on some of the topics that will fall under financial health:

Your Credit Score and Credit History

Your credit score provides a quick snapshot of your financial habits, including your payment history on different debts, how much credit you use, the type of credit accounts you have, and more. Credit history is a more detailed view of this information, which you can access via your free credit reports. Having positive credit will be extremely helpful with finances and beyond that as well.

Your Credit Utilization

Your credit utilization compares the amount of credit available vs. the amount of debt. A credit utilization percentage under 30% may be extremely helpful with your score and general financial health.

Your Debt-to-Income Ratio

Your debt-to-income ratio measures the amount of income you have vs. the amount of debt you have. Most experts recommend keeping your debt-to-income ratio below 36%.

Why Is It Important To Have a Financial Plan?

There are several reasons why it is important to have a financial plan to take control of your personal finances; here are a few:

It Can Help You Reach Your Short-term or Long-term Financial Goals

Almost everyone has financial goals and they are important, even if you don’t actively think about them as such. For example, wanting to buy a car requires saving money, paying for it upfront, or financing it, which all deal with finances. No matter what your financial goals are, saving, taking a vacation, retiring early, having a dream wedding, or buying a house, a lot of the time, these goals won’t be accomplished without a plan in place.

Personal Financial Management Can Help Your Financial Future

You will rarely find a personal financial plan without tackling a savings plan. And so another way that planning can help you is it can assist you in the immediate future if your income changes or if an unexpected expense pops up. With adequate savings, you don’t have to worry about falling behind on bills, which can destroy your credit and really derail your life. And you don’t have to worry about taking on high-interest debt like credit card debt or payday loans. Along with adding security to your immediate future, financial planning can help you build savings for later in life.

Financial Planning Process Can Help You Build Wealth

Another important thing that the process of financial planning can help with is building wealth. With the right savings and investing, you could really work on a plan to grow your net worth through income that you already have.

Getting Professional Help for Personal Financial Planning

Coming up with a financial plan on your own can be difficult and overwhelming. The good news is that there are professionals you can pay to help you and tons of resources you can look into. Here are some places you can find help with a financial plan:

Personal Financial Advisors

Financial advisors, also called financial planners, are professionals that can help with managing personal finance. They can help you with every part of personal financial planning and develop a comprehensive plan for saving, investing, and spending. Some advisors may focus on specific areas of specialization, so consider that before booking an appointment with one. Along with the basics of financial planning, here are some areas of specialization you may find:

Risk management.
Step-by-step guide for money management.
Financial markets.
Cash flow management.
Investments.
Retirement planning.
Tax plans.
Wealth management.
Personal finance education.

Financial Literacy Through Personal Finance Classes

If you want a more visual or hands-on approach to personal financial planning, you can look into classes or workshops. Sometimes you may be able to find classes for free; start your search online! Overall a class can be a fun way to learn more about financial planning.