Right now, there are 103,093 registered certified financial planners (CFPs) in the United States. The current U.S. population is around 347 million.
That means there’s only one CFP for every 3,366 people.
It’s a staggering gap in access-and it means that financial planners are spread far too thin. All too often, financial planning doesn’t navigate the complexities of aging, family obligations, taxes, and inflation.
These are replaced by cookie-cutter solutions that focus on portfolio performance, retirement projections, and little else. But people live real lives and have real questions that go beyond just returns.
The Questions Financial Planning Should Answer
Financial planning, at its core, should be about one thing and one thing only: helping people live their best lives-now and in the future.
The problem is that financial planning can be overly focused on static goals and linear projections. But people’s lives are anything but linear. Life happens. Surprises arise.
Financial planners should focus on asking dynamic, personalized “what if’ questions that get to the heart of every client’s unique realities:
Can I retire with the lifestyle I’m accustomed to?
What if I’m forced into early retirement?
What if I get sick and can’t work — or get sick in retirement?
What if I need long-term care?
Can I afford to educate my children?
What if my child wants to go to graduate school?
How can I create a financial legacy that outlasts my children?
What if taxes rise? Or inflation eats away at my savings?
What happens if I live too long — or not long enough?
For many clients, no advisor seems to be asking the most pressing question: What if life doesn’t go according to plan?
These aren’t hypotheticals. And while people rarely have to deal with all of them, it’s rare that they won’t experience any of them.
A strong financial plan should have answers to all of these questions, not ignore them in favor of compound interest.
Financial Planning Is Harder Now Than It Was Then
Yes, there’s a shortage of financial planners. It’s not simply a numbers game. The job is also a lot more complicated today than it ever was.
Retirement today looks nothing like it did 30 years ago. Back then, a modest CD and pension could support a basic retirement lifestyle. For some, Social Security was a full plan on its own, not a supplement.
Basically, you didn’t really have to think that much about retirement to retire reasonably well. But today, a healthy 50-year-old could expect to live another 30-40 years. That means a lot more retirement income is required.
According to Fidelity, the average 65-year-old couple retiring in 2023 will need $315,000 to cover healthcare costs alone, excluding housing, food, and leisure.
Long-term care? The national median cost of a private nursing home room is now over $116,000 per year, and consider what is the cost in your geographic location for your socio-economic situation?
Our clients tend to be anything but average.
People aren’t just living longer—they’re living with higher costs and less income certainty.
Without a proper financial plan that reflects these realities, families will face tough choices later in life, often involving higher-than-expected care costs, unexpected debts, and personal sacrifices.
A Different Way to Look at Financial Planning
Financial planning can’t just be about returns, it should be about readiness.
Here’s what a strong financial plan looks like:
1. Redefining the Goal: It’s Not About Beating the Market
The best financial planners don’t just chase returns. They align money with meaning. It’s not enough for clients to have the resources to retire — they need to be prepared to weather illness, support loved ones, and enjoy their later years with dignity and security.
A 6% average return is meaningless if it can’t cover long-term care during downturns.
2. Planning Is Complex: There Are 27+ Financial Instruments
From Roth IRAs and annuities to health savings accounts, municipal bonds, and life insurance, the modern planning toolkit is overwhelming. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution.
To be successful, you need to choose the right investments at the proper allocations, based on tax impact, liquidity, personal timelines, and other factors.
A great planner functions like a guide through this financial maze, curating the right instruments to serve life’s unique demands.
3. Planning for Life, Not Just Growth
Clients don’t need another advisor solely focused on maximizing their net worth. They need someone who asks, “What will make your life better? What do you want your money to do for you?”
Someone who can guide them through both joyful moments – like funding a wedding or starting a business-and painful ones-like losing a spouse or needing elder care.
Ultimately, financial planning should be about partnership, not just performance.
Financial Planning For Real Life
Financial planning should be anchored in reality-but reality is complex and nuanced. The best financial advisors realize that, and know that their clients need more than portfolio reviews and retirement calculators. They need a strategy that accounts for longevity, uncertainty, and complexity. Financial professionals should be life planners, not just investment managers.
Because, in the real world, your future isn’t just a number—it’s a story waiting to happen, and to quote Natasha Beddingfield, “the rest is still unwritten”.
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