Investing money and providing guidance and advice to a client without a comprehensive financial plan is like putting the cart before the horse. A comprehensive financial plan allows clients to make clear and well-informed decisions on risk, savings, debt management, job changes, home changes, college costs, retirement, and any other financial decision they are presented with throughout their lives. Plans are living breathing documents that are updated and adjusted as life moves through its various phases, from saving for retirement through living in retirement. One’s financial life rarely sticks to a planned-out blueprint, and as variables change, we manage and update our clients' plans accordingly. I find we can assist clients in making sound decisions when it comes to their money if we use the plan as the basis of information needed to make difficult and complex financial decisions. Clients make choices that carry a certain amount of risk or even considerable risk, but they do so as educated and informed decisions makers. It is not my job to make decisions for a client, it is my job to analyze their financial information, underlying risks, and potential opportunities that should be considered. I can then inform and advise accordingly so the client can make an unemotional and educated decision. The most effective financial plans are those in which the client works with us hand in hand and participates in their own success.As the owner and principal of Lighthouse Financial, I work with individuals, families, and businesses to help them with their financial planning and wealth management needs. I guide my clients with a focus on comprehensive planning, an approach that considers all facets of a client’s financial life. The purpose of comprehensive planning is to identify how well funded the client’s financial needs and aspirational goals are, what risks their wealth is exposed to, and what measures can be taken to address risks and minimize taxes. Using the client’s plan, I match the investments for the portfolio to contribute to the success of the client’s financial life.