Financial Planning

A financial planning expert or advisor uses his or her knowledge of tax laws, investments, and insurance to provide recommendations. By helping his or her clients identify short-term and long-term goals, a financial planner makes it possible for them to effectively plan for expenses such as retirement and a college education for their children. A financial planning expert also helps his or her clients with estate planning and with making investment decisions.

Since a financial planning expert generally works with several different people, he or she must be very well organized and able to adapt to the needs of each client. Since many financial planning experts are also responsible for finding their own customers, they may also spend a portion of their day making sales calls and taking other steps to market their services.

The amount of money you earn as a financial planning expert depends upon your years of experience, your proven track record, your geographic location, and the type of employer for which you work. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual salary for financial planning experts who were working as financial analysts in 2009 was $73,670. These figures do not include the incomes of those who were self-employed, however, as they may make significantly more or less than the industry standard.

In order to become a financial planning expert, you must have a minimum of a bachelor's degree, though many employers will only hire those with a more advanced degree in financial planning or a related field. Some employers also require their financial planning experts to hold certain types of licensure, but these licenses generally require sponsorship and are not obtained until after you have actually been hired.

A good candidate for a financial planning position is someone who is well organized and capable of multi-tasking. Those in the field should have a strong aptitude for matters of finance and a good understanding of business. Those who have strong communication skills, who enjoy mathematics, and have a solid understanding of investments and other matters related to finance are particularly well suited to this career.