The Ultimate Financial Plan: Balancing Your Money and Life -- Contents -- Foreword -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- Chapter 1: The Gift of Money: Money 101 -- The Value of Money -- Money Beliefs -- Chapter 2: The Gift of Purpose: Personal Principles and Goals -- Personal Principles -- Goals -- Chapter 3: The Gift of Discipline: Household Cash Flow -- Personal Financial Statements -- Financial Crises -- Chapter 4: The Gift of Enough: Debt and Financial Freedom -- Financial Freedom -- The Danger of Discontent -- Emergency Reserves -- Bad Debt -- Better Debt -- Economics and Emotions -- The Cure for More -- Chapter 5: The Gift of Discernment: Risk Management Decisions -- The Accident -- Risk Management Techniques -- How Insurance Works -- Chapter 6: The Gift of Security: Life Insurance -- Life Insurance: Why? -- Life Insurance Needs -- Life Insurance: How? -- Life Insurance Wants -- Different Types of Life Insurance -- Purchasing Life Insurance -- Chapter 7: The Gift of Certainty: Auto, Home, and Liability Insurance -- Auto Insurance -- Homeowner's Insurance -- Excess Liability (Umbrella) Insurance -- Chapter 8: The Gift of Health: Health, Disability Income, and Long-Term Care Insurance -- Health Insurance -- Types of Plans -- HSAs and FSAs -- Recent Health Insurance Changes -- Disability Income Insurance -- DI Moving Pieces -- Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare -- Long-Term Care Insurance -- LTC Moving Pieces -- Chapter 9: The Gift of Clarity: Investing and Portfolio Management -- Stocks and Bonds -- All Things Considered Equal? -- Mutual Funds -- Economic Analysis -- Market Valuation Analysis -- Technical Market Analysis -- Efficient or Not? -- Passive versus Active -- Investing with "Style" -- Relative Return versus Absolute Return -- Index Huggers, Return Chasers, and Risk Managers -- Decisions, Decisions.

Chapter 10: The Gift of Transparency: Annuities -- Immediate Annuities -- Fixed Annuities -- Variable Annuities -- Equity Indexed Annuities -- Annuity Disadvantages -- Annuity Advantages -- Chapter 11: The Gift of Preparation: Tax Planning -- Tax Myths -- Tax Rules -- Chapter 12: The Gift of Learning: Education Planning -- Family Education Policy -- Having The Talk (no, not that talk) -- Education Savings Plan -- The 50 Percent Rule -- Chapter 13: The Gift of Fulfillment: Retirement Planning -- Retirement Past -- Retirement Present -- Retirement Future -- Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans -- 401k Rollovers -- Traditional IRAs -- Roth IRAs -- Traditional versus Roth -- Roth IRA Conversions -- Fulfillment Planning -- Retirement Makeover -- Chapter 14: The Ultimate Gift: Estate Planning -- Wills -- Durable Powers of Attorney -- Advance Directives -- Beneficiary Designations -- Probate -- Estate Tax -- Chapter 15: The Gift of Discretion: Choosing a Financial Advisor -- "The Big Three" -- Financial Planner Compensation -- Finding a Professional Planner -- Chapter 16: The Gift of Action: Your Plan for Money and Life -- Fundamental and Practical Change -- Reprise -- Stay Connected -- Notes -- About the Web Site -- About the Authors -- Index.