The 15-Minute Financial Plan
I saw this ad recently for financial planning software that stopped me in my tracks:
- 15 minutes to create a financial plan
- Compared to the average of over 10 hours
- 4x more plans per advisor
I mean, I'm always looking for ways to be more efficient with my time and to provide more to my clients, so at first glance, that sounded like progress.
But a split second later my reaction was different:
What exactly is being created in those 15 minutes?
Because it does take me about 10 hours to build a financial plan.
And when I look at what goes into one… I’m not sure how it could take less.
What Software Produces
Financial planning software is incredibly powerful.
It can:
- Aggregate accounts
- Run projections
- Model taxes
- Generate polished reports
But at the end of the day:
It produces outputs, not a plan. Sure, sometimes those outputs can be pretty snazzy, but they're not plans.
What Actually Goes Into a Financial Plan
To make this real, here’s what goes into one of my plans.
Not theoretically, not, “in general.”
This is the actual work.
1. Balance Sheet & Cash Flow (The Foundation)
Before we even think about projections, we build a clear picture of:
- Assets (taxable, retirement, real estate, business interests)
- Liabilities
- Income sources (W-2, 1099, bonuses, equity comp)
- Spending patterns
This isn’t just data entry.
It’s:
- Cleaning up inconsistencies
- Identifying what’s missing
- Understanding what’s actually happening vs what’s assumed
Garbage in → garbage out.
This alone can take meaningful time to get right.
2. Goal Definition (What Are We Solving For?)
This is where most software jumps too quickly to numbers.
Instead, we slow down and define:
- Retirement timing (and what that actually means)
- Lifestyle expectations
- Big future decisions (moving, selling a business, helping kids, etc.)
- Flexibility vs certainty
This is not a dropdown menu.
It’s a conversation.
3. Retirement Modeling (Multiple Versions, Not One)
Yes, we run projections.
But not just one.
We test:
- Different retirement dates
- Spending levels
- Market assumptions
- Social Security timing
- Pension decisions (if applicable)
We’re not looking for the answer.
We’re looking for:
How sensitive is this plan to change?
That’s what creates confidence.
4. Tax Planning (Often Underrated, Always Important)
This is where a lot of value lives.
We look at:
- Current vs future tax brackets
- Roth conversion opportunities
- Capital gain strategies
- Withdrawal sequencing
- IRMAA considerations
Software can calculate taxes.
But it doesn’t decide:
When is the right time to act?
5. Investment Structure (Not Just Allocation)
We’re evaluating:
- Current portfolio complexity
- Fees and hidden costs
- Asset location (what goes where, tax-wise)
- Simplicity vs overengineering
Often the outcome isn’t “optimize everything.”
It’s:
Simplify what doesn’t need to be complicated.
6. Risk & Stress Testing (Reality Check)
We pressure test the plan:
- Market downturns
- Higher spending
- Longevity risk
- Unexpected events
This is where we answer:
“What could go wrong, and are we still okay?”
7. Implementation Strategy (Bridging Plan → Action)
This is the part most, “15-minute plans,” completely skip.
We map out:
- What happens first
- What can wait
- What decisions matter most
Because a plan that isn’t implemented is just a document.
8. Iteration (The Hidden Work)
What doesn’t show up in a software demo:
- Follow-up questions
- Revised assumptions
- “That didn’t feel right, let’s rerun it”
- Conversations that change direction
A real plan is rarely built in one pass.
It’s built through refinement.
What Gets Delivered (The Output)
At the end, yes, you get:
- Projections
- Charts
- Recommendations
- A clear path forward
But those are just the visible layer.
The real value is everything underneath:
- The decisions
- The tradeoffs
- The confidence
So Why Does This Matter?
Because if a plan can truly be created in 15 minutes, one of two things is happening:
- The situation is extremely simple
- Or the work isn’t being done
For most people I work with, neither is true.
A Better Way to Think About Financial Planning
Financial planning software should make advisors better, not just faster.
Because the goal isn’t to produce more plans.
It’s to help people make better decisions with their money.
And that takes time.
There’s a difference between:
- Running numbers
- And building a plan
One takes 15 minutes.
The other takes thought.