Tim Maurer - The Ultimate Financial Plan: Balancing Your Money and Life

Contents

Additional Praise for The Ultimate Financial Plan

In my 38 years of banking, I saw thousands who could have avoided financial and life problems by reading the material in The Ultimate Financial Plan by Jim Stovall and Tim Maurer. This could be the best investment you ever made in yourself.

Don M. Green, Executive Director, Napoleon Hill Foundation

The severe recession and financial crisis of 200709 have shaken the foundations of the American economy. Its rebuilding and restoration wont come from looking elsewhere for help, but will take shape through the accumulated actions of individuals and families. To help, Jim Stovall and Tim Maurer have produced a book filled with insight and utility. We would all do well to heed their lessons.

Carl J. Schramm, President and Chief Executive Officer, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

Timing is everything, especially concerning your personal finances. As you face your own crossroads in life, this excellent book (like a GPS road map) gives you the timeless, as well as timely, truths you need to reach your ultimate financial goals.

Denis Waitley, author of The Psychology of Winning

The Ultimate Financial Plan is a book for our times. The authors demystify the financial industry, explain the financial crisis, and provide readers with a financial road map for navigating each financial milepost of their lives. Stovall and Maurer have artfully combined their personal stories and a healthy dose of inspiration along with a step by step plan for mastering the complexities of our financial lives. However, their greatest gift in assembling this comprehensive and insightful guidebook is reminding us all of the importance of building true wealth.

Carol Anderson, President, Money Quotient

The Ultimate Financial Plan is a useful guide to help readers build financial plans that will support their own unique life goals. Jim Stovall and Tim Maurer provide detailed financial information in a readable, storytelling style that addresses more than just the mechanics of managing money.

Rick Kahler, CFP, co-author of Conscious Finance, The Financial Wisdom of Ebenezer Scrooge, Facilitating Financial Health, and Wired for Wealth

The Ultimate Financial Plan is very conversational and it is just spilling over with excellent information. Where most personal finance books are all hat, no cattle, Jim and Tim have really delivered with a lot of actionable, quality advice. Theyve hit the nail on the head when it comes to life and moneytheyre so intertwinedthey do a great job of illustrating that your life comes first, and your money should simply fall in line.

Jesse Mecham, Founder and Creator, You Need A Budget ( YNAB.com )

Practical, personal, and fun, grounded in the wisdom of lifes realities, promises, and possibilities, The Ultimate Financial Plan puts our personal relationships with money in living perspective without nagging, harping, or preaching. It will give you much to talk about and even more to think about. Highly recommended.

Richard B. Wagner, JD, CFP, President, WorthLiving, LLC

Copyright 2011 by Jim Stovall and Tim Maurer. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Stovall, Jim.

The ultimate financial plan : balancing your money and life / Jim Stovall and Tim Maurer.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-118-07353-7 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-10794-2 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-10795-9 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-10796-6 (ebk)

1. Finance, Personal. I. Maurer, Tim. II. Title.

HG179.S8445 2011

332.024dc22

2011012870

As always, I would like to dedicate this book to Dorothy Thompson, who, once again, turned my words into sentences and paragraphs that have become this book. Also, I would like to dedicate this effort to my mother and father, George and Florene Stovall, who taught me that money is important but is only one element of a successful life.

Jim Stovall

I dedicate this book to my beautiful wife, Andrea, and my remarkable sons, Kieran and Connor, collectively my inspiration and reminder that money and material possessions serve no greater end than the furtherance of relationships.

Tim Maurer

Foreword

Begin with the end in mind is an old saying, but it is as true as ever when it comes to planning. Planning for what? What is the end? What is the desired result? What is the goal? If you cannot answer these questions, then you are spinning your wheels and wasting valuable time.

This is true no matter what you are planning for. How many times have you been in planning meetings or have worked on business or personal plans? People spend enormous amounts of wasted hours planning how they are going to do something without knowing what the end is or why they are doing it in the first place. If you dont know the why, your planning wont pay off.

You need a driving purpose that is bigger than just getting there. It has to include the journey as well. Think about how many times you have started anything and stopped in the middle.

The classic Gone with the Wind recently celebrated its 75th anniversary. It was originally published by Macmillan Publishing Company in 1936. It sold for $3.00. It took author Margaret Mitchell 10 years to complete the masterpiece, typing chapter after chapter. But the first chapter she typed was the last chapter of the book. She began with the end in mind. Everything that followed had a purpose.