Steal This Financial Order of Operations: A Financial Planner's Cash Flow Operating System

Pull back the curtain on a financial advisor’s personal quarterly financial planning process. In this episode, Eric and Kali share the exact order of operations they use to manage their own money and how that translates to the advice they give their wealth management clients.

This is a proven process to steal and use for yourself if you want a systematic way to stay on track with both short-term spending and long-term wealth building.

Tune in and discover:

• How everything stems from what your savings rate looks like, and why it’s a non-negotiable (this is how you put that advice to “pay yourself first” into action)
• How they structure their quarterly money meetings together
• Strategies to help you balance competing financial priorities, avoid lifestyle inflation, and create “healthy friction” that keeps you motivated without feeling deprived

Whether you’re managing RSU vesting schedules, quarterly bonuses, or a regular paycheck, this practical framework will help you make intentional choices with your cash flow and feel confident about your financial decisions.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

1. Save first, spend second: Prioritize how much you contribute to long-term growth assets (like your investment portfolio within your retirement accounts and taxable investment accounts you commit to letting grow over time) before anything else to ensure long-term goals don’t get shortchanged by present-day lifestyle spending

2. Use percentage-based savings, not dollar amounts: Keeping your savings rate as a percentage of income keeps everything relative. It allows your savings rate to reasonably fluctuate based on what you actually earn, so you’re always saving what you should to stay on track to the financial success you want to realize in the future.

3. The order in which you deploy your dollars matters! Don’t spend first and hope you have enough left over to save later. Here’s the order of operations we use, as professional financial planners, with our own personal finances:

• Understand gross income for the quarter (you might want to do this monthly, depending on how you get paid)
• Contribute to long-term investments (at least 25% of income)
• Account for taxes owed and set aside into savings fund dedicated to tax bill (due via quarterly estimates and annual filing)
• Pay fixed expenses
• Allocate money toward variable needs-based spending
• Fund short-term goals and pending needs
• Whatever is left over, spend freely and with zero guilt on discretionary wants

4, Set aside non-monthly expenses proactively: Move money into separate accounts or track it in a spreadsheet so annual bills don’t disrupt your monthly cash flow. We like to keep this money slightly hidden away, in a separate account (and sometimes even a separate bank!) to reduce any temptation to pull from these funds for something other than its stated purpose.

5. Put choice spending at the end of your planning process not the beginning: This creates “healthy friction” that motivates you to examine your regular spending when discretionary funds fall short – versus ignoring the problem and continuing to spend even if you don’t have money “left over” to save.

6. Choose the meeting timing that makes sense for you: Align your financial planning meetings with how you actually receive income (bonuses, RSUs, distributions, etc).

Ready to create, use, and enjoy money for life? Request a complimentary consultation with us at BYH and discover how to optimize your investments, reduce your tax burden, and grow your wealth: https://beyondyourhammock.com/schedule