Despite an expansive array of financial planning tools, advice, and gurus, putting real financial planning into practice is deeply personal—and incredibly difficult. is a collection of surprising and inspiring true stories that reveal how real clients applied financial planning to derive tangible results that changed their lives. These stories by award-winning financial advisors feature people from all walks of life—young and old, those in debt and those with great wealth—and a wide variety of situations, from designing a desired lifestyle to dealing with catastrophe. They show how well-thought-out, personalized, and high-touch financial planning can truly impact lives for the better. These leaders in a growing industry remind us that financial planning is more than dollars and cents—it is about resourcing dreams and improving lives in the near-term and beyond. Financial planning is . Contributions from: Elliott Appel, Michael H. Baker, Vincent R. Barbera, Jordan Benold, Todd Bessey, Todd A. Bryant, Marguerita Cheng, Kevin D. Christensen, Christopher Clepp, Cathy Curtis, Shanna Due, Jessica L. Fahrenholz, Brett K. Fellows, Matt Fizell, Steven Fox, Melissa Joy, Michael Kelly, David Kuzma, Douglas M. Lynch, Kevin Mahoney, Andrew Martz, Stephanie W. McCullough, Dana J. Menard, Amar Pandit, Matthew G. Ricks, Jeffrey J. Smith, Nicola Tomlin, Simon A. Tryzna