Financial Planning
Any major financial decision or wealth-building strategy needs a financial plan behind it. As you build wealth, managing larger amounts of money brings added complexity: allocation, investments, risk tolerance, and tax management all need to work together as part of a coordinated plan, not isolated decisions made one at a time. Developing a plan where you can run scenarios of how changes in goals, investments, and tax strategy can affect your probability of success provides you with the data to make informed decisions and give you confidence in your financial future.
What I Help With
Goals Based Planning
Whether you're planning for retirement, saving for a child's education, or looking to build wealth strategically, I help you define what you're working toward and build a plan to get there — one that reflects your actual timeline and priorities.
What Type of Account
Not all savings vehicles are created equal — 401(k)s, IRAs, 529 plans, HSAs, and taxable brokerage accounts each come with different tax treatment, contribution limits, and flexibility. I help you determine which accounts make the most sense for each of your goals, including how company stock plans and ESPPs factor into your overall savings strategy.
How Much to Save
Saving the right amount matters more than saving as much as possible. I help you determine how much to set aside toward each goal, based on your income, timeline, and how variable income sources like bonuses or vesting equity fit into the picture.
Allocation & Investments
Once we know where you're saving, we need to determine how it's invested. I help you build an allocation that reflects your goals, timeline, and risk tolerance — including accounting for concentrated positions in employer stock, which is common for tech and biotech professionals with equity compensation.​​
Tax Management
Taxes can meaningfully affect what you actually keep — from equity vesting to investment gains to retirement withdrawals. I help you project tax liabilities across different scenarios and identify strategies that seek to better position your after-tax results, so decisions are made with the full picture in mind, not just the pre-tax number.
Debt Management
Not all debt is the same, and paying it down isn't always the best use of extra cash. I help you evaluate your outstanding debt — from student loans to a Bay Area mortgage — prioritize what to pay down first, and decide when extra funds are better directed toward savings goals instead.
Life Insurance Strategy
If your income supports your family, the right coverage protects them if something happens to you. I help you evaluate your life insurance needs and identify the type and amount of coverage that fits your situation.
Cash Flow Projections
I build out projections showing different paths to your goals, factoring in variable income like bonuses, equity vesting, tax liabilities or a biotech milestone payout, so you can see the tradeoffs between different savings rates, timelines, or decisions before committing to one.
The Approach​​
What's Important in Your Life
We start with a real conversation, not a generic questionnaire. I take the time to understand your goals, your income structure — equity, RSUs, bonuses, variable comp — and your timeline, so the plan reflects your actual life, not a template.
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Understanding your current financials
Link your accounts to the planning portal — no paperwork, no chasing statements. That time gets reinvested where it counts: analyzing your options and building strategy.
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Reviewing recommended options
I bring you a clear set of options to streamline and better position your financial plan — no pressure to decide on the spot. Review them at your own pace, and move forward with the strategies that make sense for you, when you're ready.
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Monitor and Adjust
Your plan lives in an online portal you can access anytime — track your progress, see what's changed, and stay aligned as life moves.
Who This Is For​​
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You work in tech or biotech and want a financial plan that actually accounts for equity compensation, variable income, or industry-specific milestones.
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You are making a major life or financial decision and need to better understand your options
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You're saving toward a goal — financial independence, retirement, a child's education — and want a clear plan for how to get there.
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You want to build wealth strategically with a sound process backed by real numbers.
Whether you're just starting to think about your goals or want a clearer path to get there, I'm happy to help you work through the details.
Explore Advanced Planning
Frequently Asked Questions​​
I have RSUs and stock options — does that change how you'd approach my plan?
Yes. Equity compensation affects savings strategy, tax planning, and investment allocation differently than a standard salary. I factor this in from the start rather than treating it as an afterthought.​
How much should I be saving each month?
It depends on your goals, timeline, and income — there's no universal answer. I help you calculate a realistic savings target based on your specific situation.
Should I be saving in a Roth or a traditional 401(k)?
It depends on your current tax bracket versus your expected tax bracket in retirement, along with other factors specific to your situation. For some, a mix of both makes sense. We can help you think through which approach — or combination — fits you best.
Should I pay off my mortgage or save more?
Often it's a mix of both, and the right balance depends on the interest rate on your debt versus your goals' timeline. We can work through this together based on your numbers.
How much life insurance do I need?
It depends on factors like your income, debts, dependents, and how many years of financial support they'd need if something happened to you. There's no single formula that fits everyone — we work through your specific numbers together.
I'm not sure what my actual goals should be — can you help me figure that out?
Yes. Many clients start without a fully formed goal and work through that with me as part of the planning process.