How to Refresh Your Personal Financial Plan Before Fall

Summertime can be a blur for everyone, including (or maybe especially) business owners. Kids are home from school, and the warm months are filled with vacation travel, holiday events, and unpredictable schedules. By the time fall hits, Q4 is approaching, and tax season isn’t far behind.

That’s why late summer is the perfect window to pause, reset, and update your financial plan. It’s not just about money management or keeping score. It’s about ensuring that your year-to-date financial decisions align with your life and business goals before the year-end. It’s a time to review and renew your commitments and, if necessary, make some adjustments to stay on track.

Ensign Partners specializes in providing business owners and professionals with comprehensive and coordinated advice across business and personal legal, financial, insurance, tax, and accounting disciplines. Here are some tips that can help you refresh your plan in a way that’s focused, efficient, and built for results.

1. Revisit Your Income and Spending Targets

Start with the basics:

• Are your personal cash flows still in sync with your plan?
• Have you taken more or less income from the business than expected?
• Are your savings and investment contributions on track?
• Have any significant expenses—planned or unplanned—shifted your priorities?

Late summer is a good time to adjust distributions, rebalance salary vs. dividends, or modify withholding to avoid a surprise tax bill later.

Tip: If your business is performing above or below forecast, update your personal cash flow assumptions to reflect that now. Year-end may be too late, leaving you frustrated and scrambling.

2. Check in on Tax Planning

Too many business owners wait until December to evaluate their tax situation, when most of the year’s decisions are already baked in. Late Q3 is the right time to:

• Estimate year-to-date income and projected tax liability
• Review charitable giving plans (especially donor-advised funds or appreciated assets)
• Evaluate retirement plan contributions (401(k), SEP, or cash balance plan)
• Harvest capital gains or losses intentionally in your investment portfolio
• Optimize your compensation strategy while you still have time to act

The goal isn’t just to minimize this year’s tax liability; it’s to align your tax strategy with what you want your money to do next.

3. Update Your Net Worth Statement

If you haven’t looked at your net worth this year, now’s the time. It gives you a snapshot of your overall financial health and a foundation for strategic decisions. Make sure it includes:

• All personal and business assets (including ownership shares, real estate, and investment accounts)
• Current liabilities, including business or personal loans, mortgages, and credit lines
• Updated valuations for private assets or real estate, if applicable

Why it matters: Your net worth isn’t just a number; it’s a strategic map. Even when the number is higher than anticipated, it’s not about having a fist-pump moment, but understanding your report card. Where you are should inform your estate planning, insurance needs, and investment strategy. Learn why you are where you are and incorporate what you learn into your plans.

4. Rebalance Investments with a Forward View

Markets change, and trends develop. So should your portfolio. Use this time to:

• Review current allocations with respect to your preferred target risk profile
• Shift capital if necessary, based on upcoming liquidity needs (business exit, real estate, education costs, etc.)
• Reallocate excess cash if it’s been sitting idle
• Adjust exposure if your business concentrates your wealth in one industry or region, particularly if new risks arise

Remember: if you’re preparing for a sale or large liquidity event, your investment strategy should begin adapting before the transaction, not after.

5. Review Protection and Estate Planning

Fall brings change, and with it, risk. Before the year speeds up, double-check your protection planning:

• Is your life and disability insurance still adequate for your family and business obligations?
• Do your estate documents (wills, trusts, powers of attorney) still reflect your wishes, and are they accurate?
• Have any life changes—births, deaths, marriages, business changes—warranted an update?

Integrated planning means your legal and financial worlds work together. A quick review now can prevent a painful clean-up later.

6. Reaffirm Your Big Goals

Financial plans are supposed to be roadmaps to freedom, purpose, and peace of mind, but they are not one-and-done. Use this time to step back and ask:

• Are your goals still the same?
• Are you on pace to achieve them?
• What’s changed in your life that should change your plan?

Whether preparing to sell a business, fund a legacy, or simply reduce stress, your financial strategy should evolve with your life, not lag behind it.

Intentional Always Beats Reactive

Our lives are busy, and we all like structure. But structuring your life to review your financial plan only at the end or beginning of the year can create problems you can easily avoid by taking a periodic financial pulse at key times. One of those key times is before the chaos of Q4 and year-end deadlines. With a Q3 review, you can act with clarity as you head into the year-end instead of scrambling to react to unanticipated issues. You’ll thank yourself when the holiday season comes and your stress levels are low.

At Ensign Partners, we help business owners weave the disparate threads of their financial lives into a seamless tapestry, integrating financial strategies for personal wealth, business performance, and long-term goals. Our comprehensive services give you visibility into how your coordinated actions now will help you achieve financial security and success on your terms.