Cash Flow refers to the inflow and outflow of money. It is a record of income and expenses. The purpose of cash flow planning is to ensure a surplus. So, it is extremely important to analyse each and every item in the income and expenditure statements and do a budgeting. Cash flow planning also includes the identification of the future incomes and expenditures (both short-term and long-term) and making planned investments so that the required amount is accumulated within the required time frame. For successful cash flow planning, one needs to identify his cash flow planning needs and select an approach that will satisfy those needs. Many people will need a comprehensive cash flow plan that may include detailing of all items of cash inflow & outflow, monitoring & evaluating compliance with the plan. Some people will need a simplified cash flow plan. This plan may include only a cash management system to ensure that amounts needed to fund financial goals are invested.

Insurance Planning is determining the adequacy of insurance cover required by an individual to cover the risk associated with one’s life, medical emergencies and assets. It includes Life Insurance, Health Insurance, Insuring Physical Assets & Accident/Disability Insurance. Whereas in the financial world, risk management is the process of identification, analysis, and acceptance or mitigation of uncertainty in investment decisions. Essentially, risk management occurs when an investor or investment manager analyses and attempts to quantify the potential for losses in an investment.

Steps of risk management:
1. Identifying existing risk: Risk identification involves immense brainstorming. In this stage, a review is conducted for all sources of risk. After that, all the identified risks are arranged in the order of priority.
2. Analysing the risk: This step involves analysing how likely it is that a risk will occur and that it will have a measurable impact. Some of the common ways of mitigating risk include:

• Transferring the risk.
• Avoiding the risk
• Controlling the risk
• Accepting the risk

3. Monitoring the risk: Whoever owns the risk will be responsible for tracking its progress towards resolution. But you will need to stay updated to have an accurate picture & overall progress to identify and monitor new risks.
4. Control: We can control risk only in limited extent. By avoiding the risk or by non-participating severe risk.

Estate planning refers to the organized approach to managing the accumulated assets of a person in the interest of the intended beneficiaries. Wealth may be accumulated with a specific purpose of being passed on to heirs, to charity, or to any other intended purpose. Without formal structures that ensure that these purposes are met, there could be disputes, conflicting claims, legal battles, avoidable taxes and unstructured pay-offs that may not be in the best interest of the beneficiaries. Estate planning covers the structural, financial, legal and tax aspects of managing wealth in the interest of the intended beneficiaries.
The term 'estate' includes all assets and liabilities belonging to a person at the time of his death. This may include assets as well as claims, a deceased is entitled to receive or pay. The term estate is used for assets whose legal owner has deceased, but they have not been passed on to the beneficiaries and other claimants. Once transferred, the estate becomes the assets of the beneficiary who has received the legal ownership. Estate can also be passed on to a trust and managed by trustees, in which case, ownership is with a distinct entity, but periodical benefits from the estate is passed on to beneficiaries. There is no uniform code for civil law that exists in India with respect to this.
The consequences of dying intestate are very severe in nature. If a person dies without making a will, he is said to have died “intestate” and in such case his property will be inherited by his heirs in accordance with laws of succession applicable to him. The end result may not be what the person would have intended. If the dependents include minor or incapacitated children, more than one spouse, elderly parents or in-laws, or siblings and siblings-in-law, there may be disputes in distribution of assets. Distribution of estate may also suffer due to lengthy legal procedures and administration costs. This could add both inconvenience and financial burden to the family. Succession is governed by personal laws, which will apply in the case of intestate death. Different personal laws apply as follows:

The Hindu Succession Act, 1956 (Applicable to Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs)
• Indian Succession Act, 1925 (Applicable to Christians, Jews and Parsis)
• Mohammedan Personal laws (Governing inheritance of Muslims)

The prolonged dispute, legal battles and costs can be avoided, if intestate death is prevented through timely estate planning.

When it comes to personal finance, everyone’s situation is unique. No one has the same bills, rents, debts or lifestyle. When you are ready to take control of your financial lifestyle, you need a plan that will answer your specific problems, not your neighbour’s. A specific financial goal is a target to aim for, when managing your money. It can involve saving, spending, earning or even investing. When you have a clear picture of what you are aiming for, working towards your target becomes easy. This means that your goals should be measurable, specific and time oriented. There are several types of general specific financial goals:

• Short-term goals: These are financial targets that can be reached within 1 – 3 years.
• Mid-term goals: These are financial targets that can be reached within 3 – 5 years.
• Long-term goals: These are financial targets that can be reached after 5 years onwards.

For better understanding, here are a few examples of specific goals:

• Pay Off Debt
• Strive for Homeownership
• Plan for Hobby
• Retirement Planning
• Children Education
• Vacation Planning
• Wealth Creation
• Planning for Charity