Financial planning is a process which involves setting and meeting your life objectives through the appropriate management of your financial resources. Saving for your retirement is the most common objective for my clients followed by purchasing an education fund for future university fees for their children. Other goals consist of purchasing a home or other big ticket items.

These goals are achieved by wealth creation and growth through investment, a key element of any monetary strategy. However, there is a 2nd, typically neglected, element to a sound financial plan: securing your existing assets and financial resources to secure the future health and wellbeing of your family.

We invest much of our lives developing our properties and collecting products of value such as cars and trucks, homes, savings and financial investments. However, just because we can afford those things now, doesn't mean that we will constantly have the ability to do so. Life can throw us any number of curve balls from a serious illness to an unforeseen redundancy, or perhaps a sudden death. That's why wealth protection is vital. Regretfully, millions find out about the importance of wealth protection when it is far too late.

Your most valuable possession is not your cars and truck or your home; it is You!

Your ability to earn a living and provide for your family now and in the future is your most important asset. Just envision if you lost that ability. For how long could you and your household survive without a monthly income before descending into financial turmoil?

There are a variety of different kinds of insurance coverage which can ensure the financial wellness of your loved ones in the face of specific unforeseen life events. These are necessary because, much as we like to think that we remain in control, we merely can not forecast the twists and turns we will experience in life.

While you can't protect yourself against every problem life might have in store for you, you can take actions to protect yourself and your household from the fallout of unexpected events with solid wealth protection steps. I lay out the most important of these listed below.

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Health insurance -- if you or a member of the family contracts an illness which is costly to treat, you will appreciate the comfort of understanding that the costs will be covered by the insurance company, not you.

Life insurance -- under a life insurance policy the insurance company will pay a lump sum to your loved ones if you die. This should be sufficient for them to settle arrears and debts and cover their living expenses on an ongoing basis. You can't secure your family from the hurt of such a loss but you can safeguard their lifestyle and keep their monetary stability to soften the effect.

Critical illness cover -- crippling health problems and injuries can extremely quickly decimate your cost savings if you are not able to work. Protect against this possibility with important illness cover which will pay you a lump sum to cover you while you recover from a list of specific medical conditions consisting of the big 3: stroke, cardiovascular disease and cancer.

A Will -- this is important to make sure that your assets are distributed as you wish them to be after your death. Making assumptions concerning what will take place if you do not have a will is ill-advised and can lead to household disagreements. Leave no space for doubt by having a 'water-tight' and expertly drafted will in place.

Guardians for your kids-- If you fail to choose guardians then this decision will be left to a court and there is no guarantee their choice will be the same as yours. Have your dreams formalised in writing to prevent any issues.

If you feel there are some gaps in your wealth defence, I would be delighted to assist you cover them with the appropriate insurance and estate preparation procedures. If you are an expat in Asia wanting to put measures in place to protect you and your loved ones financially, call me today.