Review a compact CFP Board CFP certification cheat sheet for financial planning principles, ethics, insurance, investment, tax, retirement, estate, psychology, and integrated recommendation traps before Finance Prep practice.
Use this CFP cheat sheet as an integrated-planning checklist before mixed practice. CFP means Certified Financial Planner; the CFP Board exam rewards candidates who synthesize client data, choose the strongest next step, and avoid narrow-domain answers that ignore the full plan.
| Item | CFP cue |
|---|---|
| Provider | CFP Board |
| Exam | CFP certification examination |
| Format | 170 multiple-choice questions across two 3-hour sessions |
| Main practice behavior | integrated planning, client-data synthesis, recommendation quality, and ethical judgment |
| Finance Prep status | live practice available |
| Area | What to know | Common trap |
|---|---|---|
| Professional conduct and regulation | fiduciary duty, disclosure, conflicts, professionalism, client-first judgment | treating ethics as separate from recommendation quality |
| General principles of financial planning | process, discovery, assumptions, engagement scope, plan implementation | recommending before facts and objectives are complete |
| Risk management and insurance | protection gaps, policy fit, coverage amount, ownership, beneficiary, risk transfer | choosing a product before identifying the exposure |
| Investment planning | objective, risk tolerance, risk capacity, allocation, account type, behavioral issues | chasing return without checking client constraints |
| Tax planning | marginal rates, deductions, credits, basis, charitable planning, after-tax comparisons | letting tax savings override liquidity or suitability |
| Retirement savings and income | accumulation, distribution, Social Security, pensions, withdrawals, longevity risk | solving retirement savings without testing income need |
| Estate planning | wills, trusts, beneficiary designations, powers of attorney, transfer and control | assuming the will controls assets with beneficiary designations |
| Psychology of financial planning | biases, communication, decision framing, client behavior | treating client behavior as irrelevant once the math is correct |
Use the free diagnostic as a full-day baseline, then classify misses by planning process, dominant constraint, and domain. If you score above roughly 75% on several unseen timed attempts and can explain why the better answer fits the whole client case, shift from volume to targeted review.