I’m 45, a father of 2 kids, have no siblings and planned for a large $725K inheritance when my father died — but he left everything to his girlfriend. How can I regain my financial stability?

The reality is that you have no control over whether your parents leave you money, so you should never count on a bequest as part of your financial plan. But you can control what you leave to others — at least to some extent — and, as a starting point, you should shop around for life insurance so that your own loved ones aren't left wondering what to do when you're gone.

Take stock of your current financial situation

When a planned-for inheritance doesn't come through, you may want to reconsider any assumptions about your financial life that you made in the past. Specifically, you can think through what goals you were hoping the inheritance would help you achieve and see where you stand without the influx of cash.

You'll likely need to:

• Take a close look at your debt
• Evaluate your retirement savings progress
• See how much college savings you have for your kids

You should know what your goals are, such as saving 10 times your income for retirement, setting aside $100K for college or becoming debt-free in a decade.

Once you know how much you need to achieve each objective, you may choose to work with a financial advisor and set a monthly savings goal to hit your timeline targets without help from the inheritance.

Implement a fixed savings plan

Once you've taken stock of what you hope to achieve, you can implement a plan for success. For example, you can:

• Make a debt payoff plan to pay extra toward principal
• Contribute to a workplace 401(k) or an IRA
• Open a 529 account for college savings

Once you've decided where you need to save and invest, make it automatic. Have retirement account contributions, 529 contributions and debt payments taken right out of your paycheck or bank account on payday.

This way, you'll consistently work toward achieving your objectives and understand how much you can really afford to spend now.

Revisit your spending and income

Finally, you may need to make some changes to your income and spending habits when a big inheritance doesn't pan out.

If you’ve been living above your means in hopes that the money you were planning on inheriting would bail you out, you may have to make drastic lifestyle changes like selling your house or downgrading your vehicle.

At the same time, if you've been casual in your approach to maximizing your earning power because you didn't think you really needed the money, it may also be time to get serious about developing your professional skills further and researching a few key businesses you want to invest in over the next 20 years.

By taking a close look at earning opportunities and reworking your budget to prioritize your financial goals, you can get back on track — and hopefully end up in an even better place than you would have been now that you have total control over your own success.