A solid estate plan in its simplest sense is a roadmap. It sets the decision-makers for when you cannot make them before you die and then after you do so. Specialized planning can also minimize your long term care expenses or eliminate them all together. Of course, a solid estate plan documents your wishes with respect to your worldly belongings to be distributed according to your stated desires.
A solid estate plan also can provide peace of mind in moments of uncertainty, a light in the dark, or the clarity in the fog. It’s a rather simple process. According to my clients, the most difficult part is the decision that comes before – to take the first step.
Why is this difficult? Some cultures suggest our western society shuns death. We busy our lives with things like social media and the rat race to attain worldly goods. In this hamster wheel of an existence, death isn’t something we as a society prepare for. Hiding age behind retinol creams and plastic surgery, society shoots for an image without wrinkles.
Taking the first step towards a solid estate plan requires not only entertaining the thought that we will die but it also requires taking an action to do something about it. So busy your life as you like or accept as many cultures do the reality that death is.
Do your legal planning and get back on your gauntlet. The piece of mind from having an estate plan in place is worth every ounce of energy expended, every emotion tackled in doing that plan before it was needed. You owe it to yourself to get that peace of mind.