Getting Your Financial House in Order as an Act of Self-Care
I’ve had a number of conversations with clients and others about why we defer estate planning, even though we know we should take care of it. Two of the most common responses I hear from folks are that: (1) it’s unpleasant or even paralyzing to contemplate incapacity and death and they would rather not think about it, hoping it will just be taken care of by their friends or family, or (2) that it’s too much work and takes too much time to dig into, so they put it off. It’s really caused me to start thinking about estate planning as an act of self-care. Self-care is not just bubble baths or vacations. That type of care, I’ve learned, is more correctly referred to as self-soothing. (Hat tip to Financial Feminist podcast for discussing this in their episode on financial self care). As Tori Dunlap discusses in her podcast, there is nothing inherently wrong with self-soothing. But self-care is really better described as the hard work we put in to take good care of “future us.” Maybe self-care looks like nourishing your body with healthy food or exercising when you’d rather eat a pint of ice cream and binge Netflix for three hours. Or maybe it’s getting your financial house in order and hopefully coming up with a plan for how to protect your loved ones and your assets if something were to happen to you. I start every plan for my clients with a session to really explore what is true for them – and we review together what their family and their assets would have to go through right now without any planning in place. And while that feels scary to tackle, my experience is that clients feel a lot of relief and empowerment by making decisions with eyes wide open. And then we walk folks through the steps of getting a plan in place, so they don’t have to tackle it on their own. If you care about someone who has been putting off their planning, or maybe has neglected keeping their planning updated over time, consider having a conversation about what’s holding them back. What relief would they feel to know they’ve taken care of their future selves and their loved ones by getting their financial and legal house in order? We can help your loved ones harness the power of a thoughtful plan, setting them up for future success and bringing immense relief to know their loved ones are well taken care of if something happens.
This article is a service of Ashley DeBoard, Personal Family Lawyer®. We do not just draft documents; we ensure you make informed and empowered decisions about life and death, for yourself and the people you love. That’s why we offer a Family Wealth Planning Session™, during which you will get more financially organized than you’ve ever been before and make all the best choices for the people you love. You can begin by calling our office today to schedule a Family Wealth Planning Session and mention this article to find out how to get this $750 session at no charge.
