An Estate Planning Fire Drill
Letting your family know just exactly what your wishes are can save so much stress.
8 Important Things Your Family Needs to Know When you are Gone
For many people, estate planning can be confusing and intimidating. Even the word estate can conjure up feelings of sitting in a lawyer’s office to review complicated and dry paperwork.
Often, it is much easier to focus on putting out “more important” fires in our daily lives and saving estate planning for “another day.”
While it may feel good at the moment, this is a self-inflicted mistake. Life is random and full of unexpected events. Even if you do understand the importance of estate planning, a tragic event may occur before you sit down and set your affairs in order.
Even if you do understand the importance of estate planning, a tragic event may occur before you sit down and set your affairs in order.
It is for this reason why it is so important to participate in an estate planning fire drill. Estate planning fire drills are fantastic tools that can help minimize stress and anxiety once you’re gone. Yes, some might suggest that this is a a bit of a morbid exercise, but estate planning fire drills help ensure that your intentions and expectations are properly fulfilled.
The Why and How of Estate Planning Fire Drills
Essentially, an estate planning fire drill is like a standard, old-fashioned fire drill. It begins with the premise that you are gone. From there, you gather your family members and other important individuals and speak about how you would like your estate to be handled after you’re gone.
There are several important benefits to this exercise. First, it ensures that you and your loved ones are on the same page. Even if you have estate documents, trust documents, or other relevant documents, it is helpful to sit down and review all of them with your loved ones.
Along with this, an estate planning fire drill reduces stress and raises confidence. You can have the confidence that your last wishes will be carried out after you pass away. As for your family and other loved ones, they can be certain that they are administering your estate according to your intentions. There is some much-needed peace of mind for everyone involved.
There are no real restrictions on the individuals that participate in this fire drill. That said, you’ll definitely want to include people like your spouse, children, and close friends and family members. As for non-family members, don’t hesitate to include people like your choice for making health care decisions, the executors of your will, and your financial power of attorney. Essentially, invite anyone who you think will have an important role in the execution or administration of your estate.
Here are the 8 Important Things Your Family Needs to Know When you are Gone
As for what you’ll cover during this fire drill, you’ll likely want to keep it expansive. For example:
First Contact Information
Document Location & Access
Financial Information & Location
Real Estate Deed Locations & Overview
Important Personal Property & Access Information
Online Accounts and Passwords
Care for Dependents & Pets
Funeral Wishes
Simply put, don’t be afraid to embrace the granular. No detail is too small. On the other hand, also discuss the larger questions. If there is a certain act that is important to your final legacy, make sure that you bring it up. If you have any strong feelings about artificial life assistance, discuss those as well. Your family members and loved ones will thank you—even if it feels awkward or uncomfortable
An estate planning fire drill shouldn't take but an hour. But if you feel like you need more (or less) time, embrace it. The overall goal is to make sure that you and your loved ones leave the estate planning fire drill with a crystal clear understanding of your wants and intentions. Keeping a record of the entire fire drill is also extremely helpful, as it can be easy to forget important items or topics discussed during the meeting.
Get Started Today
In the end, an estate planning fire drill can be one of the most effective tools within estate planning. Even if you are intimidated by the estate planning process as a whole, we highly encourage you to participate in a fire drill. It can eliminate stress and put you and your loved ones at ease.
At O’Bryan Law, we have extensive experience in estate planning. If you’d like to learn more about us and how we can help you with your estate planning, feel free to click here.
