Today’s post is written by guest blogger Suzanne Atkinson. She tells us why it's imperative to put all of our important documents in one accessible place. Enjoy!
It seems we all have things we should be doing – cleaning out the garage, labeling all those old photos, getting our affairs in order – and yet there is always something else more pressing or more interesting. Sometimes it takes a scare to jolt us into action and that is exactly what happened to me. Twice.
 |
| My Final Checklist |
My first scare came a couple of years ago. I was driving through a canyon when my car hit black ice, smashed through a tree, and ended up upside down in the forest, hidden by a blizzard. I was lucky and walked away, but all I could think about was the chaos I would have left behind if I had been killed or seriously injured.
I began to put together all of our legal documents and insurance policies, business information and lists of important contacts, and the first iteration of my pet project “MyFinalChecklist” was born. I told the children where the information was, patted myself on the back, and locked it all in the safe, firmly convinced that they had everything they would need if something happened to me.
I began to put together all of our legal documents and insurance policies, business information and lists of important contacts, and the first iteration of my pet project “MyFinalChecklist” was born. I told the children where the information was, patted myself on the back, and locked it all in the safe, firmly convinced that they had everything they would need if something happened to me.
Of course, that was not really the case as we found out during Scare Number Two. Recently, my husband was diagnosed with cancer and scheduled for emergency surgery. Suddenly, I realized there was more to getting my affairs in order than just lists of bank accounts. We needed to talk about (and document) what kind of funeral or burial we wanted, what we wanted to tell the kids, and other end-of-life wishes. Those were not fun conversations but we were both so relieved once we had had them. I’m happy to say he made it through surgery and continues to defy the odds.Hopefully, it won’t take a car wreck or a serious medical diagnosis to motivate you, as it for did me. There are several resources to help you with getting your affairs in order. This Wall Street Journal article lists the 25 documents you should gather together. You can also document your end-of-life wishes with the Five Wishes Program here.
Anyone who has handled the estate of even an organized person knows what a mess it can be. Getting your affairs in order now is satisfying, knowing that you have done everything you can to make it easier for those you leave behind.
Suzanne Atkinson is Managing Partner at ProBooksUSA, a premier accounting and bookkeeping service to clients nationwide. She is also the inventor of My Final Checklist. For more information, please visit her website at: www.myfinalchecklist.com .
