Have you put off creating an estate plan because you believe that you have to make provisions for everything that could possibly happen between now and the end of your life? Have you been procrastinating because you think an estate plan is a document you create just once?
If either of these statements sounds familiar, you may be an estate plan perfectionist.
Viewing estate planning as a singular event that you have to get right the first time makes planning harder than it has to be. Believing that you have to have full information about everything that could possibly happen rarely creates enthusiasm to plan. It just creates paralysis.
That’s why I advise my clients to look at estate planning from a different perspective. I ask them to consider estate planning as a journey, not a one-time event.
Think about it. The goals you have for yourself and the things you’re willing to do at age 55 are different than the goals you’ll have for yourself and the things you’re willing to do at ages 75 …or 95. Just look at your own parents’ behavior if you need proof. So thinking about your estate plan as a one-time thing that you have just one chance to get right—is an illusion.
A good plan grows and evolves as you do. At 55, your goal may be to have enough money to retire. By the time you hit 65, the focus is more likely to be protecting what you have. Then at 75 or even 85, you start thinking about doing something to make sure there’s money left for your kids when you’re gone.
What’s more, as you move through the various seasons of life, your relationship with your assets also evolves. For most of my clients, the older they get, the less importance they place on accumulating or spending money. Though they feel the weight of the responsibility to preserve and protect their assets, their priorities often change. Experiences are often more important. Spending time with family is often more important. Nurturing relationships that there wasn’t time to nurture in the past is often more important. What we’re willing to do is different.
When you think of estate planning as a process instead of an event, the way you view your estate planning professional also changes. Instead of a person you visit once or twice in a lifetime, your estate planner becomes something akin to a trail guide. Every once in a while, you check in with your trail guide to adjust your estate plan to meet your needs for the season of life you’re in. And if you need to adjust your plan to reflect your evolving goals and desires, it’s easy to do so.
Knowing that you don’t have to get it perfect the first time is often enough to relax the crippling grip of estate plan perfectionism. Trust me. Everyone will thank you.
