Estate planning has an emotional side. You may experience different emotions during this time, as you will need to confront mortality, accept the fact that you might become incapacitated and address financial concerns. Estate planning can also bring up unresolved or potential family conflicts.
While being emotional when estate planning is normal, it can affect your decision-making process. Thus, you need to manage them by:
Starting early
Waiting until you are older to start estate planning can result in anxiety, seeing that you might have assets worth thousands of dollars to distribute and other major decisions to make. When you start early, you can distribute the existing assets and then update your documents as you acquire more over time.
Starting early also allows you to have open and honest conversations with your family from the word go. In turn, you can identify and solve any potential conflicts soon. Further, it can be more manageable for a family to handle complex discussions in the future when it has already been holding open conversations for years.
Understanding the impact of your estate plan
The decisions you make in your estate planning documents will impact your family considerably. This includes decisions about inheritance, what should be done or avoided when you become incapacitated, who should take care of your minor child when you are unable to and so forth.
It’s important to acknowledge how your wishes will affect your family. This way, you can determine the best ways to handle conversations to ensure your wishes are respected while protecting your loved ones.
Getting professional help
Consider seeking professional help from a therapist, financial advisor and attorney to gain guidance. A neutral third party can also help facilitate discussions.
Stating wishes that should be followed when you become incapacitated or are gone can be challenging. The above-discussed tips and legal guidance can help you navigate your emotions.