As professionals working in the Aging & End of Life Planning industry, the single biggest misconception we have to face every day is the idea that we’re a bunch of morbid, death-obsessed weirdos. When people think about things like Estate Planning, Advance Care Planning, and the like, they conjure up an atmosphere of doom and gloom — stuffy old offices, mountains of paperwork about your own inevitable death, maybe a couple of well-placed ravens or crows for atmosphere.
But if you can’t tell from our pink-and-purple colour scheme, we’re not big on doom and gloom. We like to think we bring a bit more fun, positive energy into the room when we work with clients on their Aging & End of Life Plans. And yes, we recognize that this all may sound a lot like Amy Poehler’s character in Mean Girls insisting that she’s not a regular mom, she’s a cool mom. But we really think it’s true.
The thing that people don’t get about Aging & End of Life Planning is that it’s not about fearing the terrible things that could potentially happen to you down the road. It’s about taking control of your future.
The power of preparedness
You know what actually involves a lot of doom and gloom? Putting off Aging & End of Life Planning. That’s what so many of us do: we avoid thinking about it for as long as we possibly can, because it makes us feel overwhelmed and anxious. We let our worries and anxiety compound for years, and we let ourselves feel powerless to intervene in our own lives.
Meanwhile, Aging & End of Life Planning is about empowerment. It’s about understanding that your future belongs to you, and you get to decide what you want it to look like.
There are lots of things in life we can’t control. Obviously, aging (and all that comes with that) is one of those things. There’s also a certain level of uncertainty that we just have to accept—that’s why your mom is always telling you to wear clean underwear in case you get hit by a bus.
But what you can do is be prepared to respond when life throws you a curveball. Aging & End of Life Planning is about having a holistic, tailored plan in place that can spring into action whenever you need it.
Estate Planners vs. Legacy Coordinators
This isn’t all about money, either. True, a part of Aging & End of Life Planning is about finances: making sure you’re saving and investing enough to be able to afford the retirement you want. But this process goes way beyond that to include things like planning for future health needs, setting your kids up to take care of themselves, using your Estate as a vehicle for philanthropy, and more.
This is the reason why we refer to members of our team as Legacy Coordinators. We’re not traditional Estate Planners, who may just set you up with a Last Will & Testament and then send you on your way. Legacy Coordinators work collaboratively with you to establish what’s most important to you, and set up systems to ensure that your priorities, values, and goals are protected.
While an Estate Planner might sit you down and tell you how to manage your Estate, a Legacy Coordinator sits down with you—and your family!—to talk about your unique lives, goals, values, and worries.
A Legacy Coordinator goes beyond finances and helps you plan for every aspect of your future, from your living arrangements to your health care.
And, as the name would suggest, a Legacy Coordinator helps you figure out what kind of legacy you want to leave behind—and how to make sure that actually happens.
Taking back control
We’re living through (shall we say) interesting times. The world feels like it’s changing faster than ever, and by now, we’ve all lived through more historically unprecedented events than we’d ideally like. It’s easy to give in to feelings of doom, despair, and uncontrollability.
But the truth is, there are lots of steps you can take today that will set you up to face your future with confidence and calm. You can’t control what happens to you, but you can control how you respond. Rather than focusing on the fear, focus on preparing yourself—and your family—to keep on moving, whatever happens.
