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Celebrate Independence with an Estate Plan: Your Ultimate Declaration of Freedom
As you celebrate the Fourth of July and all it represents—freedom, independence, and the pursuit of happiness—take pride in the ultimate American liberty: the right to decide your own affairs, even after death or in the event of incapacity. An estate plan, specifically a Life & Legacy Plan, is the way to express your liberty.
It’s your personal Declaration of Independence
You might wonder, how can an estate plan give me freedom? Here’s how: Creating a Life & Legacy Plan (a unique estate planning process we use at Wakefield Law Firm) preserves your self-determination, protects your family, grows your wealth, and defines your legacy on your own terms. Just as the Founding Fathers declared freedom from the British crown over two centuries ago, your Life & Legacy Plan declares your autonomy from the courts, state laws, and conflicting viewpoints that could unravel your final intentions.
You Already Have a Plan: It May Not Be What You Want
When you have a Life & Legacy Plan, you get to override the government’s plan with your choices. YOU decide exactly how you want your assets collected and distributed—whether that’s providing for certain loved ones, leaving assets to chosen family members who aren’t related by blood or marriage, or donating to charitable causes close to your heart.
With a Life & Legacy Plan in place, your plan evolves with you. As your assets change, your life changes, and the law changes, so does your plan. It grows with you, reflecting your evolving circumstances and goals. Your plan needs to evolve, change, and grow along with you; otherwise, it’s not even worth the paper it’s written on.
The Liberation of Informed Decision-Making
It may not have ever been presented to you that way, but think about it—if you accept that you are going to die one day, and you may become incapacitated first, and you want your family and assets to be cared for in a certain way when those things happen, wouldn’t that naturally inform choices you’ll make around the allocation of your resources throughout your life?
We call this “eyes wide open” decision-making. It leads to the most optimal use and allocation of your resources throughout your life and makes things as easy as possible for the people you love in the event of your incapacity or death. For example, when you consider how you want to be cared for in the event of your incapacity and document those choices, you can ensure you have the necessary personal relationships and financial means to provide for yourself or the people who will care for you. Otherwise, you leave it up to happenstance or a judge, and we call that “eyes squeezed shut” decision-making. It’s not responsible, mature, or kind to yourself or the people you love.
The Power to Choose
The most mature, adult, and loving thing you can do for yourself and the people you love is to clarify well in advance how you want to be cared for if you cannot care for yourself, who should make decisions for you, and how you want those decisions to be made. Additionally, it’s critical to provide a roadmap for the people you love so they know what you have, where it is, and how to find it.
Establishing a Life & Legacy Plan does all of that, regardless of how much or how little you have, because your loved ones will have to deal with it whether it’s a little or a lot. Your choices while you are living, healthy, and clear empower them and minimize their outlay of time, energy, and attention during a time of grief.
With a Life & Legacy Plan, we help you account for special circumstances like children or spouses from previous marriages, loved ones with disabilities, or family members you intentionally want to omit. No more worries about assets getting unfairly split or ending up in the wrong hands.
Finally, holding a family meeting can unite your loved ones around a shared understanding of your intentions rather than driving them apart through conflicts and differing interpretations of your wishes. Your Life & Legacy Plan gives you the power to create more ease for yourself and the people you love.
A Declaration of How You Want to Be Remembered
Your Life & Legacy Plan represents your final declaration of the values and life experiences you’ll impart to loved ones and the world at large. Use this opportunity to put your final stamp on how you want your individuality and life’s purpose remembered, rather than leaving it up to chance or leaving a legacy of mess and drama.
All of our plans include a Life & Legacy recording that guides you to express your deepest hopes, guiding wisdom, and ethical frameworks acquired over decades of successes, struggles, and personal growth. You will share cherished stories, meaningful quotes, and carefully cultivated philosophies that give your life meaning. The Life & Legacy recording is the most meaningful gift your family will cherish and carry into future generations.
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