Skip to main content

Preparing For The Future

I've taken the first big steps this past memorial day weekend with regard to estate planning. I've drawn up a will and durable power of attorney and went to the bank to get the documents appropriately notorized. Since I am young, I truly do not anticipate needing these documents any time soon. But given that this has been on my list for a long time, it is good to make sure that this is taken care of.

The next step is to get my own personal life insurance policy. I have some through work, but I want to be prepared and have that coverage even if I got laid off or something else happened. So, that process is now underway as well.

In the end, just taking the steps themselves is extremely empowering. I've faced the fact that I won't live forever and I am ok with that. It makes me really grateful for every day I have and also makes me appreciate all that I have accumulated.

Comments

Rachel said…
I really nee dto think about these things too. I have children but no will which I think is a bad thing. My only life insurance will pay off the mortgage and I do wonder whether I should consider having more money for the children. However, I would rather invest the money myself and hope that I get a better return.
It's good that you are taking care of this stuff while you are young. Most people don't think about wills and life insurance until after something bad happens.

Popular posts from this blog

Do Better With Your Time

Recently, I've been extremely busy with some work commitments. The interesting thing for me is that this increased work activity has really helped crystallize some of my feelings with regard to time. And these ideas are a critical part about my view on personal finance. I'm curious to know if others feel similarly. Time is money. That is, Time, in some way, contains energy. Money, is also energy. In the act of working, I am able to compound and increase the amount of money that I have. I am exchanging my time and effort and thought which are components of my work, for the productivity that I produce. And this production gets me money from my employer. However, the first dollars that I make each day, week, or month are the most valuable. Then the ones that I make at the end are the most valuable. (Forget about taxes for a minute.) The reason is, the first ones help me have a place to live and food to eat. And the last ones are the ones that I can use to really improve my life lo...

Awkward Family Money Situations

I was about to write this as a comment, but its quite long and brings up a ton of issues so here goes. First, check out  <a href=" http://hereverycentcounts.blogspot.com/2007/06/money-and-etiquette-why-are-important.html ">this story at here every cent counts</a>. Now on to my response. I am just mortified by this story. I cannot even imagine that people with kids would expect someone in college to pay for their own dinner. I'm assuming that this is an aunt/uncle/great aunt/great uncle situation and that you are a young college student in late teens, early twenties with no full time job. All of my answers below are based on those assumptions. If that is the case, they should *splurge* the 20 bucks for dinner. They are an adult here and as much as I believe that you should be independent, while you are in college and struggling for money, you should be treated on an occasion like this. Big Question: How do your mom and/or dad and/or other immediate family ...

On Buying a Lifestyle...with a Fixed-Rate Mortgage

Despite all of the back and forth about sub-prime mortgages and the housing bubble, I am feeling just fine. The reason is that when purchasing, I followed some old advice: Don't expect to flip. In general, I've been told by many people that you shouldn't buy a home unless you plan to hold on to it for 7 years or longer. If the market does well and you decide to sell, fine. But if you want to be sure not to lose money, don't buy something that you only want for a year or two. I've been in my current location for more than 3 years. I like it. And I have no intention of leaving in the short or medium term. It seems to me, that real estate, like any asset class, has its ups and downs. But as a practical point, I don't look at my home as an asset per se. Rather, I consider it to be a fixed expense that I need to survive, much like food and water. Therefore, as long as the payment is reasonable and it functions to keep me warm and sheltered and comfortable, that is a...