Estate Plans For Creative, Entrepreneurial And Easily Distracted People

Estate Planning can be too long and tedious for clients to understand, follow and execute. In order to help those who are too busy, or to distracted, to work through an estate plan, by which I mean creative people, business owners and nearly everyone with ADHD, where are three basic plans.

An Estate Plan for an Artist, Collector or Dealer

1. Make a Strategic Plan based on a detailed list of your objectives, and divide what is your inventory, what is your investment and what are your personal artwork and collectibles,
2. Engage your family and your advisors in the plan,
3. Draft and execute a Will and other documents matching your Strategic plan and integrated into your business plan,
4. Title your assets and complete your beneficiary designations correctly,
5. Establish and fund all necessary trusts,
6. Draft and execute all necessary documents in case of incapacity of yourself or others,
7. Draft and execute all necessary documents to reduce the risk from taxes, mismanagement and financial costs to your ownership interest in your business, intellectual property, artwork collectibles and real estate,
8. Engage the people and firms needed to execute your plan for both your financial and for tangible assets,
9. Anticipate the consequences of implementing your plan and understand that no decision is valid in all situations,
10. Review and modify your Strategic Plan annually, and remember to Work the Plan

An Estate Plan for a Business Owner

1. Make a Strategic Plan based on a detailed list of your personal, business and professional objectives,
2. Engage your family, your management team and your advisors in the plan,
3. Draft and execute a Will and other documents matching your Strategic plan and integrated into your business plan,
4. Title your assets and complete your beneficiary designations correctly,
5. Establish and fund all necessary trusts,
6. Draft and execute all necessary documents in case of incapacity of yourself or others,
7. Draft and execute all necessary documents to handle your ownership interest in businesses, intellectual property, artwork and real estate,
8. Engage the people and firms needed to execute your plan,
9. Anticipate the consequences of implementing your plan and understand that no decision is valid in all situations,
10. Review and modify your Strategic Plan annually and remember to Work the Plan

An Estate Plan for People Who are Easily Distracted

1. Work backwards from the way you always do things, that is see what you want, make a plan how to get what you want, make a list of your objectives, decide the strategies and tactics to achieve your objectives, then do it – no, do not do it then try to make I fit.
2. Draft and execute a Will and other documents matching your plan,
3. Title your assets and complete your beneficiary designations correctly,
4. Establish and fund all necessary trusts,
5. Draft and execute all necessary documents in case of incapacity of yourself or others,
6. Draft and execute all necessary documents to handle your ownership interest in businesses, intellectual property, artwork and real estate,
7. Engage the people and firms needed to execute your plan,
8. Anticipate the consequences of implementing your plan and understand that no decision is valid in all situations,
9. Review and modify your Strategic Plan annually and remember every good idea that is not part of the plan gets filed until you can make part of the plan.

These will help you when you begin to question “what am I doing, and why am I doing it?”