I know that contemplating your earthly departure can be a rather uncomfortable subject to consider.

But let’s face it. We are all going to die sometime. And deciding who gets your “stuff” is a rather important task to tackle before you go.

You may want to leave your children a bunch of money, some piece of property or some possession that you deem valuable or sacred. And chances are that they will be more than grateful for your generosity.

But let me ask you this:

Have you considered the impact that your financial decisions will have on the emotional well-being of your children?

Make no mistake. For many children, “who gets what” , has a far greater meaning than the actual asset itself.

Bereaved families rarely fight over tax shelters or estate laws. Their quarrels most often center on who receives which Jewels, why Sandy gets the china, why James has been named executor or why half the estate has been left to charity!

America’s leading Will, Estate Planning and Legacy Coach, Elizabeth Arnold , expresses it best in her book, Creating the Good Will , in which she explains that what you chose to leave your family members may very well be equated by your children with your love, approval and acceptance of who they are as people.

Drawing upon years of experience, Arnold explains that many children believe that dividing an estate equally means that it has been divided fairly.

Yet that is not necessarily the case.

Each of us has our own perception of what we believe to be equal and rarely do our assets reduce to clean and equal fractions!

What matters MOST is YOUR perception of what is FAIR .

No family is perfect. Scratch beneath the surface and you will often find hurt feelings, jealousies, resentments and sibling rivalries.

Inherited money will not heal these wounds, but it might INFLAME them.

So talk to your family long before the reading of your will.

And consider Arnold’s advice:

You may very well want to pass on your values, your history, your tales of successes and of failures, romantic love stories, relationship or financial advice, in addition to or instead of your money!

Don’t leave your family an inheritance. Leave them a legacy to remember you by.

In fact in a recent

Until next time,

To your retirement success!

Gillian

Gillian Leithman is the founder and president of Directions Third Age Consultants Inc, a company devoted to helping people prepare for their emotional well-being in retirement.

For more information check out

www.directionsrc.com

or drop Gill a  line at gill@directionsrc.com