Alex Simeonides | Founder and CEO | Capital Legacy | mail me |
The thing with resolutions is we all make them, and we all break them. But it needn’t be so. The trick is you must look back to go forward, especially with the inevitable New Year’s resolutions.
Taking stock of your previous year’s achievements, failings, and surprises helps sort out what it is you want to accomplish in the coming year. Focus on the specifics.
For example, did you start doing the regular exercise you promised you would? Did you sign up for that online diploma in digital marketing? Did you write a movie script for Netflix? Don’t beat yourself up if you didn’t.
Resolutions
The purpose of this exercise is to make sure you set specific targets because they are measurable, not to feel bad because you didn’t measure up. There is one rule about being specific: it needs to be something you want, not what somebody else (family members, society, friends) wants. If it’s not ‘your’ resolution, you won’t want to keep it.
Now look forward. Try asking yourself, what is specific in your life today, and more importantly in the future? If you are married, then it will be your family.
None of us wants to believe we will not be around in a year. Death is not something we dwell on and rightly so. But it is an unknown factor we can’t avoid, but for which we can make provision.
Ask what specific resolution you could make to satisfy your concerns over your family’s future. If you’re single, ask whether that resolution would satisfy your concerns your demise would not burden your immediate family and friends.
The measure of a specific resolution is whether or not it is achievable. If you’ve never even walked up Table Mountain, don’t put scaling Everest on your bucket list for the first quarter of 2020. Nor should you wish to achieve something as simple as, ‘I’ll not take the elevator at work!’ (when your office is on the first floor).
Setting a specific resolution
Is providing for your family in the event of your untimely death an achievable specific? The answer, though obvious, is not always one that is acted upon.
Resolving to draw up your will is specific and achievable but is often put off. As with the resolution to stop eating chocolate cake – you think about it, but then order a slice of Black Forest cake with your mid-morning coffee.
Once you’ve decided on your specific resolution, determined that it aims high but is achievable, then you must judge whether it is relevant.
There’s no point in setting your self a specific resolution to write a multi-million dollar Netflix script if you don’t even like watching movies. Best you spend your time and energy on what has meaning for you, such as the future financial security of your loved ones.
The important thing about deciding that this year’s resolution is to make a will is its relevance. Whether you are single or married, the cost and legal complications arising from dying without one are enormous.
Your family will be liable for an assortment of legal fees, including executor and Master’s fees, testamentary trust and conveyance attorney fees as well as on-going monthly bills that will need to be paid.
Drawing up a will
There is more to drawing up a will, however, than writing down who gets what, and having some colleagues sign it. The courts are very particular about condoning a will unless it complies with the many legal formalities.
We offer a plan that provides a solution that complements your will and provides protection for your loved ones from the legal fees and various other expenses that will arise when you pass away.
One of the most useful aspects of the plan, is that it makes available an immediate cash benefit to paid to a beneficiary of your choice, within 48 hours of your death.
Studies of resolutions found that the main cause of failure was people seek instant gratification. Resolutions, such as ‘no chocolate cake’ fail because there is no immediate gratification from not eating cake.
The opposite is the case with a New Year’s resolution to draw up a will and testament and adopting a plan.
There is the immediate gratification of having made a specific decision, which is achievable, which is relevant, and which protects your family for the future.
Hi Alex me and my husband recently signed up with your company we were told that for every person we refer we get commission we referred 4 people already and since 7 January 2020 if been asking about the commission payout. I just get told they will look into it. a week later I will get an email asking if I was assisted when I do reply I will only receive an email n week later asking again if I was assisted. So now what I want to know is this “commission payout’ a front to get people to sign up or do we actually get the payout.