Earl & The Instruction Manual For Life
In July, Earl Erikson passed away at the age of 77. Parkinson’s Disease and COVID finally took their toll. However, Earl was smart enough to know the outcome is eventually the same for all of us.
Having graduated from St. Joseph High School in Victoria in 1964, many knew Earl and his family. He served our nation in the Air Force and spent 31 years as a Southwestern Bell engineer. During this time there was marriage, travel, kids, grandkids, and a full life.
As Earl contemplated retirement, he and his wife, Carolyn, were referred to us. We hit it off immediately. Earl and Carolyn were fun to be around. For more than 20 years there were regular visits filled with lots of laughter and sarcasm.
Earl and Carolyn were married for 57 years. And although Earl’s decline and eventual passing were not a complete surprise, the loss to Carolyn and the family was obviously painful.
In time, Carolyn and I met to sift through papers and determine what was important. They were filed in a plastic expandable file folder with a neatly organized table of contents. Earl referred to this as The Instruction Manual For Life (TIMFL).
As she said this, I smiled. It was a project Earl and I started working on many years before.
When a loved one passes, you are in mourning and many decisions need to be made quickly. It is quite difficult to make logical and rational decisions when under significant stress. Earl knew this day would arrive. As such, he took the time to organize important records and cast breadcrumbs to follow long before his health failed.
The goal of the TIMFL is to produce an outline, an organizer, a file or something of this nature to help people make smart decisions in a time of crisis.
Although everyone’s TIMFL should be customized, there are certain commonalities we all need. Who is your professional team and how do we get a hold of them? Who is your lawyer, accountant, insurance agent, investment manager, minster, executor, etc.? Some of our clients even list their doctors, medications and contact info for the veterinarian.
Where are your assets and important documents? Where is your safe deposit box, wills, insurance policies, bank and brokerage statements, trust documents, real estate titles, car titles, jewelry, firearms, birth certificates, death certificates and funeral instructions?
How do you access your online accounts? What are your account names and passwords? Knowing how to navigate your virtual world is just as important as traditional bank or brokerage accounts.
In tense moments there is quite a bit of information that may need to be readily accessed in an orderly and logical manner. You want to leave an easy-to-follow road map so good decisions can be made in your absence.
Obviously, a husband and wife both need to know where their manual is kept. Consider who else might need to know where this info is kept if both are in an accident at the same time.
I update my instruction manual about once a year or as circumstances require.
Earl did a fantastic job outlining everything needed to make good decisions and reduce stress in his absence. However, he had one more trick up his sleeve. In the back of his TIMFL, he had written Letters of Last Instruction to each of his family members.
Your Last Will & Testament is a factual document directing how assets should be distributed upon your passing. There is not room for emotional sentiments or ambiguous comments. Instead, Letters of Last Instruction is a separate, non-legally binding, document that offers wisdom, advice, guidance, sentiments, funeral wishes, or other things of this nature.
Although I am sure there was more Earl wanted to say, at least he took the time to guide his loved ones.
Addressing these matters now removes stress and indecision from your loved ones. Take the time to spell out your road map and guidance to loved ones. This will greatly lessen the chances of your heirs’ becoming victims in a variety of scenarios.
For a full checklist on the TIMFL visit www.SatherFinancial.com, click on Resources and then “Financial Planning Documents.”