Life throws things at you and you either sink or swim. I call them life examinations. You are either in it, remain focused and move through things quickly with a planned process or freeze and run away. And as parents and individuals dealing with our own family succession, asset protection and estate plans, plus also our clients, we should never be shocked with what comes at us. From bushfires to Covid the first rule of thumb is you need to be flexible and build flexible plans that can change, if say one of your children goes off the rails or you get divorced or have an accident or have parents put into a nursing home.
Now it goes without saying that over the past two years we have all been through a lot, as have our clients. Both my daughters have anxiety from the long lockdown in Melbourne, my father died in August 2019, Mum was admitted to a nursing home in March 2019, I moved house and am a workaholic. But do I blame someone or retire? Never! There are so many things that I want to do professionally and to really leave a legacy. The start-up of the Succession, Asset Protection and Estate Planning Advisers Association has given me a new lease on life. The SMSF side of things has been and continues to be a real winner but in terms of opportunity it is a 2 out of 10 compared to succession, asset protection and estate planning which tops out at a 10. I mean not everyone wants a SMSF, but everyone needs asset protection – everyone needs estate planning, and everyone needs to put a line of succession down in the event of death, dementia, litigation, bankruptcy, divorce, business squabbles, bad investments, government actions, ATO, ASIC, no win – no fee lawyers and the list goes on.
Plus, I can tell you that it is the most gratifying work I have ever done – building strong, safe and secure structures for your clients and their bloodline. Now, if that does not get you excited as a professional, nothing will.
So, I thought I would give you five questions to ask your clients in upcoming reviews that will really shake, rattle and roll them but put you in a great advisory seat knowing that with a bit of learning or completion of a specialist succession, asset protection and estate planning advisory course you have all the solutions:
- On a scale of one to ten, with ten being most important, how important is it that your family wealth is protected for your bloodline?
- If you were in hospital quarantine with no ability to make business or financial decisions, who do you have in place legally running your companies and trusts?
- If one of your children has been in a close relationship with a partner for two years, how do you plan on limiting any monies you give to your child during your life or on your passing to them and not to be split with their partner?
- Would you be interested if I could show you a way to fully protect your house, cars, investments and other assets from litigation or even a possible trustee in bankruptcy claim?
- With children, ex-spouses, girl and boyfriends, grandchildren and others able to make a claim on your estate, despite the best written legal Will, how important is it to protect your assets from only going to your bloodline or the specific people you love?
As you were reading through the list, how did you feel – have you got loose ends? Would your life be better if all of the above was solved beyond your satisfaction?
Now you can see why I am so excited. We can change lives and the solutions and strategies to do so are easily within our reach. PLUS, this is a premium advice product. Are you ready to step into the succession, asset protection and estate planning advisory arena? Contract support@lightyeardocs.com.au to find out when the next SAPEPAA course is available