Screenshot of “Odds Are” lyrics by Barenaked Ladies
I heard this song recently.
Yes, it’s old, but it was new to me.
And it gave me hope.
The song is “Odds Are” by Barenaked Ladies.
Archive for Are you prepared?
(Originally published Jan. 2016. Updated Oct. 2021.)
I recently (in Jan. 2016) spoke at a business networking luncheon attended by 80 women. My topic was “Who Will Check My Email When I Die?”
I worried that no one would want to come hear me talking about death, especially when it started snowing that morning. But they did! And they loved it. I could tell because they nodded, and laughed, and told me later that they had started conversations with their loved ones about virtual wills and such as a result. Mission accomplished!
Here are some of the ways people reacted to my topic before-hand: (more…)
The Worry Matrix is a handy, printable tool that will help you decide what’s worth worrying about, and what isn’t.
In my previous posts — Clearing Mental Clutter and Why Worry? Take Action! — I covered the following concepts:
- Worrying is just a form of mental clutter.
- Worrying is like praying for something you don’t want.
- The key to less worrying is more action!
I originally wrote this post for World Back Up Day (Don’t be an April Fool – Take the Pledge!)
But…really, shouldn’t every day be Back Up Day?
(Click to view video: “What Would You Do if You Lost Everything?“)
I’ve been talking and writing for a while now about organizing for your legacy. This involves doing things to make it easier on your grieving loved ones when the time comes, by preparing for your own death. Activities can range from writing your own obituary and planning your own funeral; to preserving your memorabilia and organizing your family history; to creating a virtual will and downsizing and decluttering now so they don’t have to later.
So, when I announced to my dad and brother, at a recent breakfast together, “Let’s talk about funerals!” they didn’t even flinch, replying in unison: “Whose? Yours?”
Sometimes I notice a meaningful, but unintentional, theme among the books I read.
Here are some recent good reads:
Have you heard of Swedish Death Cleaning?
If you got hit by a bus tomorrow, what would your loved ones be left with? Happy memories, or sad ones? Clutter and uncertainty? Or clear instructions and valued keepsakes?
What will your legacy be?
Face it, everyone downsizes their worldly possessions at some point, either voluntarily or involuntarily. You either do it before you die, or after you die. And you either do it yourself, or someone else has the burden of doing it for you. Which do you choose?
Here is a tool to help you decide.
There are a lot of good books out there that I don’t take the time to review for you. But this one fits so well into the Organize Your Legacy portion of my business that I couldn’t resist. It’s called Kicking the Bucket List: 100 Downsizing & Organizing Things to Do Before You Die, by Gail Rubin.
I received this book for free, to review if I felt so inclined, but (don’t tell the author) I probably would have bought a copy anyway. I met Gail Rubin at a talk I gave earlier this year called “Who Will Check My Email When I Die?” We are so much on the same wavelength that when I read Kicking the Bucket List I thought, “Well, there’s another book I don’t have to write!” I will be recommending it to all of my organizing clients, and… hmmm… holiday gifts for my family?
What is a legacy?
A legacy is anything left behind when you die. It can be a gift of money or property left to someone in a will. It can be a body of wisdom captured in a published book, or the ongoing good deeds of a non-profit organization that you founded. It could be the wonderful warm memories of friendship and family that never die.
A legacy can also be the consequences of neglect. It could be a house full of clutter that no one knows what to do with. Or the lack of a will and a designated executor, leading to confusion and more money and time being spent on your estate than it is worth.
And if you don’t think you have an estate, think again……
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