{"id":899,"date":"2016-12-23T07:08:02","date_gmt":"2016-12-23T12:08:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.flestatelaw.com\/?p=899"},"modified":"2019-05-13T18:12:51","modified_gmt":"2019-05-13T18:12:51","slug":"why-your-estate-planning-project-must-morph-into-a-process","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/2016\/12\/23\/why-your-estate-planning-project-must-morph-into-a-process\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Your Estate Planning Project Must Morph into a Process"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t\t\t&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Most, if not all,\u00a0people put their estate plan on their to-do list as a one-time project: \u201cCreate estate plan\u201d or \u201cMeeting with lawyer\u00a010:30 a.m. Thursday for estate plan.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thinking of your estate plan as a single project or task to complete and move off your list is a common approach \u2013 but it\u2019s also an approach that can land you in considerable hot water. Here\u2019s why it\u2019s essential to view your estate plan as a <em>process,<\/em> rather than a project.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Process vs. Project: What\u2019s the Difference?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A project that takes several steps to complete \u2013 like an estate plan \u2013 can seem like it\u2019s a \u201cprocess\u201d already. <em>First, I need to call the lawyer. Then, I need to make time to attend the appointment. Before that, I need to get together these documents\u2026.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>In fact, a project doesn\u2019t become a process simply because it takes time and effort to complete. Here are some of the key differences between a project and a process.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A Project:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Seeks to create something new or implement a single, concrete change.<\/li>\n<li>Requires leadership to plan and execute.<\/li>\n<li>Can have its plans or goals changed on short notice.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>A Process: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Creates value by returning to the same task many times.<\/li>\n<li>Requires management to ensure the process is consistent and produces expected results.<\/li>\n<li>Can be changed only by launching a project with a goal to change the process.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Estate Planning as Process<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>When you\u2019re creating a new estate plan, it\u2019s natural to see that plan as a project. You\u2019re creating something new when you work with a team to implement your plan. You create a positive change in your life by having an estate plan from not having one. And, you\u2019re right. Setting up a trust or implementing your first estate plan certainly qualifies as a project.<\/p>\n<p>But, the goal of the estate plan \u201cproject,\u201d however, should transition into an estate planning process by which you check, evaluate, and update your will, trust, and other legal documents regularly \u2013 perhaps once a year, but certainly every time you hit a major life milestone, like the birth of child or grandchild, death of family member, divorce, marriage, significant change in assets or income, and the like. When your estate planning is viewed as a lifelong process, your plan is much more likely to serve your family\u2019s needs, whatever they may be, when the time comes simply because you\u2019ve been managing it proactively with each change in your circumstances.<\/p>\n<p>We can help you get started with estate planning and are here to guide you along the entire process. Let us become your ally in managing the process and in ensuring that you and your family gain maximum value from returning to it on a proper schedule.\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; Most, if not all,\u00a0people put their estate plan on their to-do list as a one-time project: \u201cCreate estate plan\u201d or \u201cMeeting with lawyer\u00a010:30 a.m. Thursday for estate plan.\u201d Thinking of your estate plan as a single project or task to complete and move off your list is a common approach \u2013 but it\u2019s also [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":904,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=899"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5662,"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899\/revisions\/5662"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/904"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/localwebdesigncompany.com\/goodwinlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}