Soto Law Group - September 2021

Soto Law Group - September 2021

September 2021 Soto’s Chronicles

DeDe Soto

Protecting your most valuable asset — your family

FROM THE DESK OF

DeDe Soto

The Paradox of Good Automation It Can Build Client Connection

Happy September, Happy Labor Day! Welcome back from summer vacation! I love the fall, its my favorite season, before all the craziness of the holidays start. I hope all is healthy and well. We have been working with lots of blended families and the unique dynamics between all family members. Again, I cannot emphasize enough how important it is for blended families to plan and think through how their estate should be settled at the passing of one spouse. Time and time again, families think that stepchildren will maintain relationships with their non-biological stepparent, but unfortunately, I rarely see this happen when assets are involved. When the biological parent passes so does the relationship with the surviving spouse. Don’t let this happen; there are solutions to protecting your children and your spouse at the same time.

As a small-business owner, it can take a while to figure out which tools you actually need for your business. It takes time to build good internal processes for sales, marketing, and human resources. Sometimes a simple piece of technology or an app can save you from reinventing the wheel or overcomplicating things. Other times, a supposed time-saver ends up wasting your time if it isn’t quite right or doesn’t integrate well with your business. The many trends that come and go for entrepreneurs compound all of this. You may be tempted to try every new thing that comes along or listen to an old-school business owner who prefers to stick to the tried- and-true methods you’ve always used. But as is often the case, the most efficient approach is somewhere in the middle. That’s certainly true of incorporating automation into your business. Where do you start? If you’re thinking about testing the waters of automation, start by looking at what tasks you do more than five times a week. The key here is that the task is repetitive and it works well. That is, it produces the desired results for you and your customers. At least that’s marketing automation expert Natalie Furness’ advice! One great example of this is email follow-ups after phone calls. If a client or prospective client calls you to chat about your product or service, sending a follow-up email is a no-brainer. But drafting a unique

Hope to hear from you soon, stay healthy.

Until next time many blessings

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What not to automate. An online search for automation tools for small businesses will leave your head spinning! Nearly every business process can be automated, but as any experienced entrepreneur will tell you, not every one should be. Rule No. 1 is that you should only do what makes sense for your business. That’s not just the case with automation but with any business trend or idea. And rule No. 2 is that you should not automate any process that isn’t currently working well. Automation relies on replication. As Furness says, it amplifies your efficiencies, but it will similarly amplify your deficiencies if done poorly. Repeat what’s working and revisit and refine what isn’t. If you interact with customers regularly through social media, Furness also cautions against automating direct messages in those channels. Social media is meant to be a way to connect directly with a company, so an automated response in these forums is a missed opportunity. That said, this is a great task to add to your marketing manager’s plate! Robots are far from taking over the world, but automating key repetitive tasks may be just enough of a game-changer to make you feel like you’re living in a new reality.

email after each call can be incredibly time-consuming. The main goal is to acknowledge the call and let the client know you’re available to help with any issues. It’s the perfect task to automate because it actually increases your communication and connection with clients and leads and gives you more time to spend with them when you actually get them on the phone.

This gorgeous coastal nation will absolutely blow you away with its beautiful architecture, landscapes, and delicious blend of Mediterranean and Slavic cuisine. Even better, it’s a fairly affordable place to visit! While many travelers land in Zagreb, the beautiful capital city and cultural hub, you wouldn’t want to miss these destinations. Dubrovnik As the “Pearl of the Adriatic,” this coastal city is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Adriatic Sea. It’s a beautiful city, featuring 13th century walls, marble stone streets, Gothic palaces, breathtaking churches, and an imposing fortress. There’s so much to do in the town square — one of Croatia’s largest and most beautiful — and you’ll be able to explore many historic structures nearby. Nature also has plenty to offer, with secluded coves and beaches nearby for exploration. Plitvice Lakes National Park Near the border with Bosnia-Herzegovina, you’ll find one of Croatia’s oldest and most beautiful national parks and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Although it’s quite the drive, you won’t regret it — the park has an outstanding and picturesque series of tufa lakes and caves, all connected by waterfalls. With over 16 interconnected cascading lakes, it’s unlike anything else you’ll see. If you get hungry, you’ll love the nearby National Restaurant Licka YOUR NEXT AFFORDABLE VACATION SPOT! The Best Places to Visit in Croatia

Kuca, which is famous for its traditional Croatian preparation of lamb under a cast-iron bell.

Split The second largest city in Croatia (the first being Zagreb) is Split, founded by a Greek colony in the second or third century B.C. Historically, Split enjoyed being an independent city-state many times, and that free spirit is very tangible, as Split is very different from any other city in Croatia. With well-preserved Roman architecture and a multitude of museums, it’s no wonder Split is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Although Croatia was among the first UN countries to open its doors to Americans, always be safe and check the newest regulations before booking your travel. Hopefully you enjoyed learning about this unique, wonderful country!

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The Night That Changed Football Forever How Fantasy Football Got Its Start

Every year, 40 million Americans (and even entire offices) play fantasy football, “drafting” players from across the NFL for their virtual teams and competing for money and bragging rights. Maybe you have a virtual team in the locker room as you’re reading this! But where did the concept of fantasy football start? According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the gridiron trend began in a New York City hotel room in 1962 — a night that changed football forever. There, a group of friends led by Oakland Raiders part-owner Bill Winkenbach created the first fantasy football league. They dubbed it the Greater Oakland Professional Pigskin Prognosticators League — or GOPPPL for short. Apart from the point values assigned to different accomplishments on the field, their original model wasn’t very far off from the fantasy football of today. “The league members would ‘draft’ actual National Football League (NFL) and American Football League … players to their fantasy franchises, and on the basis of the actual performance of those players in games, the members would accrue points and compete against each other,” the encyclopedia reports. Take a Break!

Early fantasy football leagues were complicated undertakings. In the days before the internet, members had to agree to reference the box scores in a particular newspaper’s sports pages and “draft”

their teams in the same room on long phone calls, or even via snail mail.

CBS Sports began offering online fantasy football leagues in 1997, and today it’s even easier to play. The sport is built right into the NFL website (Fantasy.NFL.com), and you can join a free league or start a league of your own with a click! Whether you’re a former player or a superfan who wants to play coach for a day, fantasy is a great way to stake a personal claim in the sport and connect with friends while you do it. Check out the article “How to Play Fantasy Football: A Beginner’s Guide” on NFL.com to learn the basics. It’s updated annually, so make sure you hunt down the 2021 version! When you start, don’t forget to salute Winkenbach, the official “Father of Fantasy Sports.”

Easy Peach Cobbler

Inspired by MyRecipes.com

Ingredients

• 4 cups peaches (fresh is best!) • 1 tbsp lemon juice • Ground cinnamon or nutmeg to taste

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter • 1 cup flour • 2 cups sugar, divided • 1 tbsp baking powder • Dash of salt • 1 cup milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. In a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, add butter and place in oven. Remove when melted. 2. In a large bowl, combine flour, 1 cup of sugar, baking powder, and salt. Then pour in milk and stir until the mixture is smooth. 3. Pour the batter over the melted butter, but don’t stir! 4. In a pot, bring peaches, lemon juice, and remaining sugar to a boil. Stir constantly. 5. Pour peaches over batter, but once again, don’t stir! 6. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg, then bake at 375 F for 45 minutes.

Labor Maple Sports Windy

Fall Golden Grandparents Harvest

Abundant Apples Cookout Crunchy

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the Desk of DeDe PAGE 1 Automation Can Increase Your Connections With Clients PAGE 1 The Best Places to Visit in Croatia PAGE 2 The Night That Changed Football Forever PAGE 3 Take a Break PAGE 3 Easy Peach Cobbler PAGE 3 Crazy Historical Beauty Trends PAGE 4

Skull Shaping in Ancient Mesoamerica Popularized among the Mayans beginning around 1,000 B.C., parents of newborn children would bind their heads in order to make them grow into an unnaturally elongated shape, possibly to mimic their depiction of one of their gods. Other tribes around the world actually had similar beauty practices, including the Incas, Hawaiians, and even Germanic Hun tribes. Ta Moko Tattoos Among the Maoris in New Zealand Even today, beauty standards remain disparate. For over 1,000 years, members of the indigenous Maori tribe of New Zealand have decorated their faces with intricate tattoos called Ta Moko. Far from what a face tattoo represents in the United States, these tattoos represent strength and beauty in women and a readiness for adult responsibilities in men. Cosmetic Surgery as a Status Symbol in South Korea South Koreans prize porcelain white skin, pointed noses, small faces, and large eyes — to the point where 1 in every 5 people undergo plastic surgery, mostly to alter the shape of their eyes and noses. These surgeries are expensive, which goes to show that even today, people will go to extreme lengths to conform to their society’s definition of beauty.

Strange Beauty Trends THROUGHOUT WORLD HISTORY

The phrase “beauty standards” could easily be considered an oxymoron because beauty is rarely standard. Throughout history, what people in one society or time period found beautiful would often be found ugly, strange, or downright reprehensible in another. To illustrate that point, here are a few examples of the strangest beauty trends throughout world history — by our society’s own subjective standards, of course! Unibrows in Ancient Greece Rather than the intensely plucked and manicured eyebrows that are in style for women today, ancient Greek women were encouraged to let them grow into one. Unibrows were seen as a sign of purity, and some women went so far as to darken their eyebrows with black powder or close the gap with animal hair.

But if beauty is so plainly subjective, how far should people be willing to go to appear “beautiful”?

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