Reib Law - October 2021

SHATTERPROOF NEWSLETTER

OCTOBER 2021

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THE REAL COST OF NOT HAVING AN ESTATE PLAN IT’S FAR GREATER THAN YOU MIGHT THINK

your family members and will eat up their financial assets before they even get to inherit yours!

In last month’s cover, I shared some of the most common excuses I hear for why someone hasn’t yet created an estate plan as well as why those excuses don’t hold water. This month, partially because October is National Estate Planning Awareness Month, I thought I would follow up that cover by talking about the cost of not having an estate plan. Because while you might think making an estate plan now costs too much time and money, the truth is it will cost your family a lot more if you die without leaving them with any guidance. The first and foremost cost of not having an estate plan is that if you die, a judge will decide how best to divide your estate, meaning your family will have to go to probate court. If I had to describe probate court in three words, those words would be: slow, costly, and public. Just how long the probate process takes depends on the state you live in, but in all states, it will take longer than if you had just created an estate plan. For example, in California, it takes roughly two years for the court to determine the fate of your estate. Plus, if you have assets in multiple states, your family could end up in multiple probate courts! This means your family will have to pay costly legal fees out of their own pocket, since all your assets will be locked up in probate. Plus, since the probate process is public, anyone can see every detail about your estate and your assets — and know you died without a plan in place. Several other costs associated with not having an estate plan result from the probate process. For example, if you die intestate (without a will or estate plan), then the court will only let blood relatives and spouses inherit your assets. In an age where blended families are becoming increasingly more common, that could be a problem. Say you were living with a partner to whom you were not married when you died, or you would like to leave some inheritance to stepchildren from a second marriage. If you die intestate, your partner and stepchildren would get nothing. That could lead to a costly legal battle between

Not having an estate plan means more than just not having a plan for when you die — it also means not having a plan for when you’re incapacitated. It’s more and more common now for a person to become incapacitated before they die, usually by illnesses like Alzheimer’s. You’re not technically dead, but you’re still unable to take care of your estate. Appointing powers of attorney as part of your estate plan can prepare your family for this possibility. Not having an estate plan in place when you die might mean giving up any children in your custody to a relative you would not have chosen to care for them. You know your children better than anyone, so you should make clear who should take care of them when you’re gone. As much as you might think the courts would exercise sound judgment in appointing a guardian for your children, the sad truth is they often put children in the custody of a relative with whom they’ll be worse off. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, failing to create an estate plan means robbing your family of time to properly grieve. Instead, they’ll have to deal with the frustration and anxiety of going to a crowded courtroom to endure the probate process. Don’t make them do that. If you need to create an estate plan and grant yourself and your family peace of mind, follow this link to where you can schedule a “peace of mind” session with REIBLAW: REIBLaw.co/get-peace-of-mind.

– Scott Reib

As your Access Lawyer, we're specifically trained to help entrepreneurs like you put these cornerstone systems in place, providing your company with a shatterproof foundation. To see how stable your foundation is, take our Shatterproof Business Audit and assess your confidence in how much your legal, insurance, financial, and tax foundations will support your business growth. Just go to REIBLAW.com/shatterproof-audit and complete your audit. We will send you back a report card.

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THE SALES POWER OF THE INTROVERT

1. Establish Trust: Introverts have a powerful ability to connect one-on-one with whoever they are speaking to. They thrive on personal conversations, wherein they can build a rapport with one or two other people rather than a group. This trait is necessary for salespeople to acquire, as it makes prospects feel safe and heard. 2. Ask Questions : A long spiel about a product or service is overwhelming, especially when the person providing it feels like a total stranger. Before launching into a pitch, an introverted salesperson knows to ask questions, begging the prospect to lead the conversation and push the salesperson into the appropriate action for a sale. 3. Keep It Relational: People remember stories. They want to hear stories of success and failures, often applying the lessons from those stories to their own lives. Introverts can captivate an audience — maybe that’s why so many introverts are also authors — and salespeople have to strike that balance between sharing stories and listening.

When we think of careers suited for extroverts, sales often springs to mind. After all, nothing could be more exhausting to an introvert than having to talk to dozens of people every day and maintain a positive demeanor to seal every deal.

However, a surprising study by the Harvard Business Review (HBR) disputes this belief.

The HBR reports that being an extrovert had no impact on a salesperson’s ability to sell; in fact, some of the negative qualities of being an extrovert, such as bravado and overt friendliness, are more likely to alienate customers. On the flip side, humility and modesty were two traits possessed by those who were 90% better than other sales people in their company. Interestingly, these traits often accompany an introverted personality. The reason, as Entrepreneur.com reports, is actually fairly simple. Being effective at sales does not require a profound skill for speaking or storytelling. Instead, salespeople need to be great listeners . This attention to detail and attentiveness to their subject is often found in introverts. Now, that doesn’t make extroverts bad at sales. Instead, you can harness the power of the introvert and spread the wealth among your sales team by doing the following:

For more guidance on how introverts can maximize a sales team, pick up Matthew Pollard’s book, “The Introvert’s Edge.”

EMAILING JUST GOT MORE EFFICIENT THANKS TO SUPERHUMAN, THIS MONTH’S BIZ TOOL

features is the ability to “unsend” an email. We’ve all been there; right after you press send, you notice you spelled the recipient’s name wrong or you left off some crucial information. This feature allows you to fix errors before the mistake is ever noticed. The Superhuman platform also allows users to scour their contacts’ social media and other accounts to find and attach a picture and other useful information to their contact. Rahul Vohra, who is also responsible for creating Rapportive, an early email extension purchased by LinkedIn, developed the company. Superhuman was met with extreme hype when it first debuted, but reviews have been split. The CEOs of both Crunchbase and Eat24 applauded the new program, while journalistic reviews have been critical of the program’s price and usefulness of its many features. If you’re interested in trying Superhuman, you must first fill out their survey. If they think you are a good fit for the program, it will cost you $30 a month.

Every year, many new cellphones, tablets, and other devices come on the market. New email platforms are also in the mix. Yet, while each new device boasts new features, email platforms remain rather stagnant. Superhuman, however, is setting to redefine the email platform game.

Superhuman claims to be “the fastest email experience ever made.” They believe every interaction on their website should take less than 100 milliseconds; that’s only one-tenth of a second! Superhuman is genuinely trying to make the email experience instant.

It’s not all about speed, though. Superhuman is also an upgrade aesthetically from its competitors. They’ve made the inbox crisp and clean, reducing unnecessary clutter. Soothing images also inspire and calm as you work throughout your day. Superhuman desired their platform to be “subtle, delightful, and gorgeous” since they claim the average person spends three hours a day using email.

Interested in giving it a shot? Head to Superhuman.com to learn more.

Superhuman is packed with other features unavailable to other platforms. One of the most unique and in-demand

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WHAT IS A BURIAL DIRECTIVE?

ANDWHY SHOULD I HAVE ONE?

At its heart, estate planning is all about eliminating confusion for your family after you pass away. You want your final wishes to be clear and easy to understand and for the people you put in charge of acting on your final wishes to know their roles. That means filling out all the necessary legal documents to make your final wishes official, including one that’s often forgotten: your burial directive. In short, a burial directive lets your next of kin know who and what you want your end-of-life ceremony to include (or not include) as well as your desired fate for your remains. The specific stipulations that might be in a burial directive include:

Morbid though it may be to discuss with your family what you would like for them to do with your body after you die, it’s a necessary conversation to eliminate any confusion. So, be frank about what you want your funeral and burial to be. It might be uncomfortable now, but it will make the process so much easier for your family when you’re gone. While most people (rightfully) put a lot of focus on getting their will and trust squared away, sometimes other documents, like the burial directive, are pushed to the wayside. It’s important to remember that every part of the estate planning process matters, because every part you make clear will allow your family to handle it gracefully after you’re gone. For help and questions about burial directives and other parts of the estate planning process, call REIBLAW today at 940.591.0600 to schedule a consultation.

•

Whether you want to be buried or cremated

• Your desired final resting place for your ashes or remains (in a family burial plot, scattered in a nearby lake or ocean, etc.)

• Whom you want to attend your funeral (or whom you don’t want to attend)

• How the expenses associated with your funeral and burial will be taken care of

ONE-PANVEGGIES AND CHICKEN

We want your feedback!

In editions of this newsletter, we’ve covered everything from business contracts to how to handle the former spouse who wound up with everything because there was no business succession plan in place. But now we’re wondering: What would you like to see? You know those legal questions that Google can’t give you a satisfactory answer to? The ones that keep you up at night as you wonder whether it’s time to call a lawyer? We want to answer those. Send us your questions, and we’ll use them to address the topics you want to know more about. Text your questions and curiosities to 940.227.3383 .

Inspired by Tasty.co

INGREDIENTS

• Salt and

• 1 sweet potato, cubed

pepper, to taste

• 1 lb Brussels sprouts, halved

• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• 2 apples, sliced

• 1 tbsp rosemary

• 4 chicken thighs

• 2 tbsp thyme

• 4 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS

4. Turn chicken over and add seasoning to the back side. Return skin-side up before baking. 5. Bake for 30 minutes, and broil for 5–10 minutes afterward.

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. On a baking sheet, add potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and apples. Layer chicken thighs on top.

3. Drizzle with olive oil. Then

season with salt, pepper, garlic, rosemary, and thyme.

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The Real Cost of Not Having an Estate Plan INSIDE THIS ISSUE 1 2 2 3 3 4 Why You Need Introverts on Your Sales Team Biz Tool of the Month: Superhuman One-Pan Veggies and Chicken ‘The Outsiders’: A Model for Success

Why You Need a Burial Directive in Your Estate Plan

TAP INTO A SUCCESSFUL CEO’S MIND

Berkshire Hathaway’s top leader, to discover what makes these companies so successful, even as they quietly grow. Through his storytelling and deep-dive into the mindsets of these CEOs, Thorndike offers readers various perspectives on a different way to amass success. Thorndike also illuminates how many of these top business minds were quietly outpacing their loud, celebrity-like counterparts. For example, frugality is a major component of their success, while most others view a singular metric as the biggest determining factor in their company’s long-term success. Together, many of these top CEOs often value the human elements of their business, attributing the people they have working for them as one of the most important parts of their company growth. As you read through the various lessons and experiences of these CEOs, you find models emerging. Some of the tactics may work for you, while others prove that unconventional methods were never out of the box to begin with. All told, Thorndike’s “The Outsiders” is a reminder that sometimes the quiet ones make the most progress. You can learn more about Thorndike’s book at Goodreads.com, or you can find it on Amazon.com or your favorite bookstore.

What if you could harness the knowledge and skill possessed by some of the world’s top CEOs — specifically eight of them? With investment expert and author William N. Thorndike Jr.’s “The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success,” you can. After years of analyzing investments and the companies behind meteoric climbs on Wall Street, Thorndike has compiled stories, lessons, and tactics used by

eight CEOs whose methods and beliefs don’t mirror those of other leaders — unconventional leaders like Virgin Group Founder Richard Branson or SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, whose companies’ growth speaks volumes for their methodology. Thorndike examines the successes of various business leaders, like pet food company Ralston Purina’s CEO or

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