Most of us are very busy earning money, but don’t like to spend time looking after it once we get it, amazing! See how we act with things that we already have and how we deal with things that we wish to acquire.
Making a will is not going to give you any great pleasure, but it is going to protect what we already have. However, in so many interactions with advisers and investors, I find that the WILL is the most neglected item in many portfolios. Most of us would be far better off handling this, instead of worrying who will be the next PM of India. There are sometimes when you don’t need a will:
What if you were immortal? Vibheeshan, Hanuman, etc, never had to make a will. They were ‘chiranjeevis’, which means they would never die.
Bheeshma Pitamaha had another blessing. He could choose the date and time of his death. If you are in any of these categories, of course, you do not need a will.
I am too busy and cannot take time off to make a will. Great! Your spouse will have a lot of time after your death to search for all your assets, go to the court and try and get a probate. I guess this is an awesome revenge to take on your family for wasting your time and not listening to you. Super! It does not take more than 10 minutes to write your will. 10 minutes! If you cannot spare that, please write “I do not care what my family does AFTER I die, my watching the IPL batting is far more important than making my will”. Ask your dependents too to endorse it.
I just do not have enough. Well, Mr Dhirubhai Ambani also thought the same thing, I think. What happened after that is history. Whatever you have, you need a will. Will is not just for the rich, high and mighty. It is for anybody who has assets to be given to the next generation, you should make a will.
I don’t have a lawyer! It does not take much time to get a lawyer. Get a lawyer who will explain to you how to write a will, and go ahead and do it. Stop pretending that God stopped making lawyers. You can find dime a dozen. He will get it registered for you.
Let My Family fight! One very famous music director died intestate because he was fed up of his family. If you are in that category, of course you don’t need a will. What better revenge! Make your dead mother the beneficiary of your life cover. Let your family do the rounds of the court. Well if you don’t want this, maybe you should make a will.
One doctor asked me, “When should I make a will?” I said, “Before you die.” So, in case you know when you are going to die, make the will a day before that. If you don’t, make a will now.
What if you have no children? Even more reason to make a will. You may want to give it to your spouse and to some charities after her death. You may need a will and a joint will too. If you don’t know, ASK! Check with a lawyer, don’t assume. Simple law of life.
But my assets are dynamic. I have still not finished buying all my assets, how can I make my will now? Simple assets are “as per schedule” and that schedule can be dynamic, no issues.
What if I don’t have all the documents? Well you need your name, address, identification proof. All of us have this in our purse, do we not?
If I make a personal will online, will my data be safe? Good Question. Check on the quality of website before you put in all your details. Or take a printout and do it the old way.