Most people avoid estate planning because it's morbid and unclear where to start — so their family inherits a scavenger hunt on top of grief. This is the before version: the ordered checklist of what to set up (will, beneficiaries, directives), the one document that tells your family where everything is, and honest flags for when you need a lawyer, not a template.
Not legal or financial advice. Wills, trusts, and directives are governed by local law — this organises the work and flags where a professional is required; it does not replace one.
What This Skill Produces
- The priority checklist — what to put in place, ordered by "if only one thing, do this"
- The document-locator sheet — the "what my family needs to find and where" document (accounts, policies, passwords vault, key contacts)
- The key decisions — the choices only you can make (executor, guardians, beneficiaries, care wishes)
- Professional-help flags — where a template is fine vs. where a lawyer/advisor is required
Required Inputs
Ask for these if not provided:
- Your situation — dependents (kids, aging parents), rough asset picture, business ownership, marital status
- What exists — any current will, beneficiaries named, insurance, directives
- Jurisdiction — country/state (rules and required documents vary)
- Complexity flags — blended family, cross-border assets, a business, special-needs dependent
Framework: In the Right Order
- Beneficiaries first. Retirement/insurance beneficiary designations override a will and take minutes — the highest-leverage, most-skipped step.
- A will (and guardians if you have kids). Who gets what, and who raises your children — the decision that most needs to be explicit.
- Healthcare directive + power of attorney. Who decides for you if you can't — medical and financial.
- The locator document. Where everything lives, so nothing is lost to a forgotten account.
- Know when to escalate. Trusts, business succession, cross-border, or special-needs planning need a professional — flag, don't wing.
Output Format
Estate Planning Checklist — [name] · [jurisdiction]
| Priority | Item | Status | DIY-ok / See a pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Update beneficiary designations | ☐ | DIY |
| 2 | Will + guardianship | ☐ | Pro if [complexity] |
Decisions only you can make
- Executor: ___ · Guardians: ___ · Healthcare proxy: ___ · Care wishes: ___
Document locator (for your family)
| What | Where it is | Contact |
|---|---|---|
| Will | … | [lawyer] |
| Insurance policies | … | … |
| Accounts / passwords | [vault] | … |
See a professional for
- [flagged complexities]
Quality Checks
- Beneficiary designations are called out as the first, highest-leverage step
- Guardianship is prompted if there are minor children
- Both healthcare and financial power-of-attorney are covered
- The locator sheet names where each item lives, not just that it exists
- Complexity (trusts, business, cross-border, special-needs) is flagged for a professional
- Jurisdiction is acknowledged; no jurisdiction-specific legal claims are invented
Anti-Patterns
- Starting with the will and skipping beneficiary designations that legally override it.
- A checklist with no locator — the family still can't find anything.
- Pretending a template covers a trust or a business — flag the escalation.
- Inventing jurisdiction-specific rules — organise the work, defer the law to a pro.
- Guilt-tripping — this is logistics, done calmly, not a lecture on mortality.
Example Trigger Phrases
- "Help me get my affairs in order."
- "Make me an estate-planning checklist — I have two young kids."
- "Prepare the document my family needs if something happens to me."
- "Where do I start with a will and directives?"