The best "get your life organized" workbook available!

Everyone has important paperwork and personal information, but not everyone is prepared to find it. Whether you need to organize records for yourself, your family or your executor, Get It Together will show you how to keep track of:

instructions for survivors

secured places and passwords

final arrangements

estate planning documents

employment records

insurance policies

tax records

retirement accounts

government benefits

real estate records

and much more

This workbook provides a complete system for structuring and organizing a records binder.

The Planner available in the book CD-Rom is under APPENDIX B of the ebook
*The CD-ROM is not included with the digital version of this book.

Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint on it you can.
-- Danny Kaye, entertainer and UNICEF ambassador (1913-1987)

This book will help you get organized for your own benefit and, eventually, for the benefit of your loved ones. You'll use it to complete a planner that contains everything your caretakers or survivors need to know, including critical personal, legal, and financial information.

Your planner will be a thorough and easy-to-follow guide for your family and close friends. With your planner in hand, your loved ones can more easily step in and take care of things if you become incapacitated or when you die.

A. Who Needs to Plan Ahead?
If you picked up this book, you're probably feeling the need to get organized. Or perhaps you want to help someone else put things in order -- maybe an elderly parent or an ailing friend. Any adult can benefit from making a planner, even those without a lot of money or property, but some people might find the process particularly useful.

Seniors
As we age, most of us feel some concern about what would happen if we became ill and unable to make our own medical or financial decisions. And we wonder how our loved ones will take care of things after we die. If you're elderly, making a planner can smooth the way for your caretakers and survivors. You can gather together your health care wishes, financial plans, legal documents, and important personal information, and arrange these things in a format that will make sense to others. Those close to you will likely view your planner as a small miracle -- and a wonderful gift.

People Facing a Serious Illness
If you are ill and concerned that at some point you may no longer be able to care for yourself, making a planner can help you find some peace of mind. While you're able, you can document your wishes for medical care, name someone to take care of your finances, write down what you want to have happen to your property and your body after death, and organize personal information and important paperwork for your family and friends. This book is designed to help you organize things a little bit at a time, with help if necessary; you can pick and choose the issues that are most important to you.

Family Members and Other Caretakers
If you are caring for an older or ailing person -- such as a parent, grandparent, or friend -- you're probably grappling with both strong emotions and lots of practical tasks. You may find it useful to help your family member or friend complete a planner. It will probably be a great relief to have personal wishes, financial information, and important legal paperwork at your fingertips.

If you have been named as an agent for health care or financial matters, executor of a will, or successor trustee of a living trust, a good planner will provide the framework that you need to carry out your eventual responsibilities in an orderly, informed way.

If you're using this book to help someone else make a planner, keep in mind that the instructions are written primarily for people who are making planners for themselves -- but there's no reason you can't use the instructions to help another person through the process.

Parents and Young Adults
If you are young, you may want to use this book to get off to a good start -- getting and staying organized. This book will show you how to understand and keep track of your important records, providing a solid foundation for years to come.

 

The best "get your life organized" workbook available!

About This Book
A. Do You Need This Book?
B. How This Book Works
C. Icons Used in This Book

Completing Your Planner
A. What the Planner Contains
B. Five Steps to Preparing Your Planner
C. More Tips for Completing Your Planner
D. After You Finish Your Planner

1. Letter to Loved Ones
A. Tips for Writing Your Letter
B. Where to Get Help
C. In Your Planner
D. Keeping Your Letter Up to Date

2. Instructions
A. In Your Planner
B. Keeping Your Documents Up to Date

3. Biographical Information
A. Where to Get Help
B. In Your Planner
C. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

4. Children
A. Arranging Care for Children
B. Where to Get Help
C. In Your Planner
D. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

5. Others Who Depend on Me
A. In Your Planner
B. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

6. Pets and Livestock
A. Arranging Care for Pets
B. Where to Get Help
C. In Your Planner
D. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

7. Employment
A. In Your Planner
B. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

8. Business Interests
A. Estate Planning for Small Business Owners
B. Where to Get Help
C. In Your Planner
D. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

9. Memberships
A. Types of Memberships
B. Membership Benefits for Survivors
C. Transferring Frequent Flyer Miles
D. Where to Get Help
E. In Your Planner
F. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

10. Service Providers
A. In Your Planner
B. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

11. Health Care Directives
A. Types of Health Care Directives
B. How Health Care Directives Work
C. Choosing Your Health Care Agent
D. What You Can Cover in Your Health Care Directives
E. Duty of Medical Personnel to Honor Your Health Care Directives
F. Where to Get Help
G. In Your Planner
H. Keeping Your Documents Up to Date

12. Durable Power of Attorney for Finances
A. How Durable Powers of Attorney for Finances Work
B. Choosing Your Agent
C. Where to Get Help
D. In Your Planner
E. Keeping Your Documents Up to Date

13. Organ or Body Donation
A. Do You Want to Be a Donor?
B. Where to Get Help
C. In Your Planner
D. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

14. Burial or Cremation
A. Burial or Cremation?
B. Related Decisions
C. Where to Get Help
D. In Your Planner
E. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

15. Funeral and Memorial Services
A. Types of Memorial Services
B. Where to Get Help
C. In Your Planner
D. Keeping Your Information Up to Date

16. Obituary
17. Will and Trust
18. Insurance
19. Bank and Brokerage Accounts
20. Retirement Plans and Pensions
21. Government Benefits
22. Credit Cards and Debts
23. Secured Places and Passwords
24. Taxes
25. Real Estate
26. Vehicles
27. Other Income and Personal Property
28. Other Information
Appendix A: How to Use the CD-ROM
CD-ROM is only avaialbe in the back of the PRINT book Appendix B: Lawyers and Other Experts

A. What Kind of Expert Do You Need?
B. Finding an Expert
C. Working With an Expert
D. Making a Fee Agreement

Index
*The CD-ROM is not included with the digital version of this book.

"Offers a detailed, step-by-step process for gathering records and key documents and organizing them for future use."

 

"A book that is essential for everyone.... Tells you exactly what information you must record, who to tell, where to keep it and how often to update it."

 

Melanie Cullen holds an MBA from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University. Following 20 years in corporate management, she is now a consultant in management and technology. Melanie lives in Davis, California.

 

Get It Together by Melanie Cullen
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