Fiona Shilton

Danette O’Brien: The Good That Came Out Of My Dad’s Death

At the time of her dad’s death Danette O’Brien was working as an Executive Assistant, supporting a CEO and Board and she’d done this type of work for 40 years. Never for a moment did she think planning a funeral that truly honoured her fun, cheeky but sometimes ‘challenging’ dad would be the catalyst to a career change. A couple of weeks after her dad’s funeral, Danette had the sudden realisation that she felt called […]

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Why You Should Get Your Own Lawyer For A Deceased Estate

There aren’t many things that get me fired up quite as much as hearing someone tell me they felt pressured to use a dead person’s lawyer to administer an estate – despite the fact that they really wanted to use someone of their own choosing. It’s a misconception almost as common as ‘lightening never strikes twice’, or ‘bats are blind’ or ‘humans only use 10% of their brain (granted for some humans that may in

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Why a Personal Asset Plan is an Awesome Gift to Give Your Family

Creating a personal asset plan is a great way of helping your family understand what “stuff” you’ve got but it’s the gift that keeps on giving, if you use it as an excuse to do some Spring cleaning at the same time. I recently attended the home of an elderly gentleman, who like me, was a card-carrying member of the Minimalist Movement. We bonded over our mutual love of the actual Minimalist aesthetic – Scandinavian

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Nominating A Friend As Your Executor

When it comes to nominating a friend as an executor most people have a whole raft of thoughts, feelings, and considerations the people who nominate a family memeber don’t seem to have. The biggest one is how to nominate a friend as an executor or substitute decision maker without being a burden. Like “Don’t be a burden.” is a very important clause in the rules of friendship – but not so much when it comes

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Deceased Estate Shares

Being a good shareholder is about more than just managing assets – it’s about ensuring a smooth transition if your family will be managing deceased estate shares. I’m excited to be partnering with Jon Moses, a specialist deceased estate stockbroker (and great human), from JM Invest. I asked Jon what it takes to be a good dead shareholder and he didn’t just answer the questions, he came through with all the information. If you’d like

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Expectations of Estate Administration Vs Reality

When I talk to people about their expectations around estate administration I take the time to explain that managing a deceased estate is an honour, but it also has the potential to be hard (not always but sometimes). Like having a baby or getting married or deciding to retire and spend all day with your beloved – nobody wants to tell you it might be difficult beforehand or you wouldn’t sign up for it. Managing

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Business Succession Planning

As a business owner, farmer’s wife, and farmer’s daughter I understand how difficult it is to separate the business from the person – the years of hard work, financial investment, and emotional commitment make it particularly hard to imagine there being a day where your business and life aren’t extricably linked. Unfortunately many business owners die or become incapacitated without ever getting around to formally addressing the succession of their business. Just as most entrepreneurs

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Strong Willed

Being Strong Willed In 5 Easy Steps

The world is full of people walking around feeling confident they’re winning at Adulting because they think they have a good will, when in actual fact they don’t.  Discover why being strong willed isn’t just about the piece of paper and how you can muscle up and make your will do the heavy lifting. “Good estate planning means making the business of living as easy as possible for the people you love when you’re no

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This Is Your Life

When to Update Your Will

A fellow much wiser than me one said “Nothing is contant except change”. Our lives have a funny habit of changing. Given your will is designed to protect the people and things you love right now, it’s important to update your will so it matches your life.  Imagine for a moment I ask you to write a book about your life right now. Not a retrospective, historical account dating 20, 30, 40 years back. Not

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Does Your Young Adult Need A Will

Estate Planning + Your Adult Children

What would your life look like if you couldn’t help your child or make decisions on their behalf when they really need you to?  Many parents are shocked to discover once their young person turns 18 they are legally no longer able to step in as a substitue decision maker if they became unwell or were in an accident, or act as the executor of their estate if they died. “A long time ago someone

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