New York Times columnist David Brooks writes that many people focus on their “resume virtues” when they should focus on their “eulogy virtues.” 

Your resume might influence your present success, but leaving a legacy is about more than a bank account balance or a stock portfolio. Your “eulogy virtues” are about the things that you hold most dear and want to pass on to the generations that follow you.

Maybe this sounds like a morbid question, but what would you like to hear in your eulogy? Legacy planning allows you to translate your life’s values into something tangible. Let’s explore how this process works.

What Is a Legacy?

What comes to mind when you think about “leaving a legacy”? It’s tempting to think of your legacy planning as synonymous with estate planning, but it’s more than that. Planning a legacy starts with identifying your most deeply-cherished values and seeking solutions that perpetuate these values for future generations.

If that sounds abstract, try to think of your values in terms of concrete examples:

• What kind of life have I sought to live?
• Who has had the most significant influence on me?
• How can I pay it forward?

Notice that these questions go considerably deeper than the dollars you invest. But that’s not to say that you can’t structure your estate to ensure you leave a legacy that honors your values and core beliefs. 

Legacy planning is about finding ways to translate these values into tangible, real-world solutions that benefit our families and the community around us.

Things to Consider in Legacy Planning

You can think of legacy planning as a set of concentric circles. In the center, you find yourself and your immediate needs. Then in the next circle, you find your family and close friends. The outermost circle includes your community and world, where you might aspire to have the largest impact.

This vision helps you see legacy planning as something of a logical progression, and you can go about the process by asking this series of questions:

Will I Have Enough Money for Myself?

Understandably, your first concern might be to ensure you have enough money for retirement and beyond. This consideration isn’t entirely motivated by self-interest. With the rising costs of long-term care, having a plan in place for the future can reduce the burden on your surviving family members.

Younger investors might make this an immediate priority and will usually be a good foundation for planning their legacy as a whole.

What Impact Do I Want to Have on My Grandchildren?

Next, you’ll want to consider the influence you’ll have on your surviving relatives, particularly your grandchildren or even great-grandchildren. This can take the form of an inheritance, though it’s often common to designate certain funds for college or even provide an investment account to provide for your family’s future.

You might also consider giving your surviving relatives a stake in your business. This would perpetuate the company you’ve built and provide security for your family. But before you make these kinds of decisions, make sure that your family members are interested in the business; otherwise, you may need to make alternate plans.

How Do I Want to Impact My Community?

Finally, you’ll want to consider how you might impact your local community or even your world. Have some certain causes or organizations been particularly valuable to you? Setting up a trust or similar financial vehicle can further the mission of these organizations and allow you to translate your values into real-world activities.

Leaving a Legacy Is More Than a Strategy

Financial professionals are fond of pointing out that your legacy planning activities have some basic tax benefits. But this is just window dressing. The surest value of legacy-building is knowing that you have an impact that outlasts you.

In Marc Freedman’s book How to Live Forever, he writes about the positive effects of knowing you’ve left a set of footprints for others to follow. Your children and children’s children face unprecedented social challenges. While you can’t protect them once you’re gone, your legacy can have a positive influence on their lives and the life of your community long after your eulogy is delivered.

When you’re ready to discuss the legacy you’d like to leave, we’re here to help. Email our team to connect with the right advisor for your future today.

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