“Designated beneficiary”. The space on the financial form stumped me. With no heirs, no spouse, no family, who do you leave your “wealth” to? I’m using the term “wealth” here somewhat tongue-in-cheekily, but if I step back for a moment and assess my financial situation, while it’s not considerable, it’s still wealth. It has value. It’s money that I’ve paid into a 401K or an IRA or even a simple savings account. It’s money I hope to have when I eventually retire, and it’s money I won’t need when I’m dead. Unlike the Pharaohs, I don’t plan on having a memorial built into which all my worldly possessions will go, to be someday dug up by a fedora-wearing adventurer.

The reality is that I need an estate plan. Money left in retirement accounts is one small (for me) part of my estate – my “stuff” is another. And then there are things I haven’t even thought of yet. So, for now, let’s talk about getting started.

When should I start estate planning?  This sums it up quite simply, and the answer is “now”. Forbes goes so far as to show you, in eight steps (with pictures!), how to start a conversation about estate planning with others

I’d go so far as to say, have that conversation with yourself first. Step one: “take stock of all your assets”, which may be a daunting process. I do believe you need to set aside time with minimal distraction to do this, and I found that treating it like a brainstorming session helped. Write it all down, in detail, whether on a piece of paper or to a file in Evernote (Jamie Todd Rubin gave some great tips on how to do this the other day: Going Paperless: 6 Steps for Life Continuity Planning in Evernote). If you’re going to go the paper route, just make sure you put that paper somewhere you’ll find it later (or, scan it to a file and shred the paper). If putting details down makes you feel uncomfortable, think about where the details “live” and whether or not the important people in your life can access it in an emergency. If it’s all in your head, and you become incapacitated, how will they get it? It’s something you need to take into consideration.

While it wasn’t specifically estate planning, the financial planner I’m working with had me “take stock” as part of the process. No, it wasn’t easy, but it forced me to look at the whole of it, and to think about how I could better organize it in such a way that I wouldn’t have to go through the “taking stock” every time something changed or needed to change. A job change, for example, may result in a new 401K plan that is managed by a different investment firm, which results in more information you need to keep track of.

Which brings me back to answering the question of “designated beneficiary”. After some consideration and talking to some friends, I decided to designate someone I’m not related to but who I consider family. While we all hope that this designation doesn’t come into play sooner than expected, I feel better for having made this decision on my terms, knowing full well what I was doing, and with an eye to the future.