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20 guides from the Journal about planning.
Explainers9 min read
A letter you leave for after your death is usually not legally binding and can't replace a will. Wills must meet formal rules that vary by place, such as signatures and witnesses. Handwritten wills are accepted in some places, so a letter that reads like one can cause disputes. Use a will for legal decisions and letters for love, memories and wishes.
Explainers9 min read
A dead man's switch is safe when a missed check-in can't send anything on its own. False triggers usually come from lost email access, spam filters, hospital stays, travel or a changed phone; layered reminders, a trusted verifier, a soft alert, a grace period and pause mode stop them, and letters written to be okay if they arrived early add a final layer.
Practical11 min read
To write down your funeral wishes, decide on burial or cremation, the kind of service, music and readings, who should be told, a rough budget and your organ donation choice, then put it on one or two pages. Give a copy to the people who will arrange the funeral now, because a will is often read after the funeral has already happened.
Explainers8 min read
Google Inactive Account Manager lets you choose what happens to your Google account if it goes unused for 3 to 18 months: Google tries to reach you, then notifies up to 10 trusted contacts, can share the data you picked, sends an optional Gmail autoreply and can delete the account. It is free and worth setting up, but it sends one short message and data downloads, not personal letters.
For parents9 min read
Choose a guardian for your children by thinking about who shares your values, has the energy and stability to raise them, and already has a bond with them, then ask that person directly and name them in your will. Keep care and money separate if that suits your family, and leave a letter so the guardian knows your children the way you do.
Practical9 min read
A letter of wishes is a private, usually non-binding letter that sits alongside your will and tells your executors, trustees or guardians how you'd like things handled: who should get personal items, how a trust should be used, how your children should be raised. In the US the closest equivalent is often called a letter of instruction.
Practical10 min read
A good living alone safety plan has two speeds. For emergencies, use fast tools: a daily text with a buddy, a neighbour with a key, a medical alert device or phone emergency features, and a who-to-call note on the fridge. For the slower question of what your family should receive if you die, a dead man's switch on a weekly or monthly rhythm can hold letters, including a note of where your documents are, but it is never an emergency service.
Practical9 min read
If you die without a plan, your pet usually passes with the rest of your belongings, and whoever deals with your estate decides what happens to them. A pet care plan fixes that: name a carer and a backup, write a care sheet, leave money for their care through your will or a pet trust, and carry a wallet card so someone knows there's an animal at home.
Practical8 min read
Photos in iCloud or Google Photos stay locked behind your account when you die unless you plan ahead. Share a library with family now, add Apple's Legacy Contact or Google's Inactive Account Manager, and keep a labelled 'best of' copy on a drive someone can find. Curating and naming the people in them matters as much as access.
Explainers8 min read
You can schedule an email in Gmail or Outlook for a date far in the future, but it sends on that date whether you are alive or not, so you must keep postponing it, and it never sends if the account is closed first. For messages meant only for after your death, a check-in based dead man's switch is more reliable.
Explainers10 min read
There are five realistic ways to send a message after you die: a scheduled email, Google Inactive Account Manager, a letter held by a solicitor or attorney, a trusted friend, or a dead man's switch service. Only a friend or a check-in switch is triggered by your absence rather than a fixed date, and the safest setups combine more than one.
Health10 min read
After a terminal diagnosis, nothing has to be done today. In the first weeks, ask for palliative care support, choose who can speak for you (a power of attorney or healthcare proxy) and make or update a will. Then, at your own pace, organise accounts and documents and turn to the things only you can do: conversations, letters and recordings for the people you love.
Travel6 min read
Before a long or remote trip, leave one person a living itinerary and an agreed check-in rhythm, keep copies of your passport, insurance and medical details where you both can reach them, and adjust or pause any check-in service so patchy signal doesn't set it off.
Writing6 min read
The most useful approach is to write two documents: a love letter about your relationship, with a specific memory, what they gave you and permission to grieve and be happy again, and a separate practical note listing accounts, bills, documents and who to call.
Practical6 min read
A good executor is organised, calm, trusted by your family, likely to outlive you, and has actually agreed to do it. Ask them in person, give them time to think, and leave them a clear record of where your will, accounts and wishes are.
Practical7 min read
Keep originals of your will, deeds and certificates somewhere safe and known, list your banks, pensions, insurers and key contacts in one place, and tell your executor and one backup person where that list lives, without handing over passwords before they are needed.
Health7 min read
Before major surgery, sort out the practical things a few days ahead (lifts, medication list, someone to update family), note where your will is and who can make decisions for you, and pause any check-in service so nothing is sent while you recover.
Explainers8 min read
Digital estate planning means listing your online accounts, turning on each platform's legacy settings, recording what should happen to each account, and naming someone to carry it out. In most US states, RUFADAA gives a platform's own legacy tool priority over your will, and your will priority over the terms of service.
Writing7 min read
A good goodbye letter is one honest page that includes a specific memory, what the person gave you, permission to grieve and live on, a small hope for their future, and the plain words “I love you”. Leave out old arguments, binding instructions and passwords, which belong in a separate practical note.
Explainers7 min read
A digital dead man's switch is a service that holds messages or documents and releases them to chosen people only if you stop responding to regular check-ins. A safe one uses layers, such as repeated reminders, a trusted verifier, a soft alert and a grace period, so that a missed check-in never sends anything by mistake.
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