leafplanner contacts: What are they and who should be added as one?
Common Causes/Issues:
Confusing a contact with a resource. Please keep in mind, family members can be both family member resources and contacts and serve equally important purposes.
Solution Overview:
Before you begin your leafplan, it is helpful to understand how to approach each section and module. Contacts are one of the most critical pieces to your leafplan, so learning who to add and why is essential. This article creates a great understanding of what a leafplanner contact is and who should be added as a contact to your leafplanner.
When you log into your leafplanner account, on the left-hand menu, you will see a section called ‘Contacts.’ This section is designed for you to add the contact information for the people most imperative to your family’s enterprise structure and your legacy.
Think about adding contacts in layers. Begin with your nuclear family, then add any extended family or any additional family, friends, or advisors who appear in your estate planning documents. Then, think about who your family can reach out to in a time of need- an advisor, a physician, a trustee, or a close friend. Consider adding as many relevant contacts to your leafplanner as possible, especially those that tie into some of the broader leafplanner modules. For example, if you were to be uploading an insurance policy, it would be wise to add your insurance broker as a contact so that if your family or loved ones had to take action on your behalf, it is clear who they contact and for what.
When you add a new contact to your leafplan, you will see that you will be prompted to designate the ‘type of contact’ you are adding by finding the best match from that drop-down menu. This feature is essential as it will assist your family in developing a greater understanding of who is who. The ability to build context is one of the most impressive features of leafplanner.
Remember- every contact you add will later be ‘related’ back to components of your leafplanner either as related resources or ‘contacts’ as you work throughout your account. This solidifies the relational power of a leafplanner in communicating the nuanced details of relationships that can prove valuable for a family.
