Archives for May 2018

5 things to check on or do with your attorney, insurance agent or work before you go on your summer vacation

Posted on: May 23, 2018, in: , , , , , , ,

Summer is fast approaching. At least it feels that way here in Phoenix. With summer comes the inevitable vacations, which include road trips and all kinds of fun (and somewhat) dangerous activities. Before you escape on a great adventure, here are some things you may want to think about and consider:

  1. Call your attorney if you are leaving minor children at home with friends, family or a babysitter. You need to leave insurance cards and information, but you also need to provide a limited power of attorney for the caregiver to be able to make medical decisions in the event a child becomes sick or is injured while you are in some exotic locale or otherwise unreachable.
  2. Call your attorney if your estate plan up is not up to date. If you’re not sure, you know the answer. Whether you are traveling alone, with a partner or with your family, it is important to have your estate planning documents in the form you want them. No one plans on something bad happening, but it is good to be prepared in case it does.
  3. Are you doing a short term or long term rental in-state, out of state or abroad? Call your attorney to review any rental contract or terms you are not familiar with or uncomfortable with (and this is important) before you sign the document. Rentals can cost a lot of money and you want to make sure you are getting what you think you are paying for.
  4. Call your insurance agent or broker and make sure you have sufficient life insurance in place prior to bungee jumping or skydiving during your vacation. Ditto for auto insurance before your road trip.
  5. Otherwise, remember to let your clients and colleagues know when you will be gone, and how to reach you (if you will be reachable and actually want to be reached…).

The point is that the more you know the better off you are. The professionals you use are available to advise and help you, and a few question can go a long way to protecting you and or your family.

That being said, I hope you are getting ready to go on or putting the finishing touches on a fantastic summer getaway!

 

No Comments

Disconnecting from technology frees your mind in a way you may have forgotten

Posted on: May 15, 2018, in: , , , , , , , , , ,

Most of us are connected to our phones, tablets or computers from the time we wake up until the time we go to sleep. I recently went on an annual trip where I try to disconnect for a few days. It is harder to do than you think. When I do, I am reminded we all need to do so. It is so relaxing and provides a much needed break from work and the continuous need to stay on top of email and various forms of electronic media and information. When is the last time you disconnected?

We walk around with these small computers in our pockets that we use to communicate with others, take pictures, surf the Internet, and stream video and audio content. Of course, we also use them for work, whether through email, text or something more substantive. Most of us really are connected all day long whether because of a level of addiction or the need to be accessible at all times to customers and clients.

As an attorney, I definitely have clients who think I should be able to immediately respond to any email or text at almost any time of the day. I try to set reasonable expectations of my availability and general response times, but many people think because a message was sent it will be immediately viewed and responded to. I had one client who used to text me “????” if I didn’t respond or call him within a few minutes of his text. When I would get back to him he logically understood I have other clients, a family and things going on, but because he is an instant responder on email and text, his knee jerk reaction is that everyone else is too.

Use your phone to Google it and you will find numerous articles and studies about how bad it is for your brain and, generally, your well-being, to be connected, using technology so much and accessible at all hours. How bad has it become? Someone my wife previously worked with used to (and hopefully, for her and her husband’s sanity, doesn’t) keep her phone under her pillow and answer texts at all hours of the night. That is so bad on many levels.

Just like your body and brain need you to take vacation, they need you to disconnect from technology for at least short amounts of time. But it isn’t easy to disconnect – our phones help us fill downtime or dead space. The problem is that the downtime is time we used to spend thinking, coming up with ideas, and being creative. In the big picture, for most of us, technology is a creativity killer. For me it may mean the great legal argument or idea for one of my cases won’t come into my head out of the blue like they used to. For you it probably means something different, but there is something you have lost from not taking time to let your mind be unoccupied.

At the same time, I am a big fan of technology both in my professional and personal worlds. I continually am trying to balance its use better, with varying results depending on the day. But I really look forward to the few times a year I know I am going to shut it off and figuratively “tune in, turn on, drop out,” as Timothy Leary famously said in the 1960’s. Back then Leary was referring to the hippie counterculture of that day, but I think it applies the same to technology. And it can go either way – you can be turning onto technology and dropping out of other parts of your life, or you could be doing what I try to, which is to tune into and turn onto real life without technology for a short time. It is a great way to drop out and reconnect not only with the people around you, but yourself.

Try taking a short break from technology and see what positive effects it has for you. I know some of you are saying to yourselves “but when I turn it back on I will be so behind and have to catch up.” You have to do that anytime you go on vacation between getting ready to be out and then upon return, so that is a given anyway. Most of you who try it, will come back looking forward to the next time you can do so again.

No Comments