How to Decide What to Leave Behind
Preparing for death can be a way to take inventory of a life well lived.
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In pop culture, questions of inheritance take on dramatic, often nasty proportions. Watching Succession, you’d be forgiven for thinking that in all wealthy families, the specter of death elicits insults, infighting, and betrayal. For some families—even those without the wealth that the Roys are arguing over—that may well be true. But for others, deciding what to leave behind is a way to take inventory of a life well lived. It can also be an opportunity to codify our connections with the ones we love, whether or not they fall under the traditional definition of family.
What to Leave Behind
How Much Inheritance Is Too Much?
By Joe Pinsker
Some wealthy parents are concerned that after a certain point, money passed down will be damaging to the next generation.
The Problem With Wills
By Michael Waters
A striking proportion of Americans doesn’t have one. Nontraditional families are left uniquely vulnerable.
Lessons From Succession for Non-billionaire Families
By Chris Ip
For one business professor, the show is a cautionary tale.
Still Curious?
- “Why I hope to die at 75”: In 2015, Ezekiel Emanuel argued that society and families—and you—will be better off if nature takes its course swiftly and promptly.
- A neuroscientist prepares for death: “Lessons my terminal cancer has taught me about my mind”
Other Diversions
- Animal behavior’s biggest taboo is softening.
- You’re not perfect. And that’s great news.
- Against the travel neck pillow (from 2017)
P.S.
I recently asked readers to share a photo of something that sparks their sense of awe in the world. Maia F., age 71, writes: “I had just moved into my condo in Rhinebeck, New York, three days before I took this photo. I had been hunkered down and in feverish unpacking mode in the midst of a ferocious thunderstorm. The storm finally cleared and I couldn’t believe my eyes when I looked up and this was going on right outside my new home. It felt like a “welcome home” sign, my calm after the storm.”
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— Isabel
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