1. Family #1 – Husband and wife in their mid-50s with two young children, one special needs. Life insurance was being purchased to provide for the family in the event of either parent’s premature death. The life insurance had been approved. The husband passed away in his sleep while the policy sat on his desk awaiting his signature.
2. Family #2 – Husband and wife in their 70s who had built considerable wealth. We were hired by the family because their current life insurance portfolio was underperforming. The policies were projected to lapse well before life expectancy unless they increased their premiums by over 400% (an increase of almost $400,000/year). They lead an active lifestyle and the application/underwriting process took almost a year because there was always something else demanding their attention. My client called to postpone his exam two days before it was scheduled because he wasn’t feeling well and wanted to reschedule when he felt better. A week later he was diagnosed with cancer.
3. Family #3 – Husband and wife in their 80’s. Like family #2, they had underperforming life insurance policies that we had been hired to review. We collected their medical records and even at their ages, significant improvements were available in the marketplace. The final requirement was to take the exam. The husband suffered a heart attack the week before his scheduled exam.

In all these situations, my clients recognized the importance of the planning but not the urgency. I continue to work with these families but the challenges are greater.

Begin 2018 protecting what’s most important – your family. Please commit to reviewing/updating your planning, especially in light of recent tax reform. Once you’ve made a decision to revise your planning, don’t delay, act on it!

We would be happy to complete a thorough review of your life insurance policies to ensure they are performing as originally projected. We also offer a service to monitor and manage your current life insurance portfolio.

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Buckley Financial specializes in the creative uses of life insurance products and solutions to preserve, protect and grow multi-generations of wealth.

Contact Seth Buckley, seth@buckley-financial.com
Tel: +1 (617) 322-1770 | www.buckley-financial.com

Being born into a successful business family is a blessing and a burden. Trying to outshine the great leader in the family is challenging. There are two forces working against it.

The current leader knows that he is great. He measures everyone against himself and his leadership style. Nobody is good enough when he compares them to himself. After all, none of the copies are as good as the original. He is disappointed with his successors. The more disappointed he becomes, the more he tightens his control, giving less room for the potential successor to develop.

The future leader know that the current leader is great. He tries to prove himself but finds it challenging. After all, he is not the same person and trying to copy a masterpiece is futile. Every time he tries, it’s not good enough. Whenever he tries to be himself, he is rejected. He is frustrated and lost yo-yoing between trying to be a good copy and trying to be himself.

One can never be a copy of the other. Current leaders have to be the primary supportive figure to the future leaders. They have the wisdom and insight that future leaders lack. Instead of being the constant critique, current leaders need to be a positive motivator for future leaders to grow and develop. As well, future leaders can learn so much from their predecessor. Acknowledging current leaders as mentors and looking at challenges as a way to learn and improve can kindle the fire in future leaders to develop themselves and sustain the family business. 

As a friend her husband Simon, to be polite, I purchased a book. You do that sort thing for a friend. You go to the first exhibition and buy the smallest piece to show support and hang it in the guest room. I came home and parked the book on the coffee table. Later that evening, as I was having my evening tea, I flipped through pages so that I could pretend I read it if I was ever asked. I read the front cover, then back cover, then few pages here and there. Then, I got hooked. I read chapter 1 meaning to go to bed after that. Then, chapter 2, 3, ….. I stayed up all night reading it. The next morning, I called in sick so that I could finish the rest of book.

As I was reading the words, it activated my imagination. I could vividly visualize what’s happening. I could imagine each character as a real person. I could feel the character’s personality. I heard Jessica already has an offer to make the books into a TV series. I can’t wait to watch and compare with my imagination version. It is magical when words create a real world in our head. That’s power of word and joy of reading. No, I am not going to tell you what the story is about. You have to get your copy and find out. You can order Mitford Murders online: hardcover, kindle and audible versions.

I also learned that I should be careful about stereotyping. One can be a charming lady, an interesting person, and even an amazing writer. I am looking forward to her next book.