FOR 2024, RESOLVE TO DIE BETTER WHENEVER

By Shari Haber, Founder, Great Goodbyes LLC

December is the month of lists: grocery lists for festive holiday meals, gift lists for delighting loved ones/friends/business associates and co-workers, and donation lists for bringing some cheer to those less fortunate. 

Toward the very end of December, after all the calories, hugs and celebrations, we typically make one last list—our goals for our New Year’s resolution. 

Setting these goals requires self reflection about what’s most important to us, so we can gift ourselves greater life satisfaction in the year ahead. Achieving them requires intentionality; avoidance and procrastination will set us up for having regrets about our unmet goals at the end of the year.

The same is true when it comes to advance planning for our whenever death. 

We don’t know when we will die, but resolving to advance plan is a good first step toward dying better and with fewer regrets when the time comes. Through 

the lens of our mortality, we can consider what matters most to us in life, and plan how we want to say goodbye. 

These values also guide how we spend our time and complete our life, and can impact our legacy and the way we’re remembered as well. So there’s a lot to think about and lists of options to explore.

End-of-life and after-death care decisions for our goodbye plan are best made when we are not in crisis, and while we have the time and agency to do so. Completing this forward planning will give us peace of mind, and greater appreciation for every sunrise.

Sharing our goodbye plan also is a gift to our loved ones, so their bereavement period isn’t complicated by the stress of decision-making and guessing our wishes while grieving. 

Add advance planning for your goodbye to your New Year’s Resolution for 2024! 

Email me at shari@mygreatgoodbye.com to schedule a free 30-minute consultation to discuss your goals for dying well and living more fully.