Q Solicitors

Remember the hilarious and clever Abbott & Costello sketch whereby Bud Abbott tries to explain to Lou Costello the names and positions of the players on a baseball team?

It's one of their most famous sketches and holds a position in the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Not familiar with it?  Then click here for the transcript or here for the YouTube vision.

This sketch is a clever play on words, however, also serves to demonstrate how easy it is to become confused with names and relationships when the person you are speaking to cannot keep up.  For this very reason, we encourage our clients to consider the full extent of their family tree and relationships when making their Will.

An example of this is to imagine that you are about to make your Will, you have been married and divorced twice, but are now in a de facto relationship.  In the first marriage there were two children, in the second, your partner had a child, and in the third relationship your new partner also has a child.  Can you see where we are going with this?

Some or all of these children, will or may have children in the future.  How will you fairly provide for all of these beneficiaries?

Just to confuse the matter a little further (and why not), you have also brought up your widowed brother's two children, who are both fully dependent upon you.

How will you explain this to your Solicitor?  Would you be confident in filling in a "Simple Will Kit" without the assistance of a Solicitor, and if so, would you get it right?

Why not draw up a mud map / family tree before seeing your Solicitor.  That way you will ensure that all "bases" are covered, and your intended beneficiaries are provided for.

After all, we'd hate to think "Who" may be left out!

Whilst researching Abbott & Costello's "Who's on First", we came across few quotes from the 1950s which make for pretty funny reading these days.  Read on...

"Do you suppose television will ever reach our part of the country?"

"I never thought I'd see the day all our kitchen appliances would be electric. They are even making electric typewriters now."

"It's too bad things are so tough nowadays. I see where a few married women are having to work to make ends meet."

"It won't be long before young couples are going to have to hire someone to watch their kids so they can both work."

"Marriage doesn't mean a thing anymore, Those Hollywood stars seem to be getting divorced at the drop of a hat."

"I'll tell you one thing. If my kid ever talks back to me, they won't be able to sit down for a week."

"Why in the world would you want to send your daughter to college? Isn't she going to get married? It would be different if she could be a doctor or a lawyer."

"The drive-in restaurant is convenient in nice weather, but I seriously doubt they will ever catch on."

Contributed by Faye Caughey, Kaizen Coaching Queensland

The Australian economy has recently been defined as a "patchwork economy". Some industries are in boom and others are in rapid decline.  Certainly for a large number of Australian businesses, sometimes are more difficult than they were a couple of years ago.

It is still possible for your business to thrive in the ANY economic condition, by sticking to some golden rules. 

First and foremost it is essential to have a clearly defined vision and goals for your business. If you don't know where you're going how are you going to get there?

Start with the end in mind... Set your goals, your personal vision and business vision and learn how to build a great business by having a great plan and taking control of your time..

It has been said that we should spend 20% of our time planning. If that seems excessive, spend a little time calculating how much time it has cost you over the years fixing errors, redoing things, or simply muddling your way around, and 20% will start to look like a small amount of time.

Using sport as an example, teams often train for hours and days before a match.  Swimmers (such as Stephanie Rice) spend days, weeks - and oyears training and working out a plan before they get to "play the game", and as we all know that is over in a minute or two....and they win or lose by a milli-second!

Never underestimate the power of a good plan. If it seems hard at the time to do, then that's just an indication of what would have happened as you were doing it anyway.

Abraham Lincoln said... "Ask me to chop down a tree in 6 hours, and I'd  spend 4 hours sharpening my axe."

So lets start sharpening ..... Develop a plan that is a living breathing document, giving you direction, guidance and a focus even when times are tough!!    Want to know more?  Click here to contact Faye direct. 

Do you have any legal questions you would like to ask?  Perhaps you would like us to discuss a particular topic in our next newsletter.  Let us know how we can help by sending an email to:  enquiries@qsolicitors.com.au

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