BIZ Online NGLCC

When the BIZ editors asked me to write a column about financial, business and estate planning, I immediately thought of a dozen good ideas to share. But, frankly, I figured in this first column I would address the one issue that above all else is the single biggest impediment to your financial success. Simply stated, it's getting started.

Do you operate your business and personal finances with a plan? Do you have regular accountability meetings with a coach or with your staff? Do you float aimlessly hoping to reach your destination at some point? Or, do you work on your business instead of working in your business?

Of course, I've heard all the excuses for not doing proper planning—too costly, too scary, too much work, too busy with the business, blah blah blah.

But those excuses will only carry you so far. There are consequences to not planning, some severe. For most a laissez-faire approach just costs money; for others it can translate into legal battles and family feuds.

My business partner and I chose to specialize in LGBT estate, financial and business planning for a reason. In many jurisdictions, LGBT families face a very real threat to the faithful execution of our financial and estate plans. When there's a successful business at stake and hostile biological relatives at the door, failing to plan could be disastrous, particularly if you have a life partner you want to provide for after you're gone.

How you've legally structured your property, your investment accounts and your business may have a significant impact on the amount you leave your partner, or your partner leaves you.

Issues surrounding wealth management and business succession only magnify when a successful business is in the mix. You need to be thinking about your economic future and, ultimately, the best way to leave your assets to the family you choose. This may not be your family of birth, which federal and state laws generally recognize as primary beneficiaries of your assets absent proper planning.

Having started and sold my first business in college, I understand the challenges we face—growing a business, dealing with employees, getting the bills paid. After consulting with Fortune 500 companies, I opened my own planning practice with a business partner. As president of PEN, Washington, D.C.'s LGBT chamber of commerce, I work with many businesses, some likely similar to yours.

So I get it. You are too busy. After all, financial planning falls into the category of "important but not urgent," and it's often pushed aside.

Proper planning is the single most important step you can take to reach your goals. When done properly, you and your business begin to align with those financial goals. And, ultimately you do better making more money and creating a lifetime of flexibility.

None of that will happen, of course, if you don't get started!

With this column, we will explore the issues we face as LGBT business owners. We will take the mystery out of financial, estate and business planning.

To do that, I'll need your help. Email us with your questions and suggestions. I want to know what keeps you awake at night. If you have a success story, share it. Just as important, let us know where you've failed, as I will share my failures with you.

We will use this space to find tangible business and personal financial solutions for everyone, providing new opportunities for wealth creation, giving you some peace of mind and guaranteeing that you are taking care of the most important person in your life: you.

So let's get started!

They are also the featured financial and money columnists in The Advocate magazine and The Washington Blade. They recently collaborated with the Human Rights Campaign on a new initiative, titled "7 Days to a Better Financial You."

Joe is president of PEN – Metro DC's LGBT Chamber of Commerce and is a frequent guest lecturer.

You can email Joe Kapp at joseph.kapp@LFG.com