Article: Heather Parker from FAIRLADY

When Rabbit said, "Honey or condensed milk with your bread?" he [Winnie the Pooh] was so excited that he said, "Both," and then, so as not to seem greedy, he added, "But don't bother about the bread, please."

If you're the grab-life-with-both-hands, pack-as-much-in-as-possible sort of person then, like Pooh, you may not really understand the need to choose between two thrilling alternatives.

Career or children? Both. Comfort or glamour? Both. But the 'bread' that we're declining in order to avoid seeming greedy, is sadly the bit that holds it all together, the bit that keeps you from getting into a mess.

It's called administration, and if there is a woman in the world who’s perpetually on top of her domestic admin, I'll eat my Pooh books.

It matters, because if you die and your personal affairs are all over the place, the people who'll be grieving will have all the stress of trying to track down your investment certificates, bank details, insurance policies.

It matters, because if your bag is stolen, and you have no record of your cellphone details, or store card details, you'll be scrabbling around for hours trying to get to the helplines before the thief spends all your money.

It matters, because the schlep of trying to dig up all our personal details is so onerous that we're prepared to stick with unsatisfactory insurance houses and banks.

What to do?
It'll take a fewhours, but the whole process is so much less painful if you have a comprehensive checklist. So get a life book (order one online from www.getorganised.co.za for R320 all inclusive), or check out other excellent online options.

The best I've found is www.yourlifelegacy.co.za, which allows you to download all the modules – personal financial details, your estate, your home and your health – for R135.

They also toss in something called a ‘baby file’, which allows you to start the record-keeping for each of your children.

And, for an annual fee, Your Life Legacy also has a 'web vault' for storage of key information and documents, which is secure but accessible online any time, wherever you are in the world.

You could, on the other hand, simply buy a notebook, or establish a file on your computer. Include all the essential details anyone might possibly need in order to sort out your life if you were suddenly not in it (see box).

Include copies of key documents, and – when you're going abroad – scan in the pages on which visas appear, and the documentation supporting your travel money.

If you're doing it electronically, make a print-out, or copy the file to someone in a different physical location. Either way, let everyone know where or with whom you've lodged your life file, physical or electronic.

And ensure that you update it regularly. We know it's a bore, but there is that little glow of satisfaction that follows a job well done – you're entitled to honey and condensed milk.

Essential information