In the event of...

I started a business roughly six months ago. I'm a one-woman show, and that's the way I like it. But it has occurred to me that this might present a problem if anything were to happen that rendered me unable to run my business. I'm 26 so it's unlikely that I'm going to croak in the next ten minutes, but things happen and you just never know.

I looked into making a will, but right now I can't afford anything other than one handwritten on a sheet of notebook paper, and probably less than legally sound. I also don't have too terribly many assets. What's really important, though, are the intangibles: my passwords, where I hid my ATM card or my housekey, that sort of thing. The things that someone would need to know if they suddenly needed to take over or shut down (permanently or temporarily) my business.

So this is my task for myself. I'm going to put together an "In the event of..." package for my family. It'll have a list of my online presences and their accompanying login information, instructions for what to do with my Etsy shop and how to do it, and where to look for help if the instructions I've left are insufficient. I'm thinking that there will actually be two packets, one for if I am temporarily incapacitated, and another for if I am permanently incapacitated or deceased.

For all you other Etsians and small business owners of all kinds, especially if you're the sole member of your company, think about doing this, even if you have a real will. Not only will it help your family or whoever such responsibilities fall to, but think of your customers.

There now, that's a nice cheery topic for the first real post on this blog!