Funeral Planning Mistakes to Avoid

There are those of us who love to plan for everything. We plan and map out every little detail of our weddings, growing our families, buying a new home and even our eventual retirement. But, why do so many of us seem to shun the task of planning our funeral? There are many details that will need to be sorted out, and we would not feel right leaving that much weight on the shoulders of our loved ones who are grieving at the time. There are so many reasons that we decide to put off our funeral plans. You may just be the type of person who hates to plan, or you could find the idea of planning your own funeral a little morbid. You may think you have years and years down the road before you have to start planning your own funeral, but you should know that it is never too early to start planning your funeral. When you do happen to pass away, your loved ones will be faced with a multitude of decisions that will need to be made in a short period of time. You couple these hectic decisions with the emotional grieving of your loss, and you could easily find yourself making more than a few mistakes. Here are a couple of the most common mistakes people make when planning their funeral:

• Thinking you have forever to plan your funeral. Many people do not like to be faced with the idea of their own death. This downfall means that many will find themselves putting off planning their funeral until it is too late. You do not want to wait until you have a life-threatening illness to decide that now is the time to plan your funeral. You never know when your time may come, so you need to be prepared as soon as possible. And, you do not want to be in ill health and having to go through making all these time-consuming decisions, especially if you find yourself without much energy. It can seem morbid or frightening to some to plan your funeral before your demise, but it can take a lot of pressure off of your family and ensure your funeral goes the way you want it.

• Not making your funeral plans known. You have to meet with a funeral director or other funeral professionals to let them know the exact details of your funeral plans. There are many details and options that you will have to decide on prior to your funeral, and your funeral director can ensure that everything goes the way you want it. You will also need to discuss these decisions with your friends and family. You will need to let them know about all the details you are planning and whom to get in contact with once you pass away. By letting your family know you have all your funeral plans made and set in stone, they will typically feel as if a weight is being lifted off of their shoulders.

• Never asking questions. Planning your funeral requires many important details and you should treat it and prepare for it as a momentous once in a lifetime event. You want to ensure that you know exactly what you are choosing, what are all the options and is everything being communicated as you think they are. You will have to ask questions to ensure that all of your wishes and requirements will be properly followed. It may be difficult for some of us to voice any concerns or questions, but you should not be afraid. The funeral director and his staff are there to help you every step of the way and will welcome any and all questions you may have.

• Never allow the price of the funeral to become the deciding factor. Of course, many of us have a set budget for our funeral, and we have to stick to it. It is smart to live frugally. However, when you are planning your funeral, you should never make your decisions based solely on the price. Luckily, if you plan early, you can look through many options at various price points and decide which one will fit you best. You will not feel rushed or overly emotional, which will make it easier for you to make well-informed decisions not based solely on price. One of the biggest benefits of pre-planning your funeral is that you can take the time needed to configure a funeral that fits your personality better and still be affordable.

   Preplanning your funeral can be nerve-wracking for some. Most of us do not like having to think about our own deaths and try to avoid anything concerning this. However, there are many benefits to getting a head start on your funeral planning. You will be able to spend the time needed to decide on what you want and inform the funeral director of everything you want or need at your funeral. You can get multiple pricing options and even pay a little or all of it ahead of time. You can take a lot of the stress away from your family and friends by letting them know that they will not be frantically planning your funeral while dealing with your loss. It is a win-win all the way around. So, get out there and start planning and remember to avoid all of the funeral planning mistakes listed above.