This week Wendy and Jodi introduce Susie and Mark, a composite couple built from the business owners they work with every day. Susie is 48 and the sole owner of a six-person consulting firm. Mark has never been involved in the business. Their wills are 16 years old and predate the company. Neither has a power of attorney, and Susie is starting to care for a parent with early-stage dementia. Then the hosts ask the question Susie heard at a seminar: if something happened to her tomorrow, what would happen to the business?

From there they work through the myths that sound reasonable until someone dies. “Everything goes to my spouse” covers some tax deferral, but it doesn’t give Mark the knowledge or authority to run, sell, or wind down a company he’s never seen the inside of. “I have enough life insurance” often ignores lifestyle replacement, grieving time, and business debts that were personally guaranteed. Wendy explains why a TFSA should name a successor holder rather than a beneficiary, and shares a Nova Scotia case where an outdated RSP beneficiary kept the money while the estate paid the tax.

They also unpack why a family trust is a tool, not a solution, and why splitting assets 50/50 between kids can be anything but equal once capital gains enter the picture. Other topics include the hidden cost of DIY, template, and AI-built wills, and how a shareholders’ agreement can conflict with a will. The hosts close on the myth that ties the rest together: a plan is never one-and-done, and documents nobody knows about can’t protect anyone.