Full Transcript

• Introduce yourself.
• Hello, I'm Kate Hufnagel, the founder and CEO of The Digital Wrangler. As a business succession and legacy organizer, speaker and coach, I help individuals and small business owners do the important work that, quite frankly, no one likes to think about. After a mind-blowing 25 year career in big tech, most of which was in the national security arena, I founded my business in 2021 to put all my know-how, experience and lessons learned to work to help make things easier for those left behind when the inevitable or, heaven forbid, the unthinkable happens. I'm now on a mission to make it hip and fun for everyone to have their important life and business details organized, ultimately making it easier for loved ones and business successors when we're not around or able to help them. I love educating people on how our high-tech world actually makes things more complicated when it comes to this traditionally taboo topic. And I've spoken to a variety of diverse audiences on this topic. And because I want to make my important work as accessible as possible, I work with clients one-on-one, in small group, virtual settings and through digital courses. I'm also a bonus mom of two adults. I'm passionate about financial literacy and I'm on a lifelong quest to find the best donut in the world.
• Tell us what you do.
• Fundamentally speaking, I'm a professional organizer who focuses on helping people organize all their important life information. I created my first will in my late twenties, after I started making six figures. And in hindsight, quite frankly, I should have created it when I turned 18. After all, because of HIPAA, I should have designated someone to make medical decisions on my behalf. And an estate plan would have helped reduce the chances that my family would be responsible for any of my debt, like my apartment lease or student loans. And unfortunately, in today's digital age, having an estate plan is no longer sufficient. When we think about our lives today, almost every aspect has a digital component. We have our devices, email and streaming accounts and online accounts to access things like our medical information and insurance policies. Throughout the year, I host free webinars and make guest appearances on podcasts to share stories about why it's important for everyone to have their important life details organized. For instance, when it comes to our Facebook accounts, did you know that the only way Facebook will give a loved one access to your account is if you designate a legacy contact? Being married isn't sufficient for Facebook to grant access, all because of the terms of service agreement we consented to when we created that account. And should you want to pursue legal action to be granted access to a loved one's digital account, litigation attorneys tell me it can cost up to $10,000 for each account and can take 3 to 6 months. None of this makes it easier for loved ones left behind who are already struggling, navigating their loss and grief. The individuals I help understand that our high-tech world provides us with a lot of conveniences, and it has the potential to dramatically make things more difficult for their loved ones. They don't want their legacy to be one where their loved ones are burdened financially or emotionally, needlessly. They want to make things as easy as possible for their loved ones during an otherwise difficult time. And that's what fuels me. The individuals I work with are the most loving people out there and deeply care about their loved ones.
• Tell us about your signature talk.
• My signature talk is actually a 3- to 4-hour interactive workshop and is typically geared toward small business owners. Our lives today are reliant on technology, right from online banking and binge-watching our favorite series to electric cars and following the latest social media trends, our world today is a digital one. And as business owners, our businesses wouldn't flourish without technology. We rely on it to host our websites, communicate with clients, track our financials and so much more. I encourage the audience to think about what might happen to all their personal stuff, when, as my dad would say, they get hit by the ice cream truck. And also what happens to their business. In my flagship workshop, I utilize two exercises to quickly gain insight into the group. What responsibilities do they have in their personal life, and what are their interests and passions? I then educate the participants on why it's vital to consider organizing their important life details, and I tailor that information based on what I've learned about them. Through storytelling, I explain the complexities associated with modern-day estates and how technology has the power to make things more challenging for their loved ones. After learning what digital assets are and how the law treats them when someone passes away or becomes incapacitated, I then guide the participants to take real-time action so they can start organizing their important life details right there on the spot. And in the last part of the workshop, I shift the focus to their business, and I facilitate activities so they can discover what additional considerations they need to think about.