In a recent article written by Lucy Kellaway in the Financial Review highlighted the reality that many spouses in the late 50’s / early 60’s obtain a new lease of life and the more motivating the latter stages of their career compared to other people if they have just gone through a divorce. Kellaway makes a good point. There is nothing like a crisis to bring out the best in people and being faced with a sudden and late decline in your wealth would motivate most of us.
The article is also interesting because it relays a story by a hedge fund manager where he stops employees trading when they are going through a divorce because the emotional turmoil renders them too unpredictable to be trusted with anyone else’s money.
It is true that turmoil and loss of wealth are inevitable, the consequences of most divorces.
However, it doesn’t always have to be as bad as it looks or as bad as it was for someone else. Here are some simple tips to help you get through a divorce as unscathed as possible:-
- Don’t ever litigate in Court – even if you are emotionally distraught and upset at the relationship demise make one strong promise to yourself – that is, under no circumstances litigate in Court;
- Find a smart and Accredited Specialist in Family Law who shares the same philosophy of not litigating in Court;
- Work towards a quick and fair mediated settlement and let your Lawyer take any method they think is best to resolve your matter (without going to Court) and that suits the particular circumstances of your case;
- Stand apart from yourself and be prepared to compromise financially and commercially – think about what you can achieve in the future rather than what you are giving up now; and
- Don’t get caught up and obsessed about the “rats and mice” – little things really don’t matter in the long run. It doesn’t matter if you don’t get to keep your favourite chair or your fishing equipment – get over it quickly so you can get on with life and buy yourself something new.
