Welcome to the very first episode of The Death Readiness Podcast! In this debut, host Jill Mastroianni—an experienced attorney and death readiness advocate—dives into what it truly means to be prepared for the inevitable.
This episode covers:
This isn’t about fear—it’s about empowerment, clarity, and leaving a legacy of love and support. Jill explains how small, manageable steps can make a world of difference and offers insights into what you can expect in future episodes.
Actionable Takeaway: Don’t wait! Take your first step toward readiness by setting up your Medical ID or downloading Jill’s free emergency medical information form.
Let’s normalize the conversation around death, reduce fear, and make life better for ourselves and those we love.
Don’t forget to follow for free on Apple podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you're listening right now.
Emergency Medical Information Form
The Death Readiness Podcast
Episode: 1
Title: Death Readiness: Small Steps, Big Impact
Host: Jill Mastroianni (Solo)
Published: January 10, 2025
Jill Mastroianni: I'm Jill Mastroianni, and I'm thrilled that you're here for the very first episode of The Death Readiness Podcast. On this podcast, I'll be focusing on practical, down-to-earth guidance that helps demystify estate and end-of-life planning. My goal is to make tough conversations less intimidating, decisions more straightforward and complex information much easier to understand. You don't need a law degree, and you don't need a financial background to follow along.
First, I'd like to give you a little bit of information about me. I'm an attorney with more than a decade of practical experience in trusts, estates, and tax law. I moved to Nashville and got my law degree from Vanderbilt University. And then I got my master's in tax law from New York University. I am taking everything I've learned, whether it's decoding complex legal documents, working with families through really emotional times, and planning for the future, and I'm turning that into something much more practical, much more human, much more approachable.
What is death readiness? At its core, death readiness is about planning ahead, not just for yourself, but mostly for the people you leave behind. Death readiness is about taking steps right now to ensure that your wishes are respected, to make sure your legacy is preserved, and most of all, to ensure that your loved ones are spared unnecessary stress, confusion, or conflict during what will already be a very challenging time.
Let me be clear. This podcast is not just about legal documents and checklists. Death readiness is also about emotional preparation, communication, and creating a sense of peace for everyone involved. It's about answering some big questions.
And you know what else? Death readiness is not just for people at a certain age or a certain life stage. Whether you're 25, whether you're 85, whether you're single, married, divorced, managing a family or not, death readiness is something that matters for everyone.
Death is life's inevitable destination,
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and having a plan in place, doesn't just help you, it helps the people you care about most.
Death readiness, however, it does not have to be overwhelming. You do not have to do everything perfectly and you do not have to do everything all at once. Death readiness is about taking small steps, manageable steps to prepare for the future. These are steps that you will feel good about.
And that's what this podcast is here for, to guide you through the process, one topic at a time with clarity, compassion, and a little bit of humor too.
So now that you know a little bit about me and why death readiness is so important, I want to try a thought exercise together.
Imagine if you died today, suddenly, without warning. Now, I know this is a big question to tackle right off the bat, but just stay with me, okay?
This is an important exercise that's going to help us grasp the real practical impact of death readiness. Who in your life would be affected? Would it be your spouse, your partner, your kids, your pets, your roommates, your friends, your coworkers? Think about them. How would they be impacted by your sudden absence? How would their day-to-day life unfold tomorrow? I want you to think beyond the grief.
Think about the practical details, the everyday decisions, the routines suddenly interrupted. To bring this idea to life, I'm going to walk you through two very different scenarios of my own if I died today.
First, let's imagine that I'm like 70 % of Americans and I have no plans in place related to my death. Then let's shift gears and I'll show you what it might look like if I approached my own death with the kind of death readiness I talk about here on the podcast.
And for both of these scenarios, I'm going to focus on the effect on my husband. So here's the first scenario in which we have not had any discussions. We've done no preparations for death. I leave behind my husband, who has suddenly become a single parent to our 13-year-old daughter, and he's trying to pick up the pieces. He might get a few days off from work.
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He might then return sitting at his desk, still really very much reeling from loss, but he's going to have to pretend that he's ready to move on. With my absence, there's an immediate income gap. It would put our household under financial strain. He would scramble to understand the state of our, my, his finances. Maybe he never had any reason to know the details.
Where I have life insurance policies, if I have life insurance. Was I saving for retirement? Where? How are they managed? Did I name him as the beneficiary of any of these policies or accounts? How did I pay the utilities each month? There were so many things that I handled quietly, as does he, that we all take for granted because we're just so busy.
But without warning, he might find himself sifting through old emails, trying to remember, did I ever leave him instructions? He'll be searching for file folders, he'll be calling banks, HR departments, trying to piece together the puzzle of how it all fits together. Maybe he doesn't even know if I had a will. If I had one, where is it?
The sudden burden of responsibility, all of this would be crashing down on him at the worst possible time, hitting him almost like another wave of grief. And in the midst of all this, my daughter, she would be looking to him. She'd be looking to him for comfort. She would need him to be so very present emotionally, physically, and that's gonna be so hard for him if he's trying to figure out where things stand, financially, legally.
And then he'd have our three dogs, who, they were all of my idea to get. And I'm the one who walks them every day. I'm the one who manages their vet appointments. Now that daily exercise, that daily care, it's all gonna fall squarely on him. Just one more thing as he sorts through that endless list of things that I once handled so seamlessly. And then...
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There are the funeral arrangements, the phone calls and messages, a thousand small decisions that follow a sudden death. So with all of that happening, am I to expect him to figure out the maze of my possessions and my financial records alone in this emotionally fraught state? Is it fair that he suddenly has to know where everything is and how it all works without having had a single conversation with me? I don't think so.
Now for the second scenario. The second scenario is one in which my husband and I, we embrace the concept of death readiness. And we took the time not only to talk through these details, but also to execute the relevant documents, clearly document accounts, assets, passwords. Instead of scrambling to find all of these things, he would know exactly how to access my life insurance, easing that immediate financial pressure from my loss of income.
That would enable him to take a little more time away from work, giving both him and our daughter the proper emotional space to mourn. And rather than wrestling with confusion and uncertainty, he'd already have that list of accounts, contact names, phone numbers, login information.
He'd know who to call at my job. He'd know how to pay those utility bills. And he would know exactly where I kept important documents. And because I've done all that preparation, friends and family, they can offer help a lot more easily. So instead of scrambling to figure things out, my husband can hand over a clear plan. Friends and family can...
step in and handle specific tasks without extra guesswork or stress. And bringing in these family and friends and allowing them to really contribute to this process would free up my husband to be more fully present for our daughter, whether they're cooking dinner together, taking the dogs for a walk, or just carving out space for meaningful conversations, playing the ukulele, playing the guitar.
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All of those things, rather than being tied down by all of this paperwork and unanswered questions. In this reality, my husband isn't going to have to spend evenings sifting through file cabinets or on hold with customer service. By removing the burden of all this logistical guesswork, I would be giving my husband back the opportunity to be present for our daughter, for him to offer stability, reassurance, and nurturing, during a time when they most need it.
And like I said before, death readiness is not going to erase the grief, but it would replace that administrative overwhelm that often comes with death with a much gentler experience of loss. One where he and my daughter could heal together without having this jumble of unanswered questions.
And in this version of events, my husband, my daughter, and I would even say our charmingly eccentric dogs, they could move forward at a steadier pace where they have more time and emotional energy to honor my memory and to care for each other. By making death readiness a priority for me, I would be leaving behind more than just the memories. My legacy would be a legacy of love and support that lasts well beyond my time here on earth.
All right, let's get back to reality. Most people have not done any planning. With this podcast, we are moving forward. There is no shame, there is no judgment, just grace for ourselves and for each other. We're taking simple, understandable steps, one at a time. So with that in mind, before I wrap up, I wanna leave every one of you with something practical because this podcast is not just about big ideas.
It is about real actionable steps that you can take. If you have an iPhone, I suggest that you take a moment to set up the medical ID feature. If you're not sure where to start, then I've got you covered. Just head over to my website where I've posted a step-by-step tutorial. I'll leave a link in the show notes for you as well.
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While this podcast focuses on death readiness, it is very important to ensure that you receive proper and effective medical care while you are still very much alive. I've also created, for those of you who don't have an iPhone or in addition to the medical ID on your iPhone, I've created a free download for you that you can also find on my website. Again, the link is in the show notes. This download is a simple fill-in-the-blank guide that you can hand off to your emergency contact.
So if you ever have an emergency, they'll have all the key details right at their fingertips. It's also great to keep on hand for doctors’ visits so you're never scrambling to remember important information, like which medications you're taking or what's the dosage. Think of it as a handy cheat sheet and it'll help you get the care you need exactly when you need it. Also, don't forget, if you are listed as someone else's emergency contact, your spouse, your parent, your adult child, please have that person fill out one of these sheets for you, too.
It works both ways and it helps make sure everyone has the info they need when they need it. Emergencies can occur at any time and having your critical medical details readily available is extremely important. Death is going to come when it comes. But until then, let's do what we can to live well and stay safe.
Now that you know a little bit about me and the idea of death readiness and you have your practical action items, let's talk about what you can expect from this podcast moving forward. In future episodes, we're going to dive into everything from practical steps, and yes, we are going to talk about organizing your documents and accounts, understanding wills, trust, powers of attorney, and final wishes, to exploring ways to preserve your legacy and have open, honest conversations with your loved ones about mortality.
This podcast is about empowering you. We are going to normalize talking about death. We are going to reduce fear, lessen confusion for those we love, and ultimately enrich the life we still have. This is not about making you feel like you need to do everything perfectly. We are going to give you tools, we're going to give you resources, and we're going to give you ideas to make your own plan
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in a way that feels right for you. Let's get real, let's get prepared, and let's get comfortable with the inevitable. My hope is that this podcast becomes a resource you can turn to again and again.
April: Hi, I'm April, Jill's daughter. Thanks for listening to The Death Readiness Podcast. My mom always says that death readiness isn't just about planning, it's about the people you leave behind and the legacy you create for them. We hope today's episode helps you think about how to take care of yourself and your loved ones, now and in the future. If you liked what you heard today, share this episode with someone you care about. Follow our show for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you're listening right now.