My Documents is your secure personal vault for the important papers your family, your caregivers, or your doctors may someday need. A will. An insurance policy. Medical history. A power of attorney.

The point of keeping them here is simple. When someone needs one of these, they usually need it quickly, and usually at a bad moment. Having them in one place means nobody is searching a filing cabinet or calling around.

Once you have added a document, a summary panel at the top shows the state of your vault at a glance:

That last number is the useful one. Most people do not have a list in their head of which papers matter, and Recommended to add is that list, counting down.

You do not have to fill this in one sitting, and an empty vault is not a failing.

If you want one place to begin, begin with whatever a stranger would need in an emergency. That is usually insurance and any document naming who speaks for you. The rest can come later, one afternoon at a time.

Sharing is decided one document at a time. When you add or edit a document, the Share with Your Circle section lets you choose which people in your Circle can open that one file. There is no single switch for all of your documents: the My Documents row under Privacy & Sharing in Settings explains this, and turning it on or off does not change who can see a file.

Two people can see every document in the vault whatever you choose for each file: you, and whoever administers your Circle, your Family Advocate. Everyone else in your Circle sees only the files you have shared with them. Storing a document here does not share it with the rest of your Circle until you choose to.