Wealthy patrons and admirers have been collecting art for millennia. The ancient Greeks and Romans eagerly collected not only art from contemporary artists, but also statues and paintings from even more ancient cultures. The motivations for collecting range from wanting to protect and preserve important cultural artifacts, to appreciating aesthetic beauty for its own sake. […]
Insights
Decision-Making for the Rising Gen
“… discover for yourself what is necessary and what is superfluous.” (Seneca, Ep. 110) “90 percent of success is not getting distracted.” — Shane Parrish Superfluous (adjective) su̇-ˈpər-flü-əs : exceeding what is sufficient or necessary : EXTRA At a Glance One of the keys to happiness and productivity is learning how to prioritize. In the internet age this is more difficult than […]
Building Resilience
Everyone faces some kind of adversity on life’s path. Building resilience is a way to build a higher chance of success. Resilient individuals (including entrepreneurs, athletes, and musicians) all share an ability to effectively cope when they face those setbacks and move forward. They use failure as a feedback mechanism to get better and keep […]
Managing Family Disputes
Successful families often have many family members with strong opinions. Their success has come from sticking to ideas, intuitions, principles, and processes, often in the face of opposition. However, there may come a time when this tendency may also lead into a seemingly intractable disagreement among family members. Ideally the family is resilient enough to […]
How to Evaluate an Advisor
There are many excellent advisors in the Family Wealth Industry. We have been honored to compete or collaborate with many of them in providing excellent services to client families. We also have received clients who previously had subpar advisors. Their estate plan revealed poorly drafted trusts and sub-par legal planning. How does a family know […]
How to Ask the Right Questions
Questions Build Rapport Meaningful relationships with others are an important ingredient of success and happiness in life. Knowing how to ask the right questions can help build meaningful relationships. It’s rare when great achievements come about solely because of independent intelligence or efforts. Relationships are the foundation of what James Hughes has called “social capital”—one […]
Family Office Best Practices for Governance & Growth
A New Era of Wealth For many decades, family offices were private and unique to each family served. In the era of Wealth 3.0, we are seeing a broadening of services, an expanding professionalism, and proliferation of options for High-Net-Worth and Ultra-High-Net-Worth families. Best practices for family offices have emerged. These 4 family office best […]
The Family’s Spiritual Capital
Two and a half thousand years ago, Solon, the Athenian wise man and lawgiver, visited the wealthiest king of his time, Croesus of Lydia (now Turkey). 1 This is the same Croesus from whom we get the expression “rich as Croesus.” Croesus showed off his fantastic wealth to Solon, and then asked him, “Who is the most […]
How to Choose an Estate Planning Attorney
Choosing an estate planning attorney for your revocable living trust is a significant decision that will impact you and your heirs. Everyone agrees on the need for a competent estate planning attorney, but how do you determine who is right for you? This article explores what to look for in an attorney’s education, experience, teamwork […]
The Wyoming Qualified Spendthrift Trust
The Wyoming Qualified Spendthrift Trust (QST) is a kind of domestic asset protection trust. Asset protection trusts can often benefit high-net-worth individuals. However, they are especially beneficial for professional practitioners such as physicians and attorneys, who are often exposed to personal liability in the provision of their services. Not many states provide favorable asset protection […]