The Big Mistake Families Make with Wealth

Most families obsess over the financial piece.

They hire advisors to manage portfolios, set up trusts to “protect” the wealth, and drill into their kids the importance of being “good stewards” of the money. But that’s like polishing the hubcaps on a car with a busted engine. If your family’s relationships are frayed, if your kids don’t know who they are outside the family fortune, if you’re not connected to a bigger purpose—good luck keeping that money in the family. It’ll either tear you apart or slip away.

A grandmother who was part of a generationally wealthy family said it best: “Our family has always been rich, and we’ve sometimes had money.” That’s the distinction in a nutshell. Qualitative wealth—human, legacy, relationships, structure, social impact—is what makes a family rich. Money just helps you get there.