WILEY The Voice of the Rising Generation – Family Wealth and Wisdom

Me parece oportuna la forma en que se trata el tema de la “Next generation” en empresas familiares y verla como “rising generation”, pues analiza el tema desde la perspectiva de los receptores de la riqueza y legado, no de los creadores.

There are many books written that have been written for members of the “current generation” or for advisors to families of wealth, but the Voice of the Rising Generation is one of the few that has been written primarily to be read by members of the “Rising Generation” (note not “Next Generation” ). The Voice of the Rising Generation provides a road map for readers to (i) understand the challenges of growing up in the shadow of great financial capital; (ii) to start the life long journey to self-knowledge and then (iii) to develop resilience through their work, in their relationships and in their communication. The key to overcoming the shirt sleeves to shirt sleeves proverb is for each member of the family after the heroic founder to know themselves, to know their own dreams, to build up their own resilience and to individuate, and when they have made progress on these tasks, then – and only then - to integrate the financial capital of the family into their own lives. The Voice of the Rising Generations has been written primarily for families where there is no economic necessity to work and primarily for family members who are in the range of 20-40 years of age. There is however one chapter specifically written for those who are in the mid-life transition, who face special challenges. The Voice of the Rising Generation also contains useful thoughts on how parents in UHNW families can help their own children to “Rise”. It provides a list of questions for parents to reflect on. The core question is whether your children are “rising”? The term “rising” is not related to age, nor is it related to their relationship to the heroic founder; rather it is an attitude or state of mind. To answer this consider (i) do your children have a sense of growth, possibility, and hope? (ii) do they have a strong sense of futurity – their direction is forward not backwards? (iii) do they have a desire to struggle or explore?, and (iv) do they have a desire for connection with other like-minded people? Another core question for parents is whether they are able to discern the vocation or calling of each of their own children? It is very common in Asia for private banks to offer financial training boot camps for the young adult children of their clients. The authors of Voice of the Rising Generation do recommend that parents should considered what they can do to promote their child’s learning or training. However the authors caution that sending them to boot camps to learn about finances and investing may not be help them with the learning they need to do to Rise. Their learning task is not about how to manage money and finances but to learn about themselves. Parents have a role in helping their children to Rise, as do the young adults themselves. However parents should also reflect on who else there is to give a hand. Do they have elders to help them through the transitions of life? Do they have mentors? Are there other family members who can provide models of Rising and Individuation, who have found their own Voice? The Voice of the Rising Generation concludes with suggestions for how to organize a family meeting to put the lessons from the book into practice. Providing a very specific road map for helping to develop family human capital this book is a unique and essential addition to the family office library.

What a wonderful book. Finally a guide on how to help the 20 and 30 somethings find there own path without getting in the way. Real world examples on how to help our children reach their "own" success. Thoughtful and obviously written with experience. Many times I felt I was reading about my own family!

James Hughes is the "gold standard" when it comes to inter-generational wealth and values transfer. He is not preachy but practical and has lots of experience. Highly recommend.

Purchased for my boss