In a previous post we discussed the isolation, guilt and identity crises that often accompany sudden wealth. Dealing with these issues requires temperance and a commitment to learning new financial skills and navigating an unfamiliar social space.  Whatever you are going through, know this: the effects of sudden wealth can be even more profound for your children.   Like you, they may find themselves caught between their old world and the new, and fitting into neither. For example, they may be excited about their fortuitous change in circumstances but unable to share this with their old peer group for fear of seeming like a braggart. At the same time, they may feel like a fish out of water in their new environment, with its different culture, language and rules. Here are some ways in which you can help ease…

As a seasoned financial advisor, you know your work is about so much more than monitoring the stock market. It all starts with that first meeting with the client – you don’t just ask for information in dollars and cents, but details about their work, the intricacies of their family dynamics, and their vision for their legacy. As you get to know them and their unique situation, you realize that in addition to offering your financial knowledge you are also serving as therapist, confidante, and fortune-teller, helping them navigate present and future challenges and holding them accountable for their decisions. This multifaceted relationship is what makes it possible for you to create a holistic estate plan that reflects their priorities and protects them from everything from tax burdens to the dissolutions of partnerships. As time goes on, however, you…

Becoming a Hollywood movie star.  Amassing great wealth.  Most of us have daydreamed about both at one point or another about financial windfall. But while the downside of fame is well-documented in tragic celebrity stories, very few people realize how unexpected wealth can completely upend their lives.  In fact, according to the  National Endowment for Financial Education, seventy percent of people who suddenly come into a large sum of money will declare bankruptcy within a few years. Many also suffer from “Sudden Wealth Syndrome,” which includes a host of symptoms including depression, anxiety, paranoia and substance abuse.   Managing money is like any other skill: you have to acquire not only theoretical knowledge but the practical tools to apply it. It doesn’t matter if it comes from financial windfall like an inheritance, a winning lottery ticket or a business…