In many families, money still is not a typical dinner table discussion, but we think it should be. This is especially true when it comes to affluent parents. And, we hope to change it because one of the most important things you can do is talk to your kids (and your parents) about money.
According to the Spectrem Millionaire Corner, a market research group, only 17% of affluent parents said they would disclose their income or net worth to their kids by the time they turned 18. A nearly equal amount, 18% said they would never disclose these numbers to their kids. 32% of the rich parents surveyed by Spectrem said “it’s none of their business” when asked why they would not talk to their kids about money.
Family Money is Family Business
The financial status of your family and what will happen when you or your parents become incapacitated or die is definitely your business. Whether your parents talk with you about it now, or you figure it all out after they die, your parent’s money has a huge impact on you.
And, of course your money has a huge impact on your kids.
If your parents are not talking to you about finances, it could be because they are afraid that if you know how much money there is, it will make you lazy, unmotivated, or change the course of your life decisions in a negative manner. Maybe you have the same fears of talking about money with your own kids.
Whether you know exactly what there is or not, you have a general sense of your family’s affluence and it’s already impacted your decisions in a myriad of ways. The best way for your family’s money to impact your decisions in a positive manner is to get into open conversation about it all.
Get Into Conversation About Money & Be Worthy of Trust
If you are a child of affluent parents who are not talking to you about money, consider their perspective. Maybe they want to know they can trust the decisions you will make if you know just how much there is. If you have behaved immaturely with money in the past, that may have caused your parents not to trust you. You can change that now by showing them that you can be responsible and mature with money now.
If you are a parent yourself, you probably already know, or can imagine, that the most important wish you have for your children is that they learn to handle money well, and that you want to influence them in the most positive way possible, when it comes to money. Consider how you would want your children to approach you for these sorts of conversations, and how you can translate that to your parents.
Pass Along More Than Your Money
We all have to learn about our family’s finances eventually. And if that doesn’t happen until after our parents die, it can be a much bigger burden to deal with, and we can lose tremendous opportunities for passing on more than just money.
As an affluent parent, or the child of affluent parents, getting into conversation about money now is a huge opportunity to pass on values, insights, stories and experience that will be lost, if you wait until incapacity or death to start facing the truth together.
Helping you talk to your kids (or your parents) about financial wealth is one of the things we most love to do because we see it as a real opportunity for your family to come together and use your whole family wealth to create more connection from one generation to the next. If we can help you here, either with your kids, or your parents, please be in touch.
Contact us or schedule a Family Wealth Planning Session or an existing estate plan review today.