Summer’s around the corner and for many families that means vacation time. Particularly if your family is one of the five million the Travel Industry Association estimates enjoy vacations with three generations or the one third of summer travelers who attend a family reunion you might consider integrating a family meeting into your plans.
Once a tool for only the ultra-wealthy the family meeting is now used by families of all socio economic levels. In my experience a family meeting held during a vacation is often a very effective way to broach difficult-to-discuss topics such as estate planning. And the experts agree. For example Charles Collier a former senior philanthropic adviser at Harvard University and author of Wealth in Families says involving children in decisions of wealth distribution helps build stronger families. Writes Collier “Family meetings send two wonderful messages: You count and you belong.”
Of course your meeting’s agenda will depend on the age of your children and your interests. In addition to estate planning you might tackle your family values business succession plans or even provide financial education. Families with very young children might begin with topics as basic as allowances and chores.
Keep in mind that if a topic is emotionally charged you might be better off beginning your meeting with a feel-good topic like philanthropy. A positive discussion about charitable giving can break the ice and lay the groundwork for overall improved communication within the family.
Wealth in Families offers plenty of questions to help prepare an agenda:
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Are you the kind of family you want to be?
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What are you teaching your children about money?
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What do you really want to do with your financial wealth?
Collier also offers the following meeting tips:
- Rotate the leadership of the meeting among family members.
- Give everyone input on the agenda.
- Meet at least once a year as an extended family and more often with subset committees.
- Begin by talking about family stories traditions or history before tackling more sensitive issues such as estate planning.
- Hire an outside facilitator for emotionally charged or complex agendas.
Keep in mind too that I’m always available to answer questions provide financial education to your family or serve as moderator.
