© 2022 by James E. Hughes, Susan E. Massenzio, and Keith Whitaker. All rights reserved.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
ISBN: 9781119820031 (hardback),
ISBN: 9781119820048 (epub),
ISBN: 9781119820055 (ePDF)
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To my father, James E. Hughes, Sr., an extraordinary adviser to families and the wisest man I know;
to my mother, Elizabeth Sophie Buermann Hughes, who first taught me about family and who keeps creating family;
to my professional partner Anne D'Andrea, who after 32 years still keeps me sane and helping and for whose help I am beyond grateful;
and to my partner in life and learning, Jacqueline Merrill, who put her arm through mine.
James E. Hughes
To my mother, Viola, for giving me a vision of what a complete life, well spent, is. Thank you.
Susan E. Mazzenzio
To my family, my friends, and my loving partner—my complete wealth.
Keith Whitaker
What is very easy? To advise another.
What is very hard? To know yourself.
Thales, the first philosopher
Preface to the Second Edition
This new edition of Complete Family Wealth contains a number of noteworthy changes.
We have updated the first chapter's discussion of qualitative capital to reflect the latest thinking in the field, which distinguishes among five types of non-financial wealth: human, legacy, family relationship, structural, and social. We have also included in this chapter our thoughts on ways that families can invest in this most important form of capital and measure the impact of their investment.
Upon much reflection and discussion with beneficiaries, we have included a new chapter on the subject of “The Big Reveal,” the moment when recipients are supposedly introduced to their present or future financial wealth. This moment looms very large in the minds of parents, but in practice it is what happens next—the flight, fight, freeze, or flourishing—that makes all the difference. We offer recommendations on how to increase the likelihood of the lattermost of those possibilities.
Among other additions, because it comes up so often, we have included a chapter on preserving a beloved family vacation home, and we have added two appendices: one detailing a “Fiduciary Course Curriculum,” for families who wish to enhance the learning (and living) of their trustees and beneficiaries, and a second that discusses “Key Practices for Families During Challenging Times,” which sprang from our work with families during the pandemic but whose lessons apply to any sorts of challenges that families may face.
Finally, perhaps the biggest change to this edition is also the smallest: the inclusion of the word “well-being” on the title-page and at strategic points in the text. We have long believed in the importance of learning from the etymology of the word “wealth,” which derives from “weal,” with the original meaning of “well-being.” Our decades of experience helping families have convinced us that perhaps the most beneficial step a family can take is to shift their understanding of wealth from finances to well-being—all else that we write about, speak about, and do stems from this reorientation in consciousness.
Preface to the First Edition
This book culls the essence of our prior books: Family Wealth (1997 and 2004), Family: The Compact Among Generations (2007), Cycle of the Gift (2014), Voice of the Rising Generation (2015), and Family Trusts (2016). It also captures insights that we have shared in dozens of articles, white papers, and blog posts, as well as in presentations to hundreds of audiences. We deeply appreciate all that we have learned from our many reviewers, our respondents, and the participants in these events.
Each chapter of Complete Family Wealth connects to others through themes and concepts; each can also be read on its own. Please feel free to pick and choose among them, based on the topics of greatest importance to you and your family.
In Complete Family Wealth, we have sought to present enduring ideas and practices. These are the insights and the activities
