Rich
“Eventually all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood, and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs. I am haunted by waters.”
- Norman Maclean
We are in this incredibly invigorating season where all the tools, exercises, processes, and experiences we have curated are finding their greatest purchase. We are not only doing the inevitable pivoting related to the social distancing we are all practicing but translating what we do for different audiences in new ways.
Over the last few years, we have begun helping families of means chart healthier and more inspired futures. Now, we are not financial planners and we can’t help them with crafting trusts or legal structure, but there are essential things that have to occur before you can do those things if you are going to do them well.
This is some of the richest and most rewarding work we do.
Our process, borrowing wildly from what we do with corporate teams consists of several simple (but not easy) steps.
Strengthen relationships among the family members. This the foundation of all foundations required to produce the best results. We help them say the things that they deeply appreciate, but often don’t find the words or the opportunity to share.
Help them reconstruct their family’s history. The narrative of their life story, resting on the foundation of strengthening renewed relationships, holds embedded values, culture, and contains essential learning necessary for marking a path in the future.
We construct a list of criteria for decision making and use them to filter the decisions the families are facing.
With clear decisions made, we help them build an inspired future they can get excited about and find agreement.
We help them build the plan to realize that inspired future.
We conduct interviews with key stakeholders off-line before the meetings begin. We come to the table as trained guides with maybe a deeper understanding of the family’s unique and collective desires than anyone. We make sure the difficult tensions are managed and that the important problems get resolved.
We help these fantastic families do what they could likely never accomplish on their own.
These are the most sensitive relationships in all our lives.
They hold the greatest opportunity for restoration and glory.
They almost never realize that potential.
These conversations with families are requiring us to rely more on our coach training, strategic planning experience, processes, procedures, and organizational health acumen, than any corporate engagement we have.
And it is yielding rich, rich results.
There is a river, a thread, running through the narrative and relationship of every family. It can run in a clearer and ever more glorious direction in the future or it can evaporate into a dry riverbed. We can be forever haunted by what could have been or lean into the opportunity.
It is completely within your power to decide.
Consider
How strong are the relationships with your siblings or extended family?
Are you all clear and committed to the same future?
Do you think you could reasonably take your own family on the journey articulated in the steps above?
Is it time for your family to engage someone else to help?