From the grocery store to your online shopping cart, to borrowing money for a new car or home, often there are every-day experiences that offer an entrée to engage the interest of offspring to 1) the cost of capital, 2) the value of an incidental, 3) the understanding if this is a short- or long-term need versus want. Engage family where they are and help them see how daily lifestyle hurdles help them connect to topics such as financial planning, lifestyle management, investing, and more. Parle this into opportunities to get more skills and knowledge on a topic.

We all have dreams of different professional aspirations. For those attempting to discover what that first or next career might be, find out how much (generally) the salary or compensation is for their career choice. Now work backwards from the salary, withdrawing various expenses such as rent/mortgage, insurance, utilities, phone, internet, water/sewar, cable, supplies, maintenance, HOA, car, parking, fuel, groceries, childcare, cleaning, dining out, etc. How much is left? If you want to have your children lean into budgeting, help them show how much is left and where it all goes.

Sometimes the greatest entrée to a topic is to find a film like Knives Out or Good Will Hunting that provides a compelling, interesting, and engaging story line but also brings up really important topics such as estate planning, wills, guardianship, managing heirs, family dynamics, and more.  Create buy-in for the importance of getting educated on how estate planning, trusts, tax and wealth transfer planning from films and segue to what is next for learning goals for your family.

Consider hosting a kickoff discussion on how and why education is a priority value in your family. Invite family to weigh in on what they need help with, what learning approaches may resonate and collective family learning goals to encourage their buy-in.

Creating buy-in requires thinking creatively about what family members want out of the education. Is it a certificate or designation demonstrating they achieved a certain level of mastery? Is it a seat on a committee, council, or junior board? Does it make them eligible to take a role in the family office or business? Utilizing education as a stepping-stone to broader goals can help families build interest and engagement. Now to outline the timing, ultimate learning objectives, and opportunities to check-in while learning virtually, will help build consensus among the family.

There are life events that often present a call to action for education. From a birth and marriage to an illness or divorce, consider how life’s triggering events are also a call to action to enfranchise owners to get up to speed on the role of a will, power of a pre-nup, or consequence of not having a living will? Creating a call to action to get started now by preparing in advance not only for the good times in life but also for those that may be difficult. Help beneficiaries understand that learning under duress, such as from a death in the family, a divorce, or a major market decline, can create unnecessary anxiety that you can help them avoid.