Description
Beating the Midas Curse describes the failure of traditional estate planning in addressing the needs of families across generations. It examines the role of ‘affluenza,’ a destructive relationship with wealth, as a root cause of traditional planning collapse. It also provides detailed analysis of the power of what has come to be known as The Heritage Process as a tool for keeping families, and their prosperity, intact for years. Plus, it describes the role of philanthropy as a major tool for combating the trans-generational effects of affluenza. The authors of the book have counseled thousands of affluent families, from those with modest wealth to dozens of the wealthiest families in America. Beating the Midas Curse is both timely as well as instructive. Studies show that six out of ten affluent families will lose the family fortune by the end of the second generation. By the end of the third generation, nine out of ten of all affluent families have blown through the family wealth, and many have suffered terrible family strife. In The Heritage Process, families learn through a guided discovery process how to make the values that have sustained and guided them to success the bedrock for their financial and estate planning. This ‘family before fortune’ perspective is a powerful antidote to the grim statistics of family wealth collapse and family disunity. Beating the Midas Curse was written for the families and individuals who will benefit most from values-based planning, and for non-profit organizations who want to help inform their constituents about the power of philanthropy in keeping families healthy and strong. The book is written in a lively, informative, conversational style. Authoritative detail is mixed with historical anecdote and real-world examples, and a targeted bibliography provides opportunity for additional reading. For individuals and families, advisors, non-profit officers and anyone else concerned about the health of the family, Beating the Midas Curse is an important book.
