A guest blog by Dr. Julie A. Morton.
Provocative new research at the University of California, Berkley, suggests that those of means ARE different from their more humble brethren, and NOT in ways that would make one proud. According to studies conducted by social psychologist Paul Piff and his university colleagues, wealthy individuals are more likely to LIE, to CHEAT and to STEAL then their less fortunate counterparts. They are even more likely to do things as mundane as cutting off other drivers and refusing to wait for pedestrians at crosswalks.
The research points to a number of reasons, but three stand out: [read more >>]
On vacation with my family last week in Los Angeles, we couldn’t help but get caught up in the Oscar mania that surrounded us. As we drove through the streets of Beverley Hills, and walked the famed Rodeo Drive, we were struck by the irony and the contrasts: California, the near bankrupt state, bloated with debt, yet opulence everywhere you turn. Every car seems new and everyone is in a hurry to get to where they can be seen wearing the latest fashions.
My partner, Kelly Willis, wrote a poignant post last week about the loss of her husband and the estate challenges she found in her path, all during a time she struggled with her bereavement. As a private client lawyer with many years of estate planning under my belt, I wanted to share some of the more frequent issues and misconceptions I have witnessed in dealing with families who were unprepared or had inadequate estate plans.
My husband passed away a year ago last month. We ought to have been prepared. Two years earlier he had been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer for which there was “little predictive data”. We chose to be optimistic. When he died due to complications from surgery I was shocked and devastated.
I recently had the experience of counselling a long-time client who, despite a very secure financial position, was overcome with anxiety about money. What became clear to both of us after a lengthy and at times emotional discussion was that her anxiety was not about money at all. Rather it was about her obligations to her children, as the sole beneficiary of her late husband’s estate.
Last week, our team met with Julie A. Morton, PHD, a certified mediator, family business coach and change management specialist for high net worth families. Julie is one of only a handful of individuals in North America holding a PHD in Communications with a sub-speciality in Creative Problem Resolution – which is to say she knows a lot about how families can function and communicate more effectively.
