Read this short thought piece titled Wealth With Intention: Aligning Family Wealth with Values, for Families and their Advisors, published in Talking Trends online magazine on July 7, 2026; also check out this brief video clip.

 

Wealth With Intention: Aligning Family Wealth with Values, for Families and their Advisors

Last updated: July 7, 2026

Quick Answer

Wealth with intention is the concept of aligning a family’s financial decisions, governance, investing, philanthropy, and public presence, with its clearly articulated set of shared values, rather than measuring success only by external markers like career achievement or investment performance.

For families, it starts with a facilitated process to surface individual and shared values and codify them into a usable framework.

For professional advisors, it provides the values-based foundation on which governance, philanthropic, and succession planning should be built, rather than treated as a separate conversation from the financial one.

What “Wealth With Intention” Means

Wealth is typically discussed in terms of assets, structures, and strategies. Families who thrive across generations, and who preserve legacy and identity alongside capital, tend to approach wealth differently. Rather than measuring only external markers, career achievements, philanthropic gifts, investment performance, they use wealth as a tool for living with purpose.

At its core, wealth with intention begins with a deceptively simple question: What are our family’s values? For families of significant wealth, this isn’t a philosophical exercise. It’s the foundation of long-term cohesiveness, clarity, and impact, and it’s the question that should precede, not follow, governance and estate planning.

Step One: Defining Who You Are, Individually and Collectively

Every family has a story, but not every family has articulated it thoughtfully. Wealth with intention requires deliberately exploring identity at two levels: who am I as an individual, and who are we as a family?

In practice, this generally involves a facilitated process, incorporating structured conversations, individual interviews with family members, and guided reflection, designed to surface individual and shared values. The goal is to distill divergent views into a concise, shared set of principles (integrity, stewardship, service, learning, humility, excellence, generosity are common examples), without requiring unanimity on every point.

This process typically clarifies four distinct beliefs:

1. Personal identity: the values that guide each individual family member’s decisions and behavior.
2. Family identity: the shared principles that bind generations and family branches together.
3. Internal culture: the expectations, norms, and traditions that shape daily family life.
4. External presence: how the family wants to be perceived, whether through public visibility or quiet influence. Some families want their name on a building; others prefer to contribute discreetly. Both are valid choices, what matters is that the choice is intentional rather than default.

These values become the benchmark against which every governance, investment, philanthropy, and public-presence decision is measured going forward.

Step Two: Codifying Values into a Usable Framework

Values function as the connective tissue of a family’s legacy. They answer the questions behind the wealth: why do we have these resources, and why were we given these opportunities?

When families take the time to identify shared values, they typically discover the common threads that unite them across branches, generations, and life stages, threads that aren’t visible when the conversation stays focused on assets alone.

Identifying values, however, is only the first step. The next is codification: turning abstract ideas into practical commitments. This can take the form of a family vision, mission, or values statement; a set of governance bylaws; or a full family constitution.

The specific document format matters less than the underlying process, clearly defining roles, responsibilities, and decision rights across generations, and ensuring investment, philanthropic, and governance decisions actually align with what the family says it stands for. The process itself is the real deliverable.

Step Three: Living Intentionally in a World of Abundance

For families with significant resources, the range of available options is nearly unlimited. That abundance can empower a family or overwhelm it. Wealth with intention functions as a filter, helping a family choose opportunities that align with its identity and decline those that don’t.

In practice, intentional living means:

• Using wealth to reinforce personal and collective character, not just fund lifestyle;
• Making decisions based on long-term purpose rather than short-term convenience;
• Treating privilege as a platform for contribution rather than a source of complacency;
• Teaching rising generations not just how to manage wealth, but how to steward it; and
• Using consistent language across family communications that reinforces both internal identity and external presence.

Families of wealth frequently express a desire to “make the world a better place.” Wealth with intention converts that aspiration into a concrete framework for action, deploying financial, social, intellectual, and emotional capital deliberately rather than reactively. Privilege, in this framing, isn’t something to hide or apologize for; it’s something to use wisely, thoughtfully, and generously.

Why This Matters for Professional Advisors

For attorneys, CPAs, and wealth managers, “wealth with intention” isn’t a soft add-on to technical planning, it’s the values framework that governance, estate, and philanthropic structures should be built to serve. A family constitution or philanthropic mission statement drafted without first surfacing the family’s actual shared values tends to produce documents that look good on paper but don’t hold up under real family pressure. Advisors who help clients do the values work first, then align governance and planning documents to it, produce more durable outcomes than those who treat structure and identity as separate workstreams.

Key Takeaways

• Wealth with intention means measuring success by alignment with values, not only by external financial or philanthropic markers.
• The process starts with surfacing personal and family identity across four layers: personal identity, family identity, internal culture, and external presence.
• Codification through a mission statement, values statement, bylaws, or family constitution, turns identified values into a usable decision-making framework.
• Intentional families use abundance as a filter for decision-making, not an open field of unlimited options.
• For advisors, values work should precede, not follow, governance and succession planning, since documents built on unarticulated values rarely hold up under family pressure.

 

Wealth Legacy Advisors LLC works with multigenerational families, family offices, and family-owned businesses on governance, family meeting facilitation, and succession planning. Learn more about our approach at WLALLC.com.

 

Susan Schoenfeld, a public speaker & thought partner to families of wealth and their advisors, is an award-winning thought leader and family wealth counselor. Susan’s transition from a successful estate planning attorney and CPA to a trusted family advisor and thought partner was sparked by the deeper, more probing questions she received from wealthy families, questions that went far beyond traditional estate tax planning. As a conflict-free advisor who provides no investment, tax, or legal advice, and sells no product, Susan offers unfiltered, actionable insights directly to high-net-worth families and financial professionals alike. Her expertise and thought leadership have made her a sought-after keynote speaker at prestigious conferences across the United States and a leading facilitator to families of wealth.

 

The Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan in partnership with Planned Giving Roundtable of Southeast Michigan invited me to Bloomfield Hills, MI for a half-day conversation with donors, professional advisors, and nonprofit partners about the human side of wealth on June 11, 2026.

They excerpted my remarks into this article, published on June 22, 2026:  5 Family Philanthropy Lessons from Susan Schoenfeld.

 

5 Family Philanthropy Lessons from Susan Schoenfeld

Click to read this short thought piece discussing How to Build Family Cohesiveness That Lasts, as published in Inspiration and Insights online magazine on June 2, 2026.

You can also watch this brief video clip.

 

 

Regardless of their degree of wealth, success, or public recognition, families face a common challenge: staying connected in meaningful, enduring ways across generations. Not long ago, I worked with a large, highly visible family whose patriarch expressed this concern clearly. He said to me, “Your mandate is to restore harmony among my children.” That simple but powerful directive reflects a deeper truth: family cohesiveness does not happen by accident; it must be intentionally cultivated.

In my experience, the cornerstone of family cohesiveness is the deliberate and consistent creation of opportunities for communication and connection. Without these, even the strongest families can drift apart. Life gets busy, individual priorities take precedence, and over time, shared identity begins to erode. What’s required is a thoughtful approach that consistently brings people together, not just physically, but emotionally and relationally.

With this particular family, we implemented a solution that I often recommend: an annual family gathering or reunion designed with an eye to both purpose and flexibility. Importantly, the gathering was not solely focused on the family’s business, although it did include structured elements around shared responsibilities and long-term planning, and a session or two updating the family members about the family’s common investments. Equally essential were the fun, social elements: creating space for the informal, unplanned moments that allow family members to reconnect on a human level, and not just in their familiar family roles. These moments often prove to be the most transformative.

It’s important to pay close attention to creating environments where connections can happen organically, even among individuals who might not naturally gravitate toward one another. In many families, not every relationship is close, and that’s perfectly normal. However, by designing experiences that encourage interaction, shared meals, facilitated conversations, and collaborative activities, we were able to create new pathways for connection. Over time, these small interactions began to build familiarity and trust.

A critical component of this strategy was sustainability. I advised the patriarch to formalize his commitment by endowing the annual gathering. This meant creating a dedicated fund to ensure that, even after his passing, future generations would continue to come together. The fund was designed to cover travel expenses, meals, accommodations, activities, babysitting, and the cost of a professional facilitator. This removed logistical and financial barriers, making participation accessible and more likely for all.

Why is this so important? Because as families grow, they also become more complex. Siblings may share a common history, but even then, differences can create distance. As the family expands to include married-ins, cousins and subsequent generations, that shared narrative becomes increasingly diluted. Without intentional efforts to preserve connection, the sense of belonging can fragment.

This is why crafting and reinforcing a shared family story is so essential. Families need a narrative that binds them together, a sense of who they are, where they come from, and what they stand for. But storytelling alone is not enough. That narrative must be experienced and reinforced through regular interaction. Gathering together provides the space for those stories to be told, retold, and lived.

Equally important is the role of a neutral facilitator at family meetings. Siblings often fall into familiar patterns of negative behavior, what I sometimes refer to as “sandbox behavior,” where old dynamics resurface and productive communication breaks down. A skilled facilitator helps guide conversations, ensuring that all voices are heard and that discussions remain constructive. They create a safe environment where difficult topics can be addressed without escalating into conflict.

Ultimately, fostering family cohesiveness is not about eliminating differences; it is about creating a framework where differences can coexist within a foundation of mutual respect and understanding. It requires intention, structure, and a long-term commitment. But when done well, the rewards are profound: stronger relationships, a clearer sense of identity, and a legacy of connection that endures across generations.

Families that prioritize these efforts are not just preserving harmony in the present, they are investing in the resilience and unity of generations to come.

Read this short thought piece titled Building Lasting Family Governance: Creating a Framework for Fair and Future-Proof Decision-Making, published in Impact! online magazine on May 4, 2026, also check out this brief video clip.

 

Governance is a critically important topic in any family enterprise. The word itself can sound complicated, but when you strip it down, governance is simply about one thing: how we make decisions together.

In family governance, the question becomes: How will we make decisions as a family? More importantly, how do we put a framework in place today, while everyone is getting along, that we agree will still guide us later when disagreements inevitably arise?

Because they will.

One of the most valuable things a family can do is establish a structure for decision-making today, while relationships are strong, communication is open and perspectives are collaborative. That’s the moment when people are most willing to create something fair and balanced, something that will work not just for now, but in the future as well.

I often compare this to what happens when two business partners go into business together and enter into a buy-sell agreement. When the partners create that agreement, they both recognize that someday one of them may well be the exiting partner, but they can’t predict which of them it will be, so they work together to design terms that feel fair for both sides. They are thinking ahead to a future moment when circumstances might change.

Family governance works in much the same way. You’re creating a framework today that everyone agrees will guide complicated decisions tomorrow, even during difficult or emotional periods.

In a family enterprise, governance can take several different forms. On the business side, it might include formal documents such as bylaws or an operating agreement that outline how the company will be run and by whom, how decisions will be made, and how compensation and other distributions will be determined.

On the family side, governance can look a little different. Many families begin with a mission, vision, and values statement, a shared articulation of what the family stands for and what principles will guide their decisions. Some families go further and develop family bylaws or even a family constitution, much like a country’s constitution. This provides a broad framework that defines expectations, responsibilities, and shared commitments.

The important thing is to start with the big picture first. Before getting into the detailed rules, begin with the broader questions:

• What do we stand for as a family?
• What are our guiding principles?
• What values do we want to carry forward into the next generation?
• What will hold us together when the chips are down?

These foundational ideas become the compass that guides more specific governance decisions later on.

Once those central principles are clear, you can move into the practical elements, the nuts and bolts of governance. That might include how family meetings are conducted, how leadership transitions are handled, how conflicts are resolved, and how major decisions about the business or family assets are made.

Another critical component of governance, one that families sometimes overlook, is involving the rising generation in the process.

If you want younger family members to engage with, respect and feel bound by a governance structure, they need to feel that they had some role in shaping it. That doesn’t mean they need full decision-making authority right away. They may not yet have a vote, and they may not have a veto, but they should have a voice.

Giving the rising generation a seat at the table helps them feel invested in the system you will be creating together. It also helps them to learn how the family enterprise works and how considered decision-making happens over time.

Some families formalize this by creating a Junior Advisory Council or Junior Advisory Board. This group of younger family members can meet, discuss issues, and offer recommendations to the main board or leadership group. It’s a way of building leadership skills and engagement long before the next generation steps into formal authority.

There’s an important psychological reason for doing this. People are far more likely to support a decision, even if it doesn’t ultimately go their way, when they feel that their voice was heard during the process. Being part of the conversation creates a sense of ownership and commitment.

That’s exactly what effective governance is designed to do. At its core, governance isn’t about rules for the sake of rules. It’s about creating a shared understanding of how, as a family, we will move forward together, how we will make decisions when challenges arise, and how we will preserve both the enterprise and the family relationships that support it.

When families take the time to build that framework thoughtfully, they create something incredibly valuable: a structure that can sustain them not only in the good times, but also when it seems there’s no common ground in sight.

Please read this short piece on The Real Inheritance: How Great Families Prepare Their Children for Leadership, as published in Point of View online magazine on April 7, 2026, also a short video clip.

 

Last updated: July 7, 2026

Preparing the next generation of wealth for leadership, whether in a family office, a family enterprise, or ultimately as stewards of the family itself, does not suddenly begin in adulthood. It starts much earlier. In fact, some of the most important foundations for responsible leadership can be laid when children are very young.

At the core of this preparation is financial literacy, but not in the traditional sense of spreadsheets and investment strategies. For young children, financial literacy begins with simple ideas: the difference between wants and needs, the concept of delayed gratification, and the importance of community. These early lessons build the framework for how the future leaders of your family will think about money, responsibility, and decision-making.

One of the most powerful lessons in raising children in a wealthy family is also one of the most delicate: helping them appreciate the privilege they have inherited while acknowledging the responsibility that accompanies their privilege. Most heirs did not create the family wealth themselves. They are beneficiaries of the vision, sacrifice, risk-taking, and hard work of those who came before them. Teaching children to recognize this reality early on helps instill humility and responsibility. It also opens the door to conversations about empathy for those less fortunate, and a sense of duty to their broader community.

Even very young children can begin learning these lessons through simple tools. A classic example is the “three-jar” allowance system, which encourages children to divide money into categories such as spending, saving, and giving. While the mechanics are simple, the lessons can be profound. Children begin to understand budgeting, trade-offs, and the satisfaction that comes from both saving and helping others.

As children grow older, the learning broadens. During the teenage years, one of the most valuable experiences parents can encourage is their child getting a job, whether after-school work or a summer job. For young people from wealthy families, this experience can be transformative.

Working for a paycheck teaches the dignity of labor and the satisfaction of self-earned pocket money. It also builds empathy for the people who will one day work alongside them or for them. Whether it’s the barista who makes their coffee, the housekeeper who cleans their home, the driver who takes them to the airport, or the employees within the family business, these individuals deserve respect. A teenager who has experienced working for a salary is far more likely to appreciate the effort behind every role in an organization, from the mailroom to the corner office.

Even something as mundane as withholding taxes can become a valuable teaching moment. When a teenager sees their first paycheck and realizes that taxes are deducted before the money reaches their pocket, it creates a natural opportunity for parents to discuss how systems work, how governments are funded, how responsibilities are shared, and how financial planning becomes important in adult life.

As young adults move into college and beyond, the learning can become more directly connected to the family enterprise. Summer internships in the family office or within the family business can serve as a gentle introduction to the systems and structures that support the family’s wealth. These experiences help younger generations understand how decisions are made, how governance works, and how responsibilities are distributed.

But perhaps most importantly, these opportunities allow the rising generation to absorb the culture and values of the family enterprise and the family system as a whole. Technical skills can always be taught. What truly matters in the long run is the larger picture: understanding the spirit and purpose behind the family’s success.

Ultimately, preparing the next generation of wealth for leadership is not just about teaching them how to manage assets or run a business. It is about communicating the deeper story of the family itself. Every successful family enterprise has a narrative, one built on courage, persistence, creativity, sacrifice and often a willingness to take risks when others would not.

I like to think of this process as crafting the family story: Who are we as a family? What do we stand for? What does it mean to carry our name and our legacy forward?

When that story is created intentionally and shared consistently, it becomes a powerful tool. It can be told and retold across generations, to children and grandchildren, and also to those who marry into the family. Over time, it forms a shared identity and a guiding sense of purpose.

And in the end, that shared story may be the most valuable inheritance of all.

Please click to read this short thought piece discussing Prenups: 3 Rules of Thumb, published in Talking Trends online magazine on March 3, 2026; also check out this brief video clip.

 

Last updated: July 7, 2026

Your family has worked hard to build and preserve wealth over many years, and now your child has just gotten engaged to be married. You don’t want to cause friction with your child’s future spouse, but you’ve seen the statistics and are thinking about broaching the subject of a prenuptial agreement with the couple.

Contrary to popular belief, prenuptial agreements are generally not motivated by a lack of trust or romance. Instead, they are about clarity, fairness, and long-term family stewardship.

Over the years, I’ve seen prenups fail for very predictable and avoidable reasons. Based on that experience, I have developed three simple rules of thumb that may well dramatically improve both family harmony and the enforceability of the agreement itself.

Make Prenups an Early Part of the Family Culture

The most effective prenuptial agreements are never surprises. Conversations about prenups should happen long before a child is seriously dating, engaged, or emotionally invested in a particular relationship. Ideally, these discussions take place while children are still young adults, as part of broader conversations about family values, financial responsibility, stewardship and legacy.

When prenups are introduced early, they are understood as a family norm rather than a reaction to a specific partner. If the first time the topic comes up is after an engagement is announced, the message can easily be misinterpreted: You don’t like this person. You don’t trust this relationship. That framing can damage relationships and create unnecessary and avoidable emotional friction.

By contrast, when children grow up understanding that “this is simply how our family does things,” the conversation becomes neutral. It is no longer personal. It is not about love or distrust of a particular individual; it is about long-term planning. Families that normalize these conversations early remove much of the emotional charge later on.

Encourage Sibling Pacts Around Prenups

One of the most effective strategies I’ve seen is encouraging siblings to make a mutual pact: no matter whom we marry, we will all enter into prenuptial agreements. This approach works remarkably well for several reasons.

First, it reinforces fairness. No one child feels singled out. Everyone is treated exactly the same way. Second, it removes a common narrative that can surface years later, your parents never trusted me. When all siblings follow the same rule, the prenup is no longer perceived as parental interference or judgment about a particular spouse.

A sibling pact also strengthens family unity. It communicates that protecting the family’s financial foundation is a shared responsibility of stewardship, not an individual burden. This collective approach often leads to smoother conversations with future spouses, who can see that the prenup is part of a consistent family framework rather than a personal emotional reaction.

Finish Everything Before Wedding Invitations Go Out

Timing matters enormously when it comes to prenuptial agreements. All negotiations should be completed and the document fully executed well before wedding invitations are sent. Once a wedding is imminent, the risk of legal challenges increases significantly.

Courts scrutinize prenups for signs of pressure, undue influence, or duress. If one party feels that signing is the only way to avoid the embarrassment and financial loss of canceling a wedding, the agreement becomes vulnerable. I have seen situations where prenups were later challenged, and occasionally invalidated, because the timing suggested coercion.

The solution is straightforward: start early and finish early. When both parties have ample time, independent legal counsel, and emotional distance from wedding logistics, the agreement is far more likely to hold up. Just as importantly, the process feels more respectful and balanced to everyone involved.

A Final Thought

Prenuptial agreements are not about planning for failure; they are about planning for clarity. Families that approach prenups early and thoughtfully tend to avoid unnecessary conflict and preserve both relationships and wealth. When handled well, a prenup can be a stabilizing document, one that supports marriages rather than undermines them.

As with so many aspects of family wealth planning, success lies not just in the document itself, but in the conversations that happen long before it is signed.