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Happy New Year!

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As we usher in 2019, does it seem as if last year went by quickly? Does time seem to move faster and faster as each year goes by? Psychologists and neuroscientists who study this phenomenon theorize that when we’re very young, we are continuously experiencing and learning new things. Thus, time seems to move more slowly when we’re younger because we’re often fully engaged. As we get older, we take on more responsibilities and intentionally establish routines in order to make our daily lives more efficient and to keep life from becoming too stressful and overwhelming. The feeling that time moves more quickly is a byproduct of this gradual shift to a more routine, less novel way of being.

The research suggests that as adults we can subjectively slow time down by keeping our minds active and by experiencing and learning new things.1 This observation reminds us of several of our core Certior Group ideas. One is that experiences are really assets that add to our sense of wealth and wellbeing. Much of what we and other members of our Jackson community value – for example, travel, adventure, lifelong learning, outdoor activities – is about experiencing the joy of life (“joie de vivre” in French). Additionally, experiences, even negative ones, can add to our understanding and appreciation for the goodness in life. In other words, experiences can be the source of learning and Gratitude. And, as many of you know, Gratitude is a fundamental virtue that we emphasize in our work and personal lives.

So as the new year unfolds, let’s recognize that our sense of time can quickly begin accelerating again if we allow it to. We can be intentional about slowing down the pace of our lives by being present and practicing what psychologist Rick Hanson calls “savoring the good”. 2   We can be creative in imagining and planning new experiences. And, of course, we can practice Gratitude as we go about living.

(1) “Why does time seem to speed up with age?”, Scientific American Mind, July, 2016.

(2) “Hardwiring Happiness”, Rick Hanson, PhD, Harmony Books, 2013.

What Will The Future of Family Stewardship Be?

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In the late 20th century, the United States Army War College created the acronym VUCA to describe the conditions that would exist after the disintegration of the Soviet Union. The acronym stands for volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. The term has caught on with the military and, especially, in business, describing the general conditions that exist today in nearly every aspect of our daily lives: technology, culture, politics, economics, etc. Massive changes, simultaneous opportunities for greater abundance as well as disruption of our way of life, are the order of the day.

As science and technology inexorably advance, there may soon come a day when sophisticated tax, legal, accounting, financial, and other technical information and strategies will be widely available on demand to the general public at an affordable price. We will also face unprecedented disruptions in our traditional patterns of work, career development, family dynamics, aging, and retirement.[1] Perhaps these trends will eventually lead to a world where artificial intelligence, “big data”, and algorithms know us so well that our most sophisticated multi-generational planning is automated and personalized.[2]

With the inexorable advance of technology and its dominance in our everyday lives, what will the future of family stewardship planning be?

Charles H. Green, the author of the book “The Trusted Advisor” says:

“People rarely give over their trust to institutions; really, they trust other people…While companies are often described as credible and reliable…it’s really the people within the companies that make those companies what they are.”

The Trusted Advisor

In a rapidly changing VUCA world, we do our best to foster participation and engagement in experiences where people are in conversations with other people. We view our role as guiding people down the path of discovery through these experiences and conversations. The practice of Gratitude especially has, in our experience, transformed people’s experience of wealth and their experiences of other family members, making them more aware of their common bonds and shared values.

Stewardship involves building and developing leadership in future generations and committing to ethical excellence in the way we lead our lives and families. Stewardship and family leadership also involves intentionally being aware of and nurturing sustainable family culture (the traditions, rituals, ceremonies, and unspoken ways that families do things, interact, as well as the expectations that go with these activities). Family culture is often a missing element in trust and estate planning, especially when governance and structure are the primary emphasis in the planning process. We view this as our opportunity to make a difference in the effectiveness of the planning process, regardless of the state of the world, technology, or existing relationships with other advisors.

[1] “Reimagining Maturity”, Ken Dychtwald, American Society on Aging Annual Conference, General Session Keynote address, March 23, 2015.

[2] Peter Diamandis and Ray Kurzweil, Abundance 360, Livestream, September 14, 2018. During this video broadcast Kurzweil and Diamandis speculated that such capabilities might become widely available within the next 10 to 15 years because of what Kurzweil calls “the law of accelerating returns”.

A New Model of Leadership

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Starting in the 1960’s, professional football began to see the rise of the star quarterback as the key to winning championships. Quarterbacks like Bart Starr of the Green Bay Packers, Terry Bradshaw of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Joe Montana of the San Francisco Forty-Niners, and currently Tom Brady of the New England Patriots have become legendary sports figures, largely because of the many championships each has won.

New England Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady

What the era of the quarterback brought to professional football was a highly structured and – most importantly – hierarchical approach to organizing football teams that has subsequently carried forward, metaphorically, in business and culture today. The quarterback of the team calls the plays and leads with authority and control.

The quarterback model has come to represent a common, perhaps prevailing model for the way effective estate planning should be done. Led by a dominant advisor – the one who has the closest relationship with the client – a team of advisors develops and executes a plan focused on tax-minimization, asset protection, and efficient distributions. Respect for this unspoken hierarchy and cooperation among advisors represents best practices in this approach to estate planning.

Miles Davis

In 1958, Miles Davis released an album “Kind of Blue” that revolutionized the way that jazz was played and performed. The music that Miles Davis inspired and modeled is now called “cool jazz”; it was a major departure from the music of the past because it created a new freedom of expression, of human emotion and spirit through music.

Another giant of jazz John Coltrane was a member of the ensemble that recorded that album. American culture has for many years been built upon competition – at times cutthroat competition – for money, power, and recognition. Jazz musicians are part of this culture. Yet, somehow the conditions that were created in the preparation and execution of this album, allowed many talented musicians to perform in collaboration like never before. The result of their efforts is now legendary.

By analogy, multi-generational planning and wealth management could be conducted like a jazz ensemble; that is, with a collaborative team of advisors working to bring out the best in their individual and collective efforts. We suggest that the way to improve our prospective success as a multi-disciplinary profession is to become more like a jazz combo than a football team; that the future of multi-generational planning is not about vying for dominance and control but rather more about collaboration.

Jackson Institute for Wealth and Wellbeing Wilderness Adventure

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Continuing our efforts to develop “The Jackson Institute for Wealth and Wellbeing”, a small group of us experienced a unique wilderness adventure in August. Led once again by Jackson resident, botanist, educator, and outdoor adventure guide Trevor Bloom, we hiked, camped, and fished in a remote, private, permit-only area outside of Jackson.

What was so special about this particular hiking, camping, and fishing experience (after all, aren’t such experiences commonplace in Jackson)? Inspired by our vision for the institute, we were exploring how we might capture and capitalize on the abundance surrounding us in Jackson to facilitate and create experiences for families and family leaders; experiences that might elevate joy, connections, and gratitude; experiences that might foster curiosity, wonder, and imagination.

The next Jackson Institute for Wealth and Wellbeing community learning events will be held later in September. Together we will build a platform to gain clarity and be intentional achieving a life well-lived and creating the impact we desire. You will:

  • Be introduced to breakthrough learning techniques;
  • Experience how Gratitude can transform negative experiences into positive outlooks; and
  • Learn how to turn life experiences into learning opportunities and positive outcomes.

Please contact us info@certiorgroup.com to RSVP.

3 Lessons from Thurman Munson

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Thurman Munson was an All-Star catcher for the New York Yankees in the 1970’s. He was one of only 4 catchers in Major League Baseball history to win a Rookie of the Year Award, a Most Valuable Player Award, a Golden Glove Award for fielding, and a World Series title during his career. Tragically, in 1979, at the peak of his career, he died when he crashed while piloting his own private jet.

Munson had purchased the jet a year before the crash so that he could fly himself home as frequently as possible from New York to Canton, OH where his family lived. He was still taking flying lessons when the crash occurred.

Thurman Munson

Thurman Munson died from the injuries he suffered during that crash. He was 32 years old. He was survived by his wife and three children. The New York Yankees, the defending World Series Champions from 1978, finished fourth that season. They would not win another championship for 18 years.

There are many lessons to be gleaned from this story. Here are three that come to mind for me:

It’s one thing to buy a jet (actually and metaphorically); it’s another thing to fly it. By analogy, many of our clients “buy” sophisticated financial and legal (trust, estate, tax, and corporate) structures. And by analogy, we’ve made it our focus to facilitate collaboration among other high-level professionals and oversee the operation of these complex financial and legal strategies.

Despite our good intentions, there are unintended consequences to the things we choose to do. We intend to do good things with and for our family, friends, and colleagues. But are we ignoring risks that will permanently impact those around us?

We cannot delegate our presence. There were multi-million-dollar lawsuits and settlements as a result of the Munson crash. But the money could never replace Thurman Munson as the New York Yankee’s catcher, the husband, and the father of three children. Our contributions to others are important and valuable; perhaps more valuable than we fully realize.

The CERTIOR Group, LLC

The Certior Group, LLC.

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