The Voice of the Rising Generation / Bloomberg (PDF)

Avoid "Shirtsleeves to Shirtsleeves" by Finding Your Voice

Growing up in a family with significant wealth or a family
business can often feel like an exercise in silence. What should
you ask? Whom should you ask? When? Is it ever right to talk about
such things?

The Voice of the Rising Generation speaks directly to
those who find themselves living in that silence, the so-called
"next generation." Great wealth or a family business can act like a
"black hole," sapping the dreams and aspirations of future
generations who feel that they can never measure up to the
fortune's founder. This book, written by a psychologist, an
educator, and a wise counselor who single-handedly changed the
landscape of family wealth, diagnoses with economy and precision
the cause of entitlement and dependency. It is not too much money
or too few chores. It is the failure of rising generations to
individuate, that is, to pursue their dreams, develop their
resilience, and find their voice.

Many books are addressed to parents and grandparents who worry
about the effects of wealth on their descendants. Almost alone in
the field, this book speaks directly to 20-, 30- and 40-somethings,
encouraging them--literally, giving them courage--to meet
the challenge of integrating wealth's power into their lives,
rather than disappearing into the black hole. Readers will:

* Come to understand the true causes of entitlement and
dependency

* Identify the psychological characteristics of the rising
generation and the challenges proper to its development

* Clarify their own dreams, work, and vocation

* Navigate personal relationships and communication within the
context of wealth

* Recognize the special challenges faced when rising is delayed
until mid-life.

If you are a young person who is starting your life's journey
and wondering about the effects of parental gifts, trusts, or a
family business, this book will offer you questions, reflections,
and lessons-learned to help you find your own way. If you are a
parent, grandparent, elder, or mentor, The Voice of the Rising
Generation can serve the young people in your life as a gift
more precious than gold.