In this episode of the Wealth of Wisdom podcast series, Keith Whitaker speaks with Scott Hayman and Tom McCullough, co-founders of Northwood Family Office. Scott and Tom share the inspiring story of how Northwood was founded and how the company has evolved over the last two decades. At the heart of this episode is an in-depth discussion of Northwood’s Family Self-Assessment Tool, featured in Wealth of Wisdom. Tom and Scott explain how this 52-question framework helps families identify strengths ...
Jan 27, 2025•51 min•Ep. 102
In this episode of the Wealth of Wisdom podcast series, Tom McCullough interviews co-author Keith Whitaker of Wise Counsel Research. Tom and Keith reflect on their collaborative journey, the impact of their books, and the importance of practical tools for family legacy planning. Keith delves into the qualitative aspects of wealth, emphasizing "family capital" across five key dimensions: human, legacy, relational, structural, and social capital. He also provides insights into communication strate...
Jan 14, 2025•57 min•Ep. 101
In this episode, Michelle Osry discusses how she used Otto Scharmer's Generative Dialogue framework to help a stuck family improve their communication. The framework includes four conversational fields, from Politeness to Flow, each representing a different level of conversation depth. By applying this framework, families can navigate difficult conversations and achieve a state of flow where new possibilities emerge, fostering lasting success across generations.
Nov 04, 2024•50 min•Ep. 100
In this insightful chapter of the Wealth of Wisdom podcast, Jill Shipley delves into the impact of our money history on our current financial behaviors and attitudes. She emphasizes the importance of reflecting on the messages and experiences we encountered growing up, which often unconsciously shape our relationship with wealth. By engaging in personal reflection and guided conversations, we can uncover and transform our money narratives, fostering a healthier and more intentional approach to w...
Aug 12, 2024•42 min•Ep. 99
In this episode, Tom McCullough, and Ian McDermott explore the incredible power of questions and how they shape our thinking and conversations. Ian illustrates the profound impact of framing questions differently so they will trigger positive internal searches in the brain. This can offer valuable insights for families and advisors alike in fostering effective communication and problem-solving.
Jul 30, 2024•56 min•Ep. 98
In this podcast episode, Leslie Pine explores the world of family philanthropy and introduces the TPI Philanthropic Curve, a tool to assess philanthropic journeys. She outlines the six levels of the curve, emphasizing the importance of strategic giving, impact measurement and collaboration, and inspiring families to reflect on their philanthropic aspirations and potential for positive change.
Jul 16, 2024•40 min•Ep. 97
In this episode, Natasha Pearl highlights the importance of personal and administrative infrastructure for wealthy individuals and their advisors. Using the example of "Mr. Bluebird," she illustrates how a lack of infrastructure can lead to financial and personal challenges. Natasha provides a seven-step plan to help identify and address infrastructure deficiencies, emphasizing the value of resilient infrastructure in wealth preservation and quality of life.
Jun 11, 2024•48 min•Ep. 96
In this episode, we delve into Dr. Kirby Rosplock's insights on developing a family wealth education plan, highlighting the journey from financial parenting to engaging adult family members with innovative learning strategies. Discover the transformative approach to preparing generations for wealth stewardship, ensuring the sustainability and growth of family legacies through tailored educational frameworks.
May 31, 2024•40 min•Ep. 95
In this episode, Kathy Lintz and Ned Rollhaus demonstrate the importance of selecting the right advisor to ensure a family's long-term prosperity. They highlight key considerations including firm culture, the quality of people, alignment of interests, scope of services, fee structure, and matching the family's profile with the advisor's expertise — all in a helpful checklist.
Apr 24, 2024•42 min•Ep. 94
In this engaging podcast episode, co-host Keith Whitaker and Barbara Hauser explore the concept of democratizing family decision-making to avoid conflicts and foster fairness within families. Drawing on her extensive experience, they discuss the importance of transparency, accountability, and participation as key principles for successful family governance, sharing real-life examples of how these principles transformed family dynamics and decision-making processes.
Apr 03, 2024•43 min•Ep. 93
In this thought-provoking podcast episode, co-host Tom McCullough talks with Stephanie Hardwick and Mimi Ramsey about the complex dynamics of expectations versus agreements within affluent families. They highlight the often unspoken and unmet expectations that can lead to turbulence and resentment and they provide a practical process for transforming these unshared expectations into co-created agreements, fostering healthier relationships and family harmony. Worth a listen!
Mar 21, 2024•48 min•Ep. 92
Does the best thief make the best guardian? Where are the potentials for fraud in your family office structure? How can you make decisions "stick" amid the swirl of family passions? These aren't pleasant questions to think about, but family offices ignore them at their peril. In this engaging episode, family office COO Eugene Lipitz discusses the importance of creating internal controls policies, and procedures for family offices to protect clients, enforce decision-making, and streamline operat...
Jan 31, 2024•45 min•Ep. 91
In this episode, join Stacy Allred as she shares insights on making better decisions by leveraging the power of storytelling. Discover the concept of prospective hindsight and how it can combat common decision biases. Learn about the premortem and promortem tools, developed by cognitive psychologist Gary A. Klein, to identify risks, optimize opportunities, and strengthen decision-making. Gain practical steps to conduct a premortem and promortem, and explore real-life scenarios where these tools ...
Jan 15, 2024•39 min•Ep. 90
In this episode, Mark Pletts encourages families to understand the costs associated with financial services and products, especially due to the pervasive lack of transparency in the industry. He advises them to ask their advisors detailed questions about fees and compensation structures to become better stewards of their wealth and avoid conflicts of interest. This includes attorneys, CPAs, wealth advisors, insurance agents, and other advisors.
Dec 05, 2023•38 min•Ep. 89
Join us for a thought-provoking episode as we explore the concept of ethical wills with Scotty McLennan. Discover how an ethical will goes beyond material possessions, focusing on passing on a vision of the qualitative dimensions of life that matter most. Learn how to craft a values-based letter to your loved ones, expressing your beliefs, lessons, hopes, and requests, and leaving a lasting legacy of love and purpose. Gain insights into the process of creating an ethical will and the positive ou...
Nov 21, 2023•38 min•Ep. 88
In this week's episode, Keith Whitaker and Christian Stewart explore practical tools for building healthy families, emphasizing the importance of becoming a learning organization. It explores both individual and family perspectives on improving communication, trust, and collaboration, offering a curriculum to enhance skills and foster resilience within family dynamics.
Nov 07, 2023•42 min•Ep. 87
Join us for a fascinating exploration of family roles and responsibilities in a family enterprise with Dr. Lee Hausner. Using the "Hats Off to You!" exercise, we dive into the invisible hats that family members wear and the power dynamics that come with them. Through a lively discussion around various roles, such as owners, managers, and family members, we uncover the rights and responsibilities associated with each hat. Discover how this exercise can enhance family communication, promote unders...
Oct 25, 2023•42 min•Ep. 86
In this week’s episode, Keith Whitaker talks with Etienne Eichenberger and Malgorzata Smulowitz about the "Family Philanthropy Navigator" as a guide for philanthropic families, emphasizing the importance of choosing the right focus and involving the rising generation in philanthropy. It encourages aligning motivations and interests to achieve meaningful and impactful giving.
Oct 02, 2023•44 min•Ep. 85
In this week’s episode, Tom McCullough talks with Kofi Hope and Zahra Ebrahim about the Identity Wheel, a tool that helps individuals explore different dimensions of their identity and understand the power dynamics connected to them. Through personal reflection and group discussions, we examine how our self-perception aligns with how the world perceives us and explore the impact of identity on our lives, relationships, and decision-making.
Sep 26, 2023•56 min•Ep. 84
In this episode, Keith Whitaker and Courtney Pullen discuss the "Stages of Wealth Integration" that help individuals and families explore their relationship with wealth. It encourages self-awareness, conscious choices about behavior with wealth, and alignment with values, ultimately fostering empowered relationships with money.
Sep 18, 2023•41 min•Ep. 83
In this episode, Tom McCullough and Jim Garland delve into the story of the Jeffrey family and their investment education seminars. The Jeffrey Company, a family-owned business, created a private mutual fund and conducted seminars to educate family members on their unique investment objectives. These seminars aimed to foster family cohesion and provided valuable insights into investment fundamentals, behavioral finance, taxes, and estate planning. Join us as we explore the importance of investme...
Sep 12, 2023•36 min•Ep. 82
In this episode, Keith Whitaker talks with Sharna Goldseker and Danielle Oristian York about the importance of aligning values within family businesses, offices, and philanthropic endeavors. They introduce their Motivational Values Cards©, a powerful tool that helps individuals and families identify their deeply held values, engage in meaningful conversations, and make intentional decisions based on their values. This tool has proven effective in empowering individuals, transforming families, an...
Aug 22, 2023•45 min•Ep. 81
In this episode, Tom McCullough talks with Blair Trippe and Doug Baumoel and delves into the "Family Factor" concept and how it can deconstruct conflicts within families. They explore the three components of the Family Factor: shared history, shared vision of being a family in the future, and trust. Listeners will gain insights into evaluating their own family factor and learn practical steps to build and strengthen it over time, fostering resilience and connectedness within their families....
Aug 15, 2023•51 min•Ep. 80
Welcome to the next edition of the Wealth of Wisdom podcast, with your hosts Tom McCullough and Keith Whitaker. This podcast is an audio companion to the book, 'Wealth of Wisdom: Top Practices for Wealthy Families and Their Advisors', where we focus on practical applications and how a family can use these tools, exercises, practices to learn, develop and thrive. In this episode, Keith Whitaker talks with Richard Franklin and Claudia Tordini about a transformative approach to family wealth and we...
Aug 08, 2023•47 min•Ep. 79
In this episode, co-editor Tom McCullough interviews investment expert Jean Brunel to discuss the challenges individuals and families face when constructing an investment portfolio that aligns with their specific goals. They highlight the importance of considering multiple goals with different time horizons and stakeholders in mind and emphasize the need to factor in costs, such as taxes, when adjusting asset allocation. Through practical examples and statistical analysis, they guide listeners t...
Aug 01, 2023•54 min•Ep. 78
Welcome back to the Wealth of Wisdom podcast with your hosts Tom McCullough and Keith Whitaker. This podcast is an audio companion to the book, ' Wealth of Wisdom: Top Practices for Wealthy Families and Their Advisors ', where we focus on practical applications and how a family can use these tools exercises, and practices to learn, to develop, and to make progress. In this episode, Scott Peppet, President of Chai Trust Company, introduces the "Four Horsemen" graph, a powerful tool for families t...
Jul 18, 2023•42 min•Ep. 77
In this episode, co-editor Tom McCullough interviews Guillermo Salazar, a family business advisor, exploring the power of genograms as a tool for understanding family patterns. Genograms go beyond traditional family trees, using symbols to depict the dynamics and interactions among family members. Join us as we delve into the fascinating world of genograms, uncovering hidden stories, identifying patterns, and discovering how they can help families navigate their legacies and create a brighter fu...
Jul 10, 2023•43 min•Ep. 76
One of the most challenging aspects of managing financial wealth together as a family is making shared decisions. The family enterprise structure and system, which often includes the family office, family foundation, operating businesses, trusts, trust protectors, family council, close advisors, and other operating partners, can be fertile ground for confusion and duplication if not managed efficiently and with transparency. In this episode of the Wealth of Wisdom podcast series, co-editor Keith...
Jul 04, 2023•37 min•Ep. 75
In this episode of the Wealth of Wisdom podcast series, co-editor Keith Whitaker interviews Joline Godfrey. They discuss her chapter and the concept of "making kids happy" vs. "raising happy kids". She introduces the Birthday Eve tradition, which promotes maturity, self-sufficiency, and the balance between privilege and responsibility in children.
Jun 27, 2023•39 min•Ep. 74
In this podcast episode, Tom McCullough interviews Arden O'Connor, founder, and CEO of the O'Connor Professional Group. They discuss her chapter on the impact of mental health issues on families, addressing warning signs, family dynamics, protective behaviors, and crisis management. Arden emphasizes the potential for growth and recovery in this journey.
Jun 13, 2023•45 min•Ep. 73
