The Heir’s Curriculum: Preventing the “Trust Fund Brat”
The Heir’s Curriculum: Preventing the “Trust Fund Brat”
Wealth without values creates monsters. A 4-stage educational roadmap to transform entitled children into competent stewards of the family legacy.
Executive Summary
- The Education Gap: You spent 30 years learning how to *make* money, but your children spent 0 hours learning how to *keep* it. Traditional schools teach calculus, not cash flow. Without specific training, money becomes a drug that ruins their ambition.
- The 4-Stage Curriculum:
1. Age 5-10 (Values): No allowances without chores. Understand that money comes from effort, not ATMs.
2. Age 15-20 (Literacy): Learn to read a balance sheet. Manage a small “Training Budget.”
3. Age 20-25 (Outside Work): Mandatory employment at a non-family firm. Experience being fired and hired on merit.
4. Age 25+ (Stewardship): Join the “Junior Board” of the Family Bank or Foundation. - The “Skin in the Game” Rule: Never give investment capital for free. Match their savings (e.g., “For every $1 you save from your salary, the Family Bank lends you $2”).
The “Wait to distribute” Principle
Age Restrictions: Brain science shows the prefrontal cortex (risk management) isn’t fully formed until age 25.
👉 Standard Trust Rule: No lump sum distributions before age 30 or 35. Until then, the trust pays only for Health, Education, Maintenance, and Support (HEMS). Giving a Ferrari to an 18-year-old is negligence, not love.
Mechanic: The Competence Ladder
L1: Saver
Earn & Save
L2: Investor
Allocating Cap.
L3: Philanth.
Social Impact
L4: Steward
Governance
Simulation: The “Training Trust” Experiment ($100k Seed)
Heir’s Financial Maturity
| Concept | Traditional Gift | Training Trust |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | Age (e.g., turns 21) | Milestone (e.g., gets degree) |
| Oversight | None (Full ownership) | Investment Committee Review |
| Purpose | Consumption | Education & Stewardship |
“You cannot inherit competence. It must be acquired. The ‘Training Trust’ is a flight simulator for wealth; it allows your children to crash a small plane and walk away, so they don’t crash the family jet when you are gone.”
Essential Resources
INTERNAL
BMT Playbooks