Creating Multi-Generational Wealth in Lives
Sam Walton said the best way to transfer wealth is to pass it on before it’s worth anything. Sam was right. But I believe there’ s a bigger meaning of wealth that isn’t about money, or stocks, or dividends.
I believe the greatest wealth is found in people. The richness of that truth didn’t come through inheritance. It came the hard way. And one August day, I looked through the blurry narrowing tunnel of my vision. My chest was tightening as my oxygen dropped. A face emerged and bent down towards me. And the answer was clear.
The Houston humidity is so thick you can almost cut it with a knife. It’s as if the rain is suspended as droplets in air waiting for the thunderous command to storm without warning. My marriage felt the same way when I moved to Houston in 2002. We were walking down the path to be part of the 41% of marriages that end in divorce. That gave me a new problem.
It was clear that I would soon need to be able to provide for myself and my daughter, Lindsey. So, I got to work.
Someone – it doesn’t matter who – started pushing me to become a lawyer. I agreed and started law school. Within a year, it was clear. That’s not who I am. That’s not where I’ll thrive. So, I dropped out and started on the next thing. It began with a training course.
As I scribbled notes, I paused. “No, that can’t be true.” I’m sure I looked like a cartoon character. It felt like my eyeballs were shooting two inches outward from my head. And it was like my jaw dropped and hit the table with a loud “THUNK” as my tongue unrolled across the table and over the edge.
It felt like everything I had been told over the years had been distorted from the truth. Everything from 401 (k)s to Social Security to Whole Life Insurance. Yes, there were nuggets of truth. But it still felt like I had been lied to by people I trusted.
I rushed home and sat down with Lindsey. My eyes were like lasers, and my mouth was moving like a pot of popping popcorn.
“Lindsey, you need to know these things!”
Of course, Lindsey was only in the 6th grade. But in a way, it’s like what Sam Walton said. I wanted to transfer that wealth of information early and build a legacy in Lindsey.
Lindsay got her insurance license three months after she turned 18. Then 23 months later, her husband called her at work.
“I got home, and the front door was open.”
“The dog was sitting on the porch.”
“Lindsey, everything is gone! We got robbed!”
That changed her forever. I can’t get her to post on social media or put her picture on the website. She became serious about privacy and protecting personal information. But there’s one thing that didn’t change.
I kept teaching Lindsey about investing and retirement planning.
In 2019, a colleague and I agreed to join forces and go independent. That was the beginning of Elevate Planning. It launched in March of 2019. After a couple of years I had a conversation with my partner that I’ll never forget.
He started talking. But it was like his lips were moving in slow motion as his voice bellowed sounds like a record played at half-speed. My chest started to tighten and my pulse shot up like a rocket aimed at the sun.
The Vagus nerve is the longest cranial nerve in the body. It goes from the brainstem down through the neck, chest, and abdomen. And I have a Vagus disorder. Moments of high anxiety triggers my Vagus nerve, hijacks my body and throws me into an asthma attack.
It was August of 2021, and this asthma attack nearly killed me. When Lindsey showed up, my oxygen was at 80% and dropping. It was her face that emerged clearly through that blurry tunnel vision. That was the moment of clarity I needed.
Everyone performs best when they are allowed to be who they are. And they perform even better when they’re surrounded by folks who are also operating in their unique zone of genius. I fired my business partner and brought Lindsey back.
She’s amazing at operations and “making the trains run on time.” Lindsey says I’m the fun one. So, she let’s me be me. She emboldens me as she whispers words of wisdom from behind her curtain of privacy. Sam Walton was right.
Start distributing the wealth before it has appreciated. For Lindsey, that began as a legacy of wisdom in the 6th grade. Now it continues as we work together to build legacies for others.
Some folks hate talking about finances. It probably feels like one of my asthma attacks. We believe you don’t need to be an expert in the details of investing to be an exceptional investor. You just need people in your life who let you be you without dragging you through the details. Our goal is to let you operate in your zone of genius while we operate in ours.