Climbing the Family Tree

When meeting with clients, we explore their personal history by asking questions like the following:*

• Tell us about your family during the years you were growing up.
• When you were growing up, your mother taught you that money was . . .
• When you were growing up, your father taught you that money was . . .
• As a child, what was the most important lesson you learned about money?

In addition to looking back at their personal history, we also look forward to the legacy that clients would like to leave behind. What we learn is always focused on the important people in their lives, including children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and god children. And almost invariably, it is about far more than money, encompassing also the memories they hope to leave their loved ones and the values they hope to impart.

All of which makes us think about our own families and the legacy we have received and hope to bequeath. At Yeske Buie, we took the time to go through the exercise of completing our family trees, which led us to reflect upon the lessons we learned from loved ones past and present. Today, we share the family trees from a variety of our team members. Despite having a “template”, it’s interesting to note that no two trees look alike – some are more detailed while others are simple; some follow the traditional family tree format while others are more artsy. We have also included a blank template that you can print out and complete for yourself. We find that this is a fun exercise to do anytime, but especially around the holidays when many are visiting family.

We hope you find our family trees enjoyable, and we look forward to receiving a copy of your family tree, as well! Download a blank Family Tree here and if you’d like to send us a copy of your work, you may upload it to us here.

* courtesy Money Quotient