“Wealth transfer is the event, wealth transition is the process, and readiness for responsibility is the outcome,” Salomon said. “The mistake is treating the event as though it completes the process.”
Philanthropy, in her view, offers the most practical bridge between the technical and human dimensions. Giving together requires a family to articulate its values, explore options, make decisions, deploy capital and learn from outcomes; a rehearsal, in effect, for larger responsibilities to come.
What advisors avoid asking
The conversation financial advisors most often avoid, Salomon said, is asking the wealth creator to define what “ready” actually means. The evasion tends to produce silence, which in her experience, rarely keeps the peace.
“Parents may believe they are protecting their children by not sharing information yet. Adult children may interpret that silence as a lack of trust. Siblings may enter a transition with different views about authority, contribution and fairness,” she said.
Salomon is careful to stress that the concept of readiness is not a single threshold and is not determined by age. A family can be ready to share information without being ready to transfer ownership; ready to invite participation without relinquishing control.