Learning to Be Rich

Being rich requires not just money or other assets but it requires skill in handling those assets.  To enhance their skills, wealthy individuals are taking classes to understand how to manage their assets.  See Rachel Emma Silverman, Why the Rich Are Heading Back to School, Wall St. J., Jan. 17, 2007, from which the following excerpts are taken:

As investing and estate planning grow ever more complex — with labyrinthine trusts, derivatives, hedge funds, structured products, complex philanthropic options and ever-changing tax laws — wealthy individuals increasingly want to get a better handle on what to do with their money.

Often, the students are successful business owners who have recently sold out and are struggling with how to invest their windfall. In other cases, they are women who have been widowed or divorced and may not have handled tough financial decisions before. And a growing number of fortunes are passing into the hands of baby boomers, who are more apt than their parents to reach out for help in understanding how to manage their finances.

To that end, they are signing up for courses offered by universities and business schools, financial-services companies and independent firms that focus solely on wealth education. In addition, peer-education groups are sprouting up, allowing wealthy individuals to meet regularly and learn from each other and from guest speakers.

Special thanks to  Prof. Joel C. Dobris of the University of California-Davis for bringing this article to my attention.