Families often ask us for advice and ideas they can use for their family meetings. Although every family is different, here are seven ideas to help you start brainstorming the topics that will work best for your family.

7 Topic Ideas for Your Next Family Meeting:

•  Book Club.  Choose a book that is meaningful for you, and ask your family members to read it and participate in a discussion. If your family has a lot of younger members, check out this list for books that work at any age.
   
• Develop a family newsletter. If your family is spread out, which seems like the norm today, a family newsletter is a great way to keep everyone abreast of what's happening. To make sure your newsletter is effective, have a family meeting to discuss who will contribute (ideally everyone will take turns), areas you want to cover, frequency, and questions your family would like answered. 
• Relationships and Money. If your family has accumulated wealth, the younger generation can benefit from understanding how it may play into their romantic relationships and friendships. This is a chance for the family to have a candid conversation, give advice, and offer strategies for avoiding some of the pitfalls that they may have experienced in the past. 
• Family Assessment. At your next family meeting get to know yourself, and each other by doing a family assessment report. It's a great way to gain a greater understanding and appreciation for family members, and to develop better communication channels. The assessment will help you recognize your strengths, and identify areas that may need attention moving forward.
• Create a Family Mission Statement. A family mission statement expresses a family’s sense of purpose and meaning. It is a written document that defines the purpose of the wealth and what the wealth should accomplish. It is also a guide for future decision-making related to the family legacy. If you want more information about how to create a mission statement at your next family meeting, click here. 
• Understanding different learning styles. Everyone has a different learning style or preference. At your next family meeting, give family members the opportunity to share their styles and ideas for activities to learn in different ways. For example some people may prefer a classroom setting, others a hands on/experiential learning experience, or even a  field trip.  In some cases you can get your values across by telling stories about how family wealth was created, in other cases it may be more important to volunteer for a cause together, or to allow a younger family member to present a cause they want to support. Take this opportunity to learn about different approaches to make sure your message and values resonate with the entire family. 
  
  
• Get Feedback. Make sure to check in with each family member at regular intervals to learn about their milestones, challenges, and thoughts on how the family activities and learnings are going. Make sure you acknowledge the feedback, even if you don't act on every suggestion.  Use a family meeting to create a round table where each member can share their thoughts and learn from each other. 

If you want some help with Family Legacy Planning, please learn more about our services here.