The Inheritance EffectThe Inheritance Effect

In our society, company founders and entrepreneurs are typically lionized as risk-takers and wealth-makers, while those lucky enough to inherit their wealth are too often stigmatized as “silver spoon in the mouth kids.” Regardless of talent or effort, those dubbed “silver spoon” kids face an uphill battle to be regarded as business heroes and seem fated to remain “kids” in the eyes of their skeptics and senior folks in and around the business. We call this phenomenon the “Inheritance Effect”—the very real consequences that can arise from inheriting business wealth rather than earning it through personal investment or sweat equity. This effect can either push inheritors to work hard to prove their own worth and grow the family legacy or d...