Levitt Consulting

01/02/2023

Learn leadership from sports. How to lead without direct reports? LeBron shows how. How to miss the playoffs seven seasons in a row? The Denver Broncos show how. (Hint: a wandering-in-the-dark franchise). https://conta.cc/3Wt87q1

10/28/2022

Forget "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People." Check out "The 10 Habits of Highly Ineffective People" to find out where you really stand -- and where to improve.
https://conta.cc/3gFc7nl

09/02/2022

An HBR article from 60 years ago reminded me of a key principle of leadership: treat everyone differently. And -- forget about the Golden Rule. Check out my take on this classic article.
https://conta.cc/3Pvvivg

07/22/2022

Check out my quick read to learn how to win every argument!
https://conta.cc/3OAICOQ

06/16/2022

Read my take on the power of consequences -- to increase your team's productivity!
https://conta.cc/3tBDphK

05/24/2022

Do you always feel like you're too busy?
Learn how to overcome this with my short 2 min. read on how to regain control of your life!

Always too busy? Levitt on Leadership The Power of Quadrant II, or How to Regain Control of Your Time – and Your Life “I’m so busy.” Have you ever noticed that when people say this (and almost everybo

05/02/2022

Read my article below to learn how to leverage learning from experience with the of power of feedback!

https://conta.cc/3kPjyqV

04/14/2022

Want to build someone’s confidence and motivation?

Read my take on the power of asking below.
https://conta.cc/3r5p7F0

03/16/2022

Want someone to feel heard?
Take the time to learn my two best tips for listening!

https://conta.cc/3tgTOIO

06/21/2021

Had a great time at the in-person networking event last week at the Family Business Summit at Crain’s headquarters in downtown Detroit. I had the opportunity to catch-up with Karen Collingsworth-Crusse, JD, CEPA, Vice President and Senior Relationship Strategist at Hawthorn Family Office (and my co-host with the Family Business Nation radio show on WJR) and John Price, JD, a partner in the benefits and human capital practice at Lockton Cos. in Detroit.

06/01/2021

Challenge: Less than one in three high-net-worth families successfully transition their wealth past the second generation. The proverb “shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations” describes this phenomenon. In China it’s known as “from peasant shoes to peasant shoes in three generations.” In Italy, it’s “from the stable to the stars and back again.” In Scotland: “the father buys, the son builds, the grandchild sells, and his son begs.”
Why does this happen—all over the world—and what can you do about it?

Solution: This loss of family wealth does not arise from poor estate planning or poor investment results. Wealthy families know how to get the best professionals. The loss of family wealth arises from inadequate investment in the family members themselves – and in the family.

Often by the third generation of a wealthy family, some family members are unable to manage their own personal finances and understand their family’s wealth; they may be unable to find meaningful work; they may have challenges with their physical and mental health; and they often are short on humility and gratitude. Add this to the larger family difficulty of discussing important topics; making good decisions regarding shared assets; and understanding how to evaluate and work with outside advisors—and you have a recipe for disaster.

For the past four years I have had the privilege of working with Trust Company Family Offices as they transition to the multifamily office model—and as they deepen their services for high-net-worth families. I was pleased to write this brief article for their recent newsletter. Family offices offer services for high-net-worth families which are above and beyond those services offered by traditional wealth managers and trust companies. This article captures the critical needs which Trust Company Family Offices addresses so well.

Trust Company Family Offices helps families-of-wealth develop their Human, Intellectual, and Social Capital—in addition to Financial Capital. That’s what a family office does—and that’s what makes us different. We’re here to help you beat the odds on “shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves.”

04/14/2021

Jeff Smith and I had the honor of interviewing Salvatore "Sam" Cipriano, the second generation CEO of the Better Made Snack Foods family business, for our Family Business Nation radio show on WJR in August, 2019. We are saddened to learn of Sam’s recent passing and we extend our most sincere sympathies to Sam’s family, friends, and employees.

During a brief video in which Sam discusses “Why We Prefer to Have a Non-Family Member as President” Sam demonstrated the warmth, insight, and sense of humor which made him successful in business and in life.