RIA's staff and clients want to understand emotional aspects of prosperity. In a bid to enhance its holistic consulting capabilities Lexington Wealth Management has formalized a six-year-old service agreement with clinical psychologist Szifra Birke. The agreement puts Birke on retainer and guarantees her availability to coach staff and counsel clients on the emotional aspects of life transitions and personal issues related to wealth ownership.

First a client

"As clients adapt to sometimes overwhelming life changes they often benefit from emotional guidance," says Michael Tucci, president and co-founder of Lexington. "Szifra will spend some of her time coaching our team to better work through these situations with clients and, if requested, will also help our clients as they make their way through challenging times."

Birke, a licensed mental-health counselor and family therapist, says she initially came to Lexington as a client in 2001. "We had a few conversations at that time, and Kris" -- that's Kristine Porcaro, Lexington's co-founder and COO -- "started asking about my work," Birke recalls. "I noticed that they took a genuine interest in me as a person, and in the context of my own work with wealthy people, they ended up saying, 'We could really use someone who does that to work with clients and coach staff.'"

The main issues facing wealthy people are feelings of isolation, guilt and -- for ex-entrepreneurs especially -- a diminished sense of purpose.

King Lear

It's easy to grasp how someone might fee guilty about having a lot of money, especially an inheritor or someone associated with it by marriage. And that's linked to a more prevalent sense of isolation among to the wealthy, according to Birke. "People who have money don't feel comfortable talking about their money-related concerns," she says. "Issues around spending and giving are difficult to share with others -- it's really kind of a taboo. In fact you can find people to talk to about [extra-marital] affairs and other personal things more readily than you can find people to talk to about money."

Purposelessness comes into play for some formerly hard-charging business types after they sell their businesses or retire from high-powered corporate jobs. In that sense the vaunted "liquidity event" can leave the beneficiaries without several important anchors including the intellectual and emotional stimulation of running a business and the prestige connected with doing so successfully. And that can lead to other problems.

Paying attention to such things -- along with transition events like divorce and deaths in the family -- is part and parcel with helping clients manage their life goals, according to Porcaro. "Too often in such situations, we have seen advisors fail to listen and attend to their clients' concerns," she says. "A team approach that incorporates an understanding of the emotional side of wealth can help ensure this does not happen."

Lexington has more than $200 million in assets under management or supervision, according to its latest ADV filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm has an office in New York in addition to its headquarters in Lexington, Mass. -FWR

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