Who this guide is for
The guide is written for the actual professionals who do this work — and the people who serve them. Each section contains material that will be useful to multiple audiences, but the persona-routing table below tells you where to start.
| You are… | Start with these chapters |
|---|
| Family-office principal facilitating family meetings | Ch 4 Family Money Dynamics · Ch 6 Governance as Psychology · Ch 5 Next-Generation Preparation · Ch 12 The Long Game |
| Wealth advisor having the difficult call | Ch 3 Advisor-Principal Dynamics · Ch 2 Behavioral Biases · Ch 8 Crisis, Loss & Behavioral Response · Ch 7 Decision-Making Frameworks |
| Estate attorney advising a reluctant founder | Ch 9 The First Generation’s Inheritance Problem · Ch 6 Governance as Psychology · Ch 10 The Second Generation’s Choice |
| Therapist or coach working with a HNW family | Read front-to-back, but read the Clinical Distinction section first — it sets the referral boundary this guide operates inside. The financial references throughout are the vocabulary; the psychological architecture should already be your first language. |
| Founder thinking about what comes after | Ch 1 The Psychology of Wealth · Ch 9 The First Generation’s Inheritance Problem · Ch 12 The Long Game |
Table of contents
Page numbers are from the delivered 2026 edition.
Front matter
·About the Founder's Voicep5
·Clinical Distinction — Please Read Firstp6
·About This Guide — How to Usep7
·A Note on Indexed Figuresp9
·Introductionp11
Chapters
1The Psychology of Wealthp15
2Behavioral Biases in High-Stakes Financial Decisionsp34
3Advisor-Principal Dynamicsp53
4Family Money Dynamicsp67
5Next-Generation Preparation & Wealth Readinessp83
6Governance as Psychologyp98
7Decision-Making Frameworks for Complex Wealth Situationsp113
8Crisis, Loss & Behavioral Response Under Financial Stressp127
9The First Generation’s Inheritance Problem (the Builder)p140
10The Second Generation’s Choice (the Inheritor)p149
11The Third Generation’s Test (the Restorer)p157
12The Long Game: Mental Models for Multi-Generational Preservationp165
Back matter
·A Closing Notep179
·Behavioral-Bias Quick Referencep180
·Difficult Conversations Libraryp185
·Advisor-Side Biases Addendump192
·Practitioner Discipline Addenda (cross-chapter)p196
·Sources & Citationsp205
·Glossaryp207
·Index of Termsp215
·About the Authorp218
Preview the inside pages
Sample pages from the actual guide — cover, table of contents, persona routing, sample chapter openers, and back matter. These are the actual pages that ship; not marketing renders.
Cover
Table of contents
Persona-routing
The underneath conversation
Family meeting
The spouse who doesn't know
Adult children
The beneficiary who isn't ready
The founder who won't retire
The family business sale
The second act
What's actually in the bundle
1. The reference guide (PDF)
221 pages. Twelve chapters, front matter that sets the clinical boundary, and practitioner back matter — Behavioral-Bias Quick Reference, Difficult Conversations Library, Advisor-Side Biases Addendum, Practitioner Discipline Addenda, Sources & Citations, Glossary, and a page-referenced Index of Terms. Searchable, hyperlinked TOC and index. Single-user license.
2. The companion workbook (XLSX)
Eleven tabs, nine working instruments: Bias Inventory, Advisor-Client Dynamics, Client Risk Profile, Decision Framework, Family Money Dynamics, Next-Gen Preparation, Crisis Response, Advisor Self-Assessment, and Wealth Identity.
About the author
PB
Philip A. Baratelli, CPA, MBA — Founder, Baratelli Institute. Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
three decades in operating finance and M&A (a CPA since 1995). The guides in this library are the references he wished existed when he was doing the work.
✓ 30-day money-back guarantee
Walk into your next advisor, lender, or boardroom conversation already fluent in the numbers and the moves — a more informed partner to the professionals you work with, and clear-eyed on the cost of getting a big decision wrong. If it isn’t worth many times what you paid, take the refund.
Wealth Psychology
$99
Single-user license · 221-page PDF + 11-tab Excel workbook
- 221-page PDF, 12 chapters — the psychology of wealth, behavioral biases in high-stakes decisions, advisor-principal dynamics, family money dynamics, next-generation readiness, governance, decision frameworks, and behavioral response under financial stress
- The three-generation arc in full — the Builder’s inheritance problem, the Inheritor’s choice, the Restorer’s test, and the mental models that break the shirtsleeves cycle
- 11-tab Excel workbook, nine working instruments — Bias Inventory, Advisor-Client Dynamics, Client Risk Profile, Decision Framework, Family Money Dynamics, Next-Gen Preparation, Crisis Response, Advisor Self-Assessment, Wealth Identity
- Practitioner back matter — Behavioral-Bias Quick Reference, Difficult Conversations Library, Advisor-Side Biases Addendum, Practitioner Discipline Addenda, Sources & Citations, Glossary, and a page-referenced Index of Terms
- A clinical-boundary section placed before Chapter 1 — what is advisory work, what requires referral to a licensed clinician, and a presenting-issue referral table
- Free updates for 12 months after purchase
- License also covers a delegate working on the same client file
Buy on Gumroad →
Also in paperback
The same text is available as a paperback on Amazon for $19.99. The paperback is the book only. The edition on this page adds the companion Excel workbook, a searchable and hyperlinked PDF, free updates for 12 months, and a license that also covers a delegate working on the same client file. A Kindle edition is $9.99.
Paperback on Amazon — $19.99 →Want every guide always current + the Brief paid layer + monthly office hours?
