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No images? Click here The cost of a frictionless life for HNW familiesIn this provocative commentary, contributor Jen Lawrence explores the price HNW families too often pay for a life that has become too smooth—and what they can do to provide more friction (and fulfillment) for themselves and for their children. "Life has become easy," Lawrence writes. "You can watch any movie, read any book, or play any song you want with one click on your phone. You can order whatever cuisine strikes your fancy to show up at your door. Even a potential relationship is just a swipe away." For the very wealthy, life has become even easier, Lawrence says: "You can fly private. You can send your kids to a prep school and hire tutors to ease their educational path. You can hire people to cook, clean and manage any household inconvenience on your behalf." But there's a problem with this dolce vita of privilege: it's not making anybody feel better. In fact, it's quite possibly making even wealthy people more miserable. "The reduction of friction in our lives seems like a good thing since our brains naturally look for the easiest path," Lawrence notes. "So, why aren’t we all exponentially happier than in the past?" Where you'll find us
Feel free to send us feedback at info@CanadianFamilyOffices.com MEMBER CONTENTInside opportunistic credit: A Q&A with Pender’s Parul GargWhen a company’s bonds are trading at pennies on the dollar, many investors see a warning sign. But the team at PenderFund Capital Management sees a potential opportunity. The search for mispriced risk sits at the heart of Pender’s approach to stressed and distressed credit. After more than a decade investing in opportunistic credit situations, including through restructurings and periods of market dislocation, the firm has turned that experience into the Pender Credit Opportunities Fund, which recently marked its third anniversary. Canadian Family Offices speaks with Parul Garg, Pender’s Associate Portfolio Manager and a specialist in stressed and distressed credit, about where these opportunities come from, what the firm has learned through multiple credit cycles, and how the strategy could fit within a family office portfolio. This article is Member Content, provided by PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. MORE TOP STORIESIn memoriam: Steve Prostano, a quiet leader with a lasting legacyThe late wealth management innovator and founder of the UHNW Institute believed families deserved better—and brought an industry together to help make that happen Video: ‘Beyond the Family Business’ with Geoff Smith, former CEO of EllisDonLuke Hansen-MacDonald sits down with Geoff Smith, former CEO of EllisDon, on how he became the leader of one of Canada’s largest construction and building services companies The Ten Domains of Family Wealth, Part 5: Risk managementInsurance is only part of risk management—a challenge that has never been more complex, or more pressing Does your family office need to register as a portfolio manager? The answer isn’t always clear-cut‘The family office label alone doesn’t answer the registration question. Much depends on whom the office serves and what it is actually doing' Where Canadians are buying luxury property abroadA pied-à-terre in Paris? A villa in Sorrento? Or maybe a whole castle? For wealthy Canadians looking for a home abroad, almost anything goes Real estate: How much worse can it get?Kicking off our September special report on real estate, we look at why the long love affair that Canada’s family offices have had with real estate has hit a bumpy patch—to put it mildly |