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| First Person |
Teach Your Children Well
Jamie Johnson (as told to Leslie Bennetts)
07/01/2004
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Jamie Johnson, an heir to the Johnson & Johnson fortune, is intrigued by
what he calls the “voodoo of inherited wealth.” Confused by the benefits and
travails of affluence, he produced and directed Born Rich, a documentary that
explores how family wealth affects children. The film was screened at the
Sundance Film Festival and played last year on HBO. Now 24 years old, the
director reflects on the lessons he learned from his work.
 | | THE MOST important thing for kids to do is to try to create something for
themselves that is separate from the family wealth—something that is
meaningful for them to do. |
When I was 20 years old, I knew that I would inherit a significant amount of
money on my 21st birthday. I also knew there were many things I needed to figure
out before that happened. I had seen a lot in my own family, and I had heard
stories about people in other families who seemed to live unproductive, and, in
some cases, tragic lives. I thought: What a strange paradox. They have what many
people might think is everything going for them, and life doesn’t really seem to
be working out all that well. So many kids do not turn being born into a
position of privilege into a great, meaningful, interesting life. I knew that
was something I wanted to explore.
I didn’t really know how dysfunctional
many extremely wealthy people are. When you are born rich, your identity is
closely associated with the money you inherited or will inherit. People
recognize you for it, and it is hard to separate yourself from it. What I
realized in doing this project was that the most important thing for kids to do
is to try to create something for themselves that is separate from the family
wealth—something that is meaningful for them to do. When you do not do that,
when you rely on the power and privilege you have been given, you get feelings
of entitlement and an attitude of superiority. Feeling superior to others is
always dangerous, especially so when you have not even come close to earning
that right.
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