If you want to build a business that will transcend beyond the first generation, introduce your children to the business early enough
If you want to build a business that will transcend beyond the first generation, introduce your children to the business early enough and Let them fall in love with the business model as it were and not because of how much money they are going to cash out from it. Draw them closer from their childhood. It won’t eliminate the natural abilities in them. Instead, it will sharpen it. You don’t keep them away from the business and expect them to successfully take over after you’ve retired.
This is why most children close down their parent’s super successful business of 30 years even though was it full of potentials. Adding “ and Sons” to the company name won’t make your son to take over the running of the business and run it successfully if you fail to make him fall in love with everything about the business when he was much younger. I was told of an alcoholic drink manufacturing company in Lagos that’s using this strategy. The company is owned by 3 people. These three man have their daughters in the company.
One is the HR manager, the other one, head of marketing and the last daughter is the head of digital media and everything that has to with social media. They all represents the interest of their fathers in the company. I learned that the company is already more than 20 years in existence and they are waxing stronger every day. When the 3 partners are gone in their ripe old age, their children will seamlessly takeover the company and take it to a higher height.
Around this time last year, I had a lengthy conversation with an old time friend. He was working as a sales rep in a real estate company. Every morning the company bus drops them off in a specific location and ask them to enter the street and start marketing their properties. They meet random people and start recommending their properties to them. Our lengthy conversation last year revolved around the fact this kind of marketing strategy was excruciatingly unproductive. He told himself.
As an old-time friend, I asked him to make out time to meet me so that I can share some ideas with him and also show him how to use the internet to push his real estate marketing business. Guess, what? All through 2023, he didn’t show up. I want to ask, Do these realtors who sell real estate on the street via their company buses really make enough sales to stay liquid in a year? I’m curious to know because if he comes back in this 2024, I’m going to bill him. I don’t have that time to share free knowledge beyond the ones I share publicly.
