The definition of education is extremely broad, encompassing far more than just traditional schooling. When it comes to prioritizing education, familial education undoubtedly takes the top spot. This critical phase of education begins in childhood and continues to play a role throughout their growth, entry into school, and stepping into the workplace. The core of family education lies in nurturing children to develop a healthy and balanced personality.
School education can often overlook personality education, which is a crucial aspect. This includes instilling in children an open and inclusive mindset, respect for others, and the ability to achieve personal success through contributing to society. In addition, children need to possess a drive to explore themselves and continue to grow. These aspects of education are essential for children to treat others kindly, including family, and to establish an equal and deep communication with the world.
In family education that fosters a healthy personality, parents who take on the role of family business leaders need to convey two important messages to their children. The first is family mottos and rules, which are the values appreciated within the family, such as diligence, generosity, and effort. These values are passed down through consistent communication and demonstration by the parents. For example, children witness firsthand how their parents treat service staff during travel.
Secondly, whether it’s traditional or emerging industries, children should be made aware of the family business’s scope of operations, annual management, and the connection between this endeavor and their personal life. The focus is on letting the children understand that the enterprise is not just a tool for the family to make money, but also has a deeper significance.
The involvement of the new generation in education is based on the process of globalization. Domestic entrepreneurs hope the next generation will have a broader vision and therefore choose to send their children abroad for further education. After returning from studying abroad, the inheritors of the family business must receive professional education in a socialized workplace, an indispensable step in their educational journey. In the workplace, they can learn from industry predecessors and partners, and learn how to establish their authority. Before they truly gain authority, they must go through challenges and difficulties in the workplace to deeply understand the value of respect and know how authority is won.
Whether children choose to return to the family business or work outside, the first-generation entrepreneurs must communicate based on respect for their children’s wishes and not overemphasize their personal will and expectations.
Family education plays a key role in nurturing individuals and promoting family harmony. The fundamental principle is that all family members firmly believe that each member’s personal achievements are the foundation for the family’s continuous stability and harmonious development. Therefore, the family should respect each member’s wishes and prioritize their self-realization. Ignoring this can lead to serious consequences, as any buried issues will eventually erupt.
The education of inheritors of family businesses faces unique complexities. The wealth itself contains powerful energy, and within close relations, any issues can be magnified, leading to sharp conflicts and profound pain. Educational issues not only concern the inheritors themselves or the transmitters but also the entire family on how to provide appropriate educational support at different stages of member growth.
For entrepreneurs, making good use of various educational resources to provide an educational experience beyond the ordinary is crucial to the growth of the second generation. As heritage coaches, our mission is to intervene in education with market-oriented, professional, and systematic approaches, to inject new educational concepts into the family, enhance intergenerational connections and consensus, understand the contradictions within the family, and seek solutions.
Currently, many family businesses in China are at a critical period of wealth and power transition from the first generation to the second. Entrepreneurs are facing challenges brought on by generational succession. This contradiction is in stark contrast to the social status and wealth they have acquired. Given the reality that the wealth-creating generation has insufficient time to accompany the second generation, new educational interventions have become particularly crucial. Recognizing this early and taking action can significantly reduce many risks.
For the first batch of second generation who are inheriting the family business, what’s most needed is an education that cultivates a balanced personality and the ability to introspect. Fortunately, entrepreneurs are usually adept at coordinating resources to achieve goals. If they find the right resources at the right time, the pace of education can proceed persistently forward.
When implementing so-called “adversity education,” it’s important to understand the passions and sense of responsibility of the next generation. Passion is a barrier against adversity and can even turn it into a catalyst for inner passion; while responsibility allows education to occur naturally, transforming adversity into a resource for self-reflection. By taking on different levels of enterprise tasks and experiencing difficulties, the second generation will develop the ability to take on greater responsibilities.
For the second generation, experiencing challenges helps to build a foundation for equal dialogue with the wealth-creating generation, while also forging their resilience as inheritors of the business. However, in reality, it is often seen that the first generation unintentionally deprives the second of their right to choose, including the opportunity to choose their own career path and self-discovery.
When one’s will cannot be freely expressed, they often feel at a loss when encountering challenges. As children stand on the succession line of the family business, many of them do not truly love the field, nor do they necessarily harbor grand ambitions to achieve an exceptional enterprise, and their desire for creating vast wealth is not particularly strong. However, even in the absence of passion, when they take up responsibilities, they are still able to show steadfast determination and turn adversity into opportunities for growth and self-improvement.
This situation reflects the spirit of entrepreneurs in the early days of founding – back then, the sense of responsibility often stemmed solely from the need to provide for the family. The presence of responsibility creates space for education to occur, turning challenges and difficulties into motivations for personal reflection and progress. After children experience failure, parents and elders often consciously use these experiences to guide them in reflection and summarization.
Generally speaking, the challenges designed for children by their parents are somewhat controllable, and the difficulty of these challenges is closely related to the size of future responsibilities the children will bear and the expectations of the older generation for their descendants. Besides, a strong and indestructible passion within is an important force to withstand external trials. If a young person can find and cultivate this enthusiasm during growth and find pleasure in the accompanying peak experiences, this experience will become a source of their sense of mission.
If the previous generation has sought out for their children an awareness and ability to bear responsibility, as well as discovering their passions and talents, then whether it is fostering a sense of responsibility or a hobby, both can effectively provide an education in dealing with setbacks. We are talking about proactive setback education, putting children in difficult situations where they not only survive the challenges but also gain valuable experience. Furthermore, if they possess a deeper love, then the setbacks will only add fuel to the fire, helping the flames of their inner passions to spread wildly.
Passion and responsibility complement each other, as if they are the two poles of yin and yang, each nourishing the other. Passion brings a spontaneous sense of responsibility, and the responsibilities undertaken in return inspire deep interests. People often unconsciously transform responsibility into passion, and the psychological dynamics in this process are filled with a natural mobilization.
An individual’s enthusiasm often attracts like-minded companions or followers, and the presence of these supporters further deepens and enriches the leader’s passion, making them no longer feel alone and granting them powerful inspiration and a sense of recognition. A leader’s moments of excellence cannot be achieved without the support of resonating individuals, and leaders consciously extend their sense of responsibility to those who respond.
Turning responsibility into passion is twofold in meaning. First, when undertaking responsibilities, pressure is inevitable. Without relief, responsibility cannot be sustained. Therefore, finding a personalized outlet to balance this pressure is crucial, whether it’s through hobbies like art, sports, etc., to release tension, pressure, and setbacks. Those who bear responsibility for a long time will surely become specialists in certain areas. Second, their sense of responsibility usually closely relates to others, and as time accumulates, these individuals attract the affection and praise of others, reaping resources and honors.
When the sense of responsibility is heavy enough, passion becomes an indispensable part of their lives. For example, any business leader needs to genuinely love their undertaking and be responsible for every stakeholder in their business network. This type of passion serves as the logistics and base fire of responsibility. The balance between love and responsibility needs to be managed properly. When lacking, people might appear over-the-top, emotionally volatile, at times brimming with confidence as if they could own the whole world, and then at times feeling worthless.
We must recognize that understanding oneself is a prerequisite for managing personal energy. This process of understanding oneself already balances our internal energy to some extent. Therefore, before we strive to consciously maintain this energy balance, we must first embark on the journey of self-awareness.
