The Surrender: Common Mistakes Young Professionals Do in Joining the Family Business (Part 1 of 3)

For most children of business owners, working in a family business is gravity. You can’t see it, but you can definitely feel its pull. To some, carrying their surname is like an invisible string that tugs on their guilt and filial piety to join the family business.

In this case, we’ll talk about the common mistakes Next Generation Leaders do in joining in their family business.

The Surrender

“Wala akong choice, kailangan na ako nina Papa” is a line often heard among 20-somethings as a reason to quit their high paying corporate job to join the family business. Thinking this way numbs the fact of giving up a high paying corporate job losing not just monetary gain but lessons one learns from bosses - the more terror the better.

This surrender-mindset is a way to justify shifting an entire career path to heed to duty and responsibility. “Kanino pa nga ba ‘to ipapamana kun'di sa ‘yo?” (Who else is the business going to be handed to if not you?)

Hey, working in the family business is not bad at all. But carrying the mindset of “surrender” will be detrimental and outright lazy for you.

Solution: Choose to anchor yourself.

Figure out what you’re offering to the family business table and how working there plays a role in developing your own career. At this point, your parents might already be thinking of retiring and “handing over the reins” to you so they can play golf and play with their apos all day long.

As much as your parents had a choice in setting the company up, so do you in building your career. Mapping out how working in the family business fits into your plan will unlock the energy that can make you work until Saturday. You are given this great opportunity to work and impact the lives of your employees. Ask these questions to figure out what you can offer to the family business table.

What am I good at?

What do people find value in the things that I do?

What do I believe I am good at?

Find the intersection in your answers to achieve your Career Clarity and Direction. This is a way to take advantage of the gravity of working in the family business.

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Upcoming mistakes to be discussed:

Comparing yourself to your employed peers

Treating your boss like your parents

Learn more about our C-CAD (Career Clarity and Direction) Programs here.

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For more work-related tips and/or articles, you may visit our website at www.brandem.ph. You can also follow us on our social media accounts on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram at @BrandemConsultancy.