Advice for an Amicable Breakup
If you follow any of my past articles, you'll see that I seem predisposed to keeping the family business intact. Sometimes, however, it seems too difficult to keep it together. Family history,...
Articles
The Consequences of Unresolved Conflict
October 18, 2011 in Conflict Resolution and Communication in Family Business
While working on the family farm one summer, my grandmother asked me why our family -- meaning my father and his siblings -- couldn't get along like the family who lived up the road from our ranch. I...
Scout Your Team's Talent
September 18, 2011 in Management Issues in Family Business
Many business owners say that their people are their most valuable asset. Without family members, business partners, and good employees possessing a range of talents, the business cannot grow or...
Creating More Certainty in the Family Business
August 18, 2011 in Conflict Resolution and Communication in Family Business
Benjamin Franklin said that the only things certain in life are death and taxes. In family businesses -- especially those in agriculture -- there is often much uncertainty: the weather, the markets,...
In-Laws by Marriage, Out-Laws in Business?
July 18, 2011 in Conflict Resolution and Communication in Family Business
It seems that every family business has a belief about in-laws and their participation in the family business. Some welcome the in-laws into the operation. Some don't include in-laws in operational...
Unity Builds Family Farm Success
June 18, 2011 in Management Issues in Family Business
Will Rogers once said if you want to be successful, "it's just this simple. Know what you are doing. Love what you are doing. And believe in what you are doing." As I travel the country working with...
Hiring a Non-Family Leader
May 18, 2011 in Management Issues in Family Business
Investment firms have a quote that flashes at the end of their commercials or is written in small-type on their marketing materials: "Past performance is not an indicator of future results." Because...
How to Talk to Your Kids
April 18, 2011 in Conflict Resolution and Communication in Family Business
As a parent of three young children, I often wonder about the best way to communicate with my kids. How best to reason with them? How best to get their attention? How best to get them to listen to me...
More Brains, Better Decisions
April 18, 2011 in Advisory Boards and Peer Groups
Advisory boards yield better business results Nathan and Sean Collins put together an advisory group two years ago and it's already yielded huge benefits. "We talked a lot about building a hog...
Together, Three Towns Pursue the Positive
April 18, 2011 in Management Issues in Family Business
In Meade County, They're Turning 'Me' Into 'We' The "C" word-consolidation-is mentioned often in rural America these days in light of budget cuts and shrinking populations. But there is another "C"...
