Over the past 20 years, I've been fortunate to closely work with highly successful farming families, some spanning 4 or 5 generations on their farms. These families are rare, but they exist, and I've made it my mission to understand what sets them apart and especially how they manage to avoid the Three Generation Curse – two to make it, one to lose it.
Hard work, a never say die attitude, thinking big and sometimes just good old fashioned luck does play a part however it is abundantly clear to me that a key factor to their success is surprisingly far from glamorous—it lies in something as seemingly mundane as regular family meetings.
In my experience, around 60% of family successions fail due to a lack of communication and a breakdown of trust within the family unit, leading to families falling victim to Three Generation Curse.
While it may not sound a groundbreaking idea, I can assure you that committing to structured and regular family meetings are critical to maintaining a strong family unit and is also rocket fuel to a family’s success.
So why are they so powerful?
Well, they provide a platform for family members to come together, nurture open communication, align family goals, and collectively steer the farming business towards their shared vision. This often cultivates a shared sense of purpose, fostering a sense of pride and belonging which ultimately strengthens family bonds.
They also bridge the gap between generations enabling an exchange of wisdom and experience of the older generation while embracing the enthusiasm and innovative ideas of the next.
Family meetings provide a platform for family members to express their aspirations, raise concerns, discuss conflict that might have arisen and most importantly celebrate the family and personal successes. With regular practice this enables the family to address these matters openly and honestly often nipping conflict in the bud, freeing up time and energy to focus on driving family success, not dwelling on grievances or building resentment.
What I want to be clear about is family meetings are simple, but not necessarily easy. When you begin, they might be challenging. However, just like training for a marathon, you can't expect to run a full marathon after a single 5km run.
Family meetings are a cheap initiative, and no specialized skills are required. All you need is commitment and consistent practice, and the benefits will compound over time.
If you want your family to be united and successful, don’t wait for someone else to take action, step up and be the champion of your family! Lead by example, schedule a meeting and set an agenda. Remember that, taking the lead is not about having all the answers or being perfect. Start simple, be consistent, stay positive & encouraging and above all embrace the challenge.
Cheers, Ben
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Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is general in nature and for education purposes only. It is not financial advice. No one should act on the information without appropriate specific advice for your particular circumstances. Ben Law is a former financial advisor but is no longer licensed and cannot and will not give you specific or personal advice in this article. The Financial Bloke Group Pty Ltd accepts no responsibility for any loss or damage occasioned by any person acting or refraining from action as a result of reliance on the information in this article.