Why did succession take place easily at the family bakery?
The parents were good roll models.
Have you heard about the family landscapers who specialize in freeways?
They found a happy median.
Why does transition often take place over “a few beer”?
It’s a decision pint.
Why was the younger generation so stressed out?
Their parents taut them to be.
How did the auto wrecker’s children finance the transition?
They scrapped together some money, thus proving their metal.
How did the publishing family refer to its newborn?
“The latest edition.”
What caused the downfall of the textile dynasty?
They seamed to work well together, but quality was only sew-sew.
Why did the fish cannery send Junior for an MBA?
To ketch up to the competition.
What was the theater family’s credo?
“The costumer is always right.”
What kept the cosmetics empire going, generation after generation?
They were rouged individualists.
Why did her father’s ghost appear to the CEO?
He was the epiphany of an entrepreneur.
What kept the offspring from being as well-rounded as the founder?
They spent all day in their cubical.
What made the inventor so hard on his family?
He was a critical tinker.
What drove the logger’s son to become a hair stylist?
He couldn’t see the forest for the tress.
Why was the family waste management business so prosperous?
They reeked the benefits of success.
Paul Frishkoff, Ph.D., is professor of business administration at the Charles H. Lundquist College of Business, University of Oregon, and a partner in LIFE Consultants, a firm specializing in communication and succession issues in family businesses.