Now More Than Ever

In a business family, boundaries, though often mental structures or commitments, are as real as tangible fences. Boundaries establish one thing in relationship to another. They are a line between where one ends and the other begins. Boundaries draw lines regarding what is acceptable and what is unacceptable within the family and the enterprise.  Boundaries help family members balance personal and professional obligations; maintain family bonds; and develop emotionally and psychologically throughout their lives. 

In this era of social distancing, boundaries are being defined as six feet. This is important for us to maintain the physical health of our families, our staff, our customers, clients, and society. This distancing while critical, can also lead to a feeling of isolation, loneliness, and depression. It is critical for leaders of the family and leaders of the business to recognize the needs of each individual.

For each leader, it is important to pay attention to what is appropriate, inhibit what is not relative and destructive, and be conscious of what everyone needs to know or do. In these times, is critical for the leader to be creative and attentive to helping family members, employees and staff connect.

Maintaining the family-ness that comes from nurturing shared identity can also be one of a family business’s strongest competitive advantages.  In other words, connecting and sharing stories not only brings understanding and identity to family and family business, it is also one of the best ways to nurturing one of your strongest competitive advantages.

There are many ways to work at staying connected. Phone calls. Emails. Text messages. Conference calls. Zoom Meetings. Video conferences. Skype. We need to be in constant communication to help everyone feel connected. Now more than ever, over communicate.

As a leader, create the environment, experiences, and opportunities where your family and business can attend to each other, innovate for the business, create new ways of doing things, and look to the future.