Family Leadership Strategies

52 based upon underlying ‘drivers’, and it is essential to try and understand those ‘drivers’ to make progress. When seniors are resistant, we often hear variations of the following statements: “I’m not ready to retire, my father did this until he was in his eighties” “The next generation isn’t ready, or will never meet the demands of leadership” “This is my life, I’d be lost if I didn’t have my business, it’s who I am” “It’s not the right time, maybe someday but not now due to…” It is important to consider a senior’s experience, personality, and self- image when understanding his or her behavior. The key for successors is to actively listen and understand both the degree (mild to extreme), as well as the source (emotion, behavior, and logic) of resistance. In order to do this, successors need to break historic and typical parent-child behavioral patterns. It is easier to determine the degree of resistance than what has caused it. Understanding ‘cause’ requires stepping back from usual response patterns — e.g. “there he goes again!” — and listening carefully and reflecting upon the underlying emotions and behavior. Senior resistance How then does a successor, having sensed the source of the resistance then develop strategies to overcome such obstacles? We will examine each of the underlying sources of resistance and suggest effective communication and negotiation strategies.