Parents and business leaders can learn from the successes and failures of public and celebrity family businesses. So I’m going to do a post about celebrity family businesses occasionally and see if people enjoy them. I would love to hear your reactions below.
No family business on the planet gets more attention than the British Royal Family (which insiders even refer to as “the firm“).
Recent airing of the firm’s troubles and family excitement has drawn even more attention to the family:
- Prince Harry’s marriage to American celebrity actress Meghan Markle
- The rift between Prince William and Prince Harry over the couple’s quick courtship
- The birth of Harry and Meghan’s son, Archie
- Harry and Meghan’s scandalous quitting of their roles in the firm
- Their nuclear family’s move to the United States
Your family and team can learn from public reports about their experience:
Make sure your team members (at work and at home) have a shared understanding of expectations, and plan for your expectations to change over time.
Prince William expected Prince Harry to use the same rigorous, eight-year evaluation process he used when he dated Kate Middleton. Harry didn’t seem to expect the same of himself. The result? Unspoken expectations, violations of expectations, and hurt feelings.
A clear conversation about expectations — old and new — might have helped the famously close brothers avoid hurt feelings and ultimately kept the family closer together emotionally and geographically.
In two-parent homes, hopes and expectations often change as children are born, grow up, and leave home. Without open discussion, you may miss the chance to achieve more and more satisfaction — at work and at home.
There are many more lessons we can learn from the British royal family as parents trying to raise teams — and as business leaders trying to cultivate teams. What are your favorite lessons?