Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/626797
18 Oil Prophets four basic reasons…(1) because this is where I want to be; (2) because this is what I've always been expected to do; (3) because it's the best/easiest alternative I have at the moment; and (4) because my family needs me. Success in the future depends on being honest with yourself about your motives. If the family business is truly your passion and it's where you truly want to be, you have a hefty advantage in going forward. If you're there for any of the other three reasons, it's time for some serious soul searching. What have you done to prepare yourself to take over the business? To give yourself the best shot at success, you should look at gaining some experience outside the family business. That outside perspective will help you see your own business in a different light. It's also important that you "pay your dues" inside the family business. Start from the bottom and learn…willingly. As the owner's kid, you often have to work twice as hard to be thought half as good. Get over it. That's part of the process. What relationship do you have with current employees? Along with experience and time in the business, it's important that employees see you as committed and in it for the long haul. They also need to perceive that you have integrity and the intelligence to run the business in the future. Interpersonal skills are also important here. It's the people and how you lead them that will make it or break it for you as you take over from your parent. What family relationships need work? I've seen financially sound businesses scuttled because family members couldn't get their collective act together. What old hurts and resentments need to be aired and cleared? What issues need to put on the table and negotiated? What hatchets need to be buried? Successful transitions happen by design rather than by default. All too often the onus for that plan is put on the owner. Success depends on both sides…parent-owner and child- successor…taking an active role in the process. And again, it all boils down to hard work. The U. S., and the industry, depend on small family business owners. How you exit is important to all of us. The P&CMA PAC Patrons' Club, with an initial goal of 25 association members statewide, represents those members who have made the highest commitment to the association's political activities by contributing to the P&CMA PAC; PMAA's SBC PAC and Marketer Defense Fund; and NACS PAC. Patrons' Club members receive benefits and recognition throughout the year in recognition of their continued commitment to the association's governmental affairs efforts. Members of the P&CMA Patrons' Club: (as of January 1, 2016) David Collins D C Oil Company, Inc. James L. Eidson Eidson Petroleum, Inc. Jim Hays Hays and Son Oil Company, Inc. Wayne A. Hollar The Hollar Company, Inc. Tim Shirley Home Oil Company, Inc. Jonathan Tang Ira Philips, Inc. Jim McGuire McGuire Oil Company, Inc. Richard M. Mayers Midstates Petroleum Company R. Shayne Lord R. S. Lord, LLC Jim Parr Parr's, Inc. Guy J. Spencer, III The Spencer Companies, Inc. James Wadsworth Wadsworth Oil Company of Clanton, Inc. PAC Patrons' For information on becoming a PAC Patron, please contact Bart Fletcher at the association office.