Millionaire Pets

Have you ever heard a story of a pet who inherit millions of dollars while the benefactor's closest relative, sometimes the progeny, is only allowed to take salaries from the pet's millions as the pet caretakers? At the heart is that the pet is more precious than the human relatives, and that its preservation receives utmost priority.

Thank goodness that stories like the above are rare. However, there are other stories around us, or maybe even in our lives, where different kind of 'pet' is involved. The pet could take other forms but the fundamental elements of the story is the same. You have a person of power or wealth who has a 'pet.' His/her final wish is for the preservation of the 'pet' at any cost, even at the cost of hurting the feeling of the immediate family members, shattering their dreams, breaking their relationships, and undermining their aspirations.

These 'pets' often are something more worthy of one's dedication than mere animals. I am talking about businesses. Most Asian business owners desire that their children will step up to the plate and take over the business. This phenomena are found not only among businessmen of my parents' generation. In fact, business owners across generations are contemplating the same issue. Nowadays, it is going to be especially more difficult since families have fewer children. What if none of your children have that aspiration? Forcing your child to take over a business is not much different from forcing them to takeover the care of an unwanted pet.

What's wrong with selling the business and let your children follow their own dreams and chart their own courses? Forcing your children to do something that they are not interested in will end up hurting the business anyway. Think about it. The people forced to take care of your 'pet' might feed your precious one slowly with arsenic that it will die a slow and painful death. Isn't it better to leave your 'pet' with people who truly love the job and will work hard to ensure its longevity? In the right hand, your 'pet' might even be given a chance to multiply.