Book Board Chat

A Fairy Tale Life

Prominent families usually when they have a problem, secretly bringing in advisors to help them resolve their issue. The families convince themselves that their problems are somehow so unique and rare that only outside consultants can help. They wind up spending a small fortune in the process.

But this “needed” wisdom can be had for much less money. Consider the low price of Pantheon’s The Complete Grimm’s Fairy Tales, a lovely translation of the “Brothers Grimm” published in 1944. It is beautifully illustrated by Josef Scharl and includes commentary by the late, Joseph Campbell.

Take the issue of family succession. It is perhaps the most painful of all family businesses. How do you train your kids to take over your business? How do you decide which of the kids gets handed the keys? “The Three Brothers” tale is only two pages long yet passes on all the wisdom any family could need to solve their succession issues. Here’s a recap of the story:

There was a man with three sons and he had only a small house to give away at his passing. All the sons wanted the house, but he loved them equally. He could sell the house and divide the money among the boys, but this was the house of his father and he couldn’t bear to dispose of it. Instead, the man turned to his sons and said, “Go into the world, and each of you try to learn a trade, and, when you all come back, he who makes a masterpiece shall have the house.”

The three young men thought that was a fair arrangement and went out into the world. The oldest son found a master who turned him into a skilled blacksmith. The second son learned the barber trade. The third became a fencing-master. Each was convinced the house would be there’s as such was the skill they acquired.

At the appointed time they returned to their father. As they were sitting and trying to figure out how to demonstrate their skills, a rabbit darted across the field. The barber instantly took his basin and soap and lathered up, and as the hare dashed by, he shaved off its whiskers while it was running at top speed, never once cutting the animal’s skin.

“Well done,” said his father. “Unless your brother can do better, the house is yours.” Right then a nobleman came clattering through in his carriage, and this time the blacksmith jumped up, and changed all four shoes on the horse as it was galloping. The father was again suitably impressed, and told his blacksmith son he was a “fine fellow and as clever as your brother. I don’t know to which I ought to give the house.”

The third son asked if he could take his turn, just as it started to rain. He flourished his sword backwards and forwards around his head, at such speed, not a single drop fell on him, no matter how hard it rained. When his father saw this he said, “This is a masterpiece, the house is yours.”

His brothers agreed with their father’s decision, “because this was agreed beforehand, and as they loved one another very much, they all three stayed together in the same house, followed their trades, and they earned a great deal of money.” When one brother died, the others mourned so hard they quickly followed, and they were “laid to rest in one grave.”

The moral of this tale is to be clear, to be fair, and a house will remain harmonious. Kids should be clearly made to understand the that family house will only be their’s on the basis of merit. Instead of letting children go directly from college to a position in the family business, this tale suggests they should first make their way in the “real world” where the family name is meaningless. One prominent family we know, already following this practice, has further stipulated each kid must get at least one promotion before they can return to the family business.

Furthermore, make it clear to your children that the child ultimately given the keys to the kingdom will be chosen not through favoritism, but through an open process that fairly evaluates each kid’s talents. If all the children know from the outset that merit will win the day the sort of bad blood that accompanies so many botched succession plans will probably not become an issue.

Time to dust off your Grimm’s fairy tales? This is just one example of the priceless wisdom of the ages found in the book that should be in every family’s library.

http://blogs.barrons.com/penta/2011/10/24/penta-on-books-grimms-fairy-tales/