Latest / The Family Teams Podcast / Ep. 231 | Insights from the Rockefeller Family Model

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Ep. 231 | Insights from the Rockefeller Family Model · The Family Teams Podcast

• 0:00
  You're doing business together or trying to build assets to to steward resources to go on mission. What's up, guys? Welcome to their five minute fatherhood. So we love to dive deep into multi generational family lines that seem to be doing well, especially in the fourth, fifth generations. One of the families that has been seen in American culture as a successful multi generational family is the Rockefeller family. And
• 0:29
  Recently, there was a rare interview done with David Rockefeller Jr., the chairman of the Rockefeller Company. And he said some things about his family. He was asked, like, how have you guys done this over the years? Why are you guys still friends? There's, I think, now 250 heirs of the Rockefeller family from the original patriarch who started that. They're still getting along.
• 0:52
  There's not been any kind of giant blow-ups. And so they were just asking this interview, tell us a little bit about what happened and what you think the secrets of that success has been. He said that his family has developed a system of values, traditions, and institutions that have helped the family stay together and preserve their wealth. They are useful to any family trying to raise children with good money values, even if you're not wealthy. Okay.
• 1:17
  The family has remained largely united without the public scandals, feuds, lawsuits, and tragedies that typically plague other gilded dynasties. There are now over 250 members of the family who are direct descendants of John D. Rockefeller.
• 1:32
  And Laura Spellman Rockefeller. And the three secrets that that he sort of spelled out here were family meetings, family history and family values. And I thought these are each really, really powerful. He talked about how they work things out in these regular family meetings that they have.
• 1:53
  that they really honor the shared history of the family and that they have articulated some values that have been passed on generationally that have helped the family really stay together and stay united and make sure that they're honoring the purpose of the legacy of the upstream generations that really built the family. So I thought this was a really interesting idea. Another thing they said is they've also...
• 2:23
  over the generations, less and less of them have been working in a business together. So a lot of that has been worked out more at these meetings and different things that they've done to try to work on philanthropic activities and things that they're trying to do to bless society. But I felt like this was a really interesting example. And any time we can see...
• 2:46
  you know, these families that have pierced into the fourth or fifth generation and are still staying united. It's really important to figure out, OK, what are they doing that's different? But yeah, Jeff, what are your thoughts on this? Well, I just love that part, too, even what you said, too, of like they're almost doing business less and less. Not that that's like dirty or wrong to not do business with your family. But I do think there's like a natural progression of generational where I feel like you're doing business together or trying to build assets to...
• 3:09
  to steward resources to go on mission, right? And I think they've shown that really well with philanthropy, that all the business stuff was, was just kind of a hedge or a leverage of them to do what they really wanted to do, right? And I think that's just a good reminder that to get 100 years from now and actually have a family that's collectively like the last name is this missional organization, right, for the kingdom...
• 3:35
  I think is then to build up assets and resources and stewardship. And not just when I say assets, I don't just mean like financially or monetarily, but I mean, spiritual assets and relational assets and all those different things, but build that up to take advantage of it. And I just think that's right. There's, those are the three secrets that family meetings just keep you rhythmic. They keep everything short. You know, all the accounts short, they bring you back to like actually dealing with what you need to deal with family history. I feel like if you go back far enough,
• 3:59
  Uh, you realize that your problems aren't as unique or aren't as big of a deal because you're in a longer, bigger story that always kind of minimizes yours, your version, I think a little bit in a helpful way. Um, or like, Oh, something that's happening now is not super unique, you know? Um, and then family values. I think, yeah, that's everyone operates on values. And so kind of always harping on that and keeping that consistent is huge. So yeah, I love that.
• 4:20
  Awesome. And guys, if you'd like to get a weekly email from me every Wednesday, I shoot out an email that just is talking about something going on in our family. It's called Jeremy's Journal. It's oftentimes just me kind of processing things that are happening kind of real time in my heart with regards to the family. I'd love to shoot that over to you. So if you'd like to subscribe to that email, just go to familyteams.com. And there's a couple of places there you can subscribe and you can get that email every Wednesday.