How do we Meaningfully Engage the Next Generation?

How do we meaningfully engage the next generation?

Many families come to Northbound because they want their kids to understand and be a part of what they will inherit, be it a role in the family business, the foundation, the family office, money, etc. (For simplicity’s sake, we’ll refer to any/all of these as ‘inheritance’ from here on out.)

They ask us: How do we get our kids to (really) care?

When you work with Northbound, we want your kids to feel personally invested and excited on a soul-level.

Often, as parents, we make the mistake of believing that our kids will care about the same things we care about. But, usually, it’s not that simple. Adult ‘kids’ have their own interests, strengths and gifts.

So first, we have to do the work of understanding and valuing your sons and daughters for who they are. From there, next gens can form genuine connections—to you, their family members, and the world of their inheritance. That is where meaningful engagement begins.

What do we mean by meaningful engagement?

Engagement can mean many things. It can mean learning. It can mean being present for meetings or advising on decisions. It can mean taking on an active role in some way. Sometimes, parents have a very specific vision about how they want their kids to be engaged.

But trying to get a natural artist engaged as the next CEO of a company probably won’t be very fruitful, for the artist or the business. We do not want people to fill someone else’s shoes, live someone else’s legacy, or become someone they were not meant to become.

We find that most kids do want to be engaged, but from a place of that’s true to them, and is appreciated and supported.

For example, after going through the process we outline below, a young next gen expressed his interest in helping the family company build a Google-like break room. It wasn’t a role his parents had defined (or even imagined) for him; rather, it came from a place of genuine interest and creative thinking.

At Northbound, we define engagement as making meaningful connections to learning and involvement.

So how do we explore the possibility of connection between your unique kids and your unique opportunities?

The process of engagement

We see engagement as a process. It’s not as simple as sitting down and telling your kids what a trust fund is and how it works. We start by taking a step back and looking at the big picture, together.

Step 1: Mindful exposure

So often, our first instinct is to educate: to impart our knowledge, to tell our kids what we want them to know. But this approach can fall on deaf ears, like so many 10th grade geometry lectures.

Rather than put the next generation in the student seat, we want to put them in the driver’s seat.

We ask them:

What do you want to learn about?

What do you want to explore?

How do you want to go about all of this?

Their curiosity is our guide.

Step 2: Assessing interest

Once they’ve been exposed, next gens can get an idea of what piques their interest. When did they zone out? What gave them a lot of energy?

We follow the energy.

Step 3: Align with gifts and growth areas

I often distinguish between strengths and gifts. We can be good at many things (our strengths). But there’s usually only one (or a very few things) that truly bring us alive—our gifts.

Our gifts are what really energize us.

They feel like a calling.

Our highest and best use.

Our kids may also be drawn to an area they want to grow in.

Something they genuinely want to learn.

A challenge they’re ready to jump at.

Forcing engagement that doesn’t come from an authentic place, won’t go far. Aligning with gifts and growth areas inspires people to action.

Step 4: Engagement

Once your kids have been exposed to your world, explored their interests and aligned with their gifts and/or growth areas, we can meaningfully connect the next generation to learning and charting their own course for getting involved.

If you want to learn more about our Next-Gen Voyage, click here.