WHY CAN’T I JUST CHILL FOR A WHILE?
Q I completed school last year and wanted to take a gap year, which I’ve done. My parents are rich, so I’ve travelled all over the world thanks to them.
Now that the time has come for me to go and study, I find I’m not motivated to do it at all as my father expects me to take over his business one day. So I don’t understand why I should study now or even work as it’s not yet time for me to take over the reins.
My father’s still relatively young. Why can’t I just spend a few years without any responsibilities and then buckle down? Sipho, email A Most young people would consider themselves extremely lucky to have their parents support them during a gap year as they travel the world. To then also be able to study at university or college is a wonderful opportunity you shouldn’t take lightly.
It’s not just about acquiring knowledge for a future career – it’s also about getting educated in matters of life, making connections with people that can last a lifetime, and gaining knowledge you may not even realise you’ll need later in life. It’s a time of your life when you really start carving your own identity.
If you want to run your father’s business one day, doing courses in human resources, financial management, project management and so on would be a good idea. As the CEO of a company you’d need to be knowledgeable about these things – not least to earn the respect of employees.
Once your studies are completed you should start at the bottom and learn about all the different aspects of your father’s business as well as the various jobs involved. This will give you insight into the needs, problems and struggles of its employees, and only then will you be able to get an idea of how you can help the company prosper by making things better.
Dealing with people is a vital part of running a business and you don’t acquire this knowledge without putting in the time and gaining experience. Even though you’re going to be taking over from your father, don’t see it as an easy ride. You’ll earn far more respect if you make sure you rise through the ranks.