Like actual fires it’s difficult to determine the spark… what actually ignited the blaze, was it…
- Force fitting a family member into a position for which they were not qualified i.e. fitting a square peg into round hole;
- Setting expectations for family – higher or lower – than those set for non family in the business;
- Moving numbers around in the balance sheet to keep balance in the relationship system?
It could be – and likely is – all of the above and many, many more.
The most recent sparks are the easiest to identify…
You can see them coming from miles away.
But those aren’t the real cause… those are only in the ashes of the previous emotional fires, the ones you thought were put out a long time ago.
The embers of past conflicts smolder beneath the surface, waiting for just the right conditions – a harsh word, an overlooked slight, or an unmet expectation – to reignite.
These dormant tensions, built up over years of family dynamics and business pressures, create a tinderbox of emotions ready to explode at any moment.
That’s why identifying the true source requires looking beyond the immediate flame to understand the deeper patterns of conflict
Need some family business firefighting support?
In PHASE 2 we help you collect the data to understand what ignited this emotional blaze and analyze it against the backdrop of previous ones.
