Gen. Douglas MacArthur's son, Arthur, escaped the towering shadow of his heroic dad only by changing his name and living as a recluse for most of his life. Bill Gates (Trades, Portfolio) Jr., son of a renowned lawyer whose name graces a top global firm, eschewed the bookish discipline of law and dropped out of college to forge his own spectacular path in computer software and, lately, philanthropy. Winston Churchill's son might have been better off had he never run for public office. Greg Norman Jr.'s golf game may be better than average, but even impressive performance matters little when the frame of reference is his championship father.
The children of legends who carve out their own niche offer a broad model and lesson: Find your own strengths and play to them rather than try to measure up to those of your parents'. The succession challenge may be greatest in the context of a family business, as several generations of DuPonts (DD) or Pritzkers might attest.
An exquisite case to watch concerns Howard Buffett, the eldest son of Warren Buffett, the legendary investor and builder of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A).
While Howard has served on Berkshire's board since 1994 and owns a billion-dollar stake in the company, his primary occupation is farmer, operating large grain farms in three Midwestern states. Rather than pick stocks or build a conglomerate, Howard has worked to spread knowledge of sustainable farming techniques throughout the developing world to reduce hunger.
True, Warren, in his recent annual shareholder letter, declared that he wants Berkshire's board to elect Howard as chairman one day. But in a pattern familiar to the sons of legend, this prompts critics to object that Howard is no Warren and to complain that he cannot possibly fill his father's shoes. Critics miss, however, that Warren and Howard have carefully avoided this typical trap, as Howard's tasks will include none of the things Warren has done and instead consists solely of tasks Warren has never performed.
Warren's primary responsibilities at Berkshire have been making investments, allocating capital and sculpting a distinctive corporate culture. After his tenure, investments are to be handled by a small group of portfolio managers the company began to put in place five years ago. Capital allocation will be led by a successor chief executive chosen from among managers now running Berkshire subsidiaries.
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