June 2, 2026 l Manila Bulletin
On May 30, 2026, at around 3:00 PM, my wife and I were seated in the intimate cinema and event space located in the basement of the Fully Booked flagship store in BGC. We were there for the book signing event of our son, Carl Lorenz, celebrating the launch of his book, SIKODIWA. Watching him confidently command the room in his 30s, a profound sense of pride washed over us. But as any seasoned manager or entrepreneur knows, a successful launch is never an accident; it is the result of years of quiet, strategic cultivation, careful budgeting, and aligned vision.
In the world of corporate finance, we often talk about Capital Allocation—deciding where to deploy limited resources for the highest long-term yield. Decades ago, my wife and I sat down to draft the most important business plan of our lives: our family strategy. We made a calculated, high-stakes decision. My wife would forego a traditional corporate climb to focus on the primary development of our children, while managing a side enterprise to augment my employment income. This agile business model was tested early in our timeline.
During the first three years of our marriage, my wife launched a side business selling jewelry and clothing—a venture that became a catalyst of our early economy. She worked with relentless diligence, balancing books and managing inventory while raising our firstborn son with equal interest and care. Recognizing that a startup requires a unified team, I acted as her business partner, actively prospecting and looking for potential clients within my network. This crucial secondary revenue stream did more than just provide a financial cushion; it effectively funded our growth phase, providing the liquidity that allowed me to pursue and finish my master’s degree without compromising our family’s financial stability.
From a financial perspective, this was an investment in Human Capital. While it meant sacrificing a dual-corporate income in the short term, the long-term dividend was the intensive, hands-on tutoring, spiritual formation, and behavioral molding of our children. In their primary and secondary years, I was a weekend father, grinding in the corporate machinery. But by their university years, I optimized my schedule to become their daily driver.
Those two hours a day stuck in Manila traffic became our boardroom meetings where we talked about life, ambitions, and values. My wife, meanwhile, managed their social ecosystem. She didn’t just meet their friends; she invited them to our home for activities. In business terms, this was Risk Management and Quality Control. By knowing their circle, we ensured that the environment surrounding our core assets—our children—was aligned with our family values.
When both finished college, my wife and I were in our late 40s. The relief was palpable, but our governance didn’t stop at graduation; we continued our guidance through their master’s degrees. Today, they are gainfully employed, self-sustaining individuals. The “housewife” model we chose wasn’t a withdrawal from the economy; it was a dedicated venture capital effort that successfully produced highly capable, independent leaders. Our daughter, Nia, is now ably supporting our family business, Maison Gaston, as the General Manager of the coffee shop and Bed and Breakfast rooms. She provides guidance and navigates the profitability of the business with her crew, operating with love and care like her mother. Meanwhile, Carl’s wife, Toni, is also managing the presentations and speaking engagements of Carl like a Talent Manager.
Now, looking at them, we sometimes wish we could turn back the clock. While we respect their autonomy, we intentionally create corporate-style “board retreats”—family dinners and trips—to include their partners and build new memories. This ongoing connection is vital. Recently, conversations with my 88-year-old mother reminded me of an inevitable market truth: as we age, we all eventually retire to the original community—our family.
In the autumn of life, people naturally seek those who knew them in their spring. This is why high school and college reunions become frequent as we age, because we are looking for a familiar ecosystem. If you spend your entire youth chasing business KPIs while bankrupting your emotional accounts at home, you will face an impoverished retirement, regardless of your bank balance.
It is rare to find a partner in the daily corporate grind who is completely unrelated to you, yet willing to form a lifelong, unbreakable bond. That is why I have always sought business relationships that mirror the loyalty of a family. My father, an accountant, understood this intuitively. Throughout his career, he preferred working with former classmates or within a family corporation. He didn’t want to get lost in an indifferent sea of corporate employment. He boasted about his work because he loved the people he worked with; his colleagues were his family.
This is the exact blueprint I envision for my own business today. I am actively integrating my family into our enterprise as business partners. The goal is two-fold: to ensure they are financially sustained, and to create a platform where I can mentor, coach, and guide them toward profitability and expansion. Looking back, the alignment my wife and I established decades ago was actually the groundwork for a sustainable Family Succession Plan. Because we invested early in their spiritual formation and education, we now have competent, values-driven partners ready to scale the business under our mentorship.
In business, if you do not nurture the product in the R&D phase, the operational costs later on will ruin you. The same applies to parenting. Co-authoring a life strategy with your spouse early on, teaching the right values, and providing continuous guidance ensures that your later years are not spent managing crises, but enjoying a heartwarming welcome from the legacy you built.
***The views expressed herein are his own and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of his office as well as FINEX. For comments, email carlosrheal@yahoo.com. Photo is from Pinterest.