(Ecns.cn)--As more and more kids from the rich second generation (Rich 2G) hit their 20s, it is inevitable that these people who were born with a silver spoon in their mouths need to face the reality that soon they will say goodbye to their fairy-tale-like life and carry on the tough job of many of their parents' businesses.
Different from their parents who went from rags to riches during China's early stages of "opening up," Rich 2G members are seen as a spoiled generation and are often criticized for taking less responsibility and showing an inclination to indulge themselves in pleasure-seeking activities.
Lacking the ability to endure hardship and bring things into operation make the parents of these Rich 2G members worry that these children will not be qualified to take over their businesses.
Because of these fears, a booming industry that offers courses to these heirs has been rapidly developed in China. Classes that include horse riding, swordsmanship, golf, wine tasting, "Red ideology," and other techniques for steering a company are taught by training schools. Their aim is to promote skills that will be useful for their future lives.
Despite the high tuition fees that typically run to tens of thousands of yuan, the special class schedule, and the goodwill of their parents, most of the Rich 2G members seem to not be that interested in the training programs.
A "brand new" generation
"The Rich 2G members are really different from the older generation," said Wu Ping who is now a teacher at a training school for some of the young heirs in Shanghai and used to be a teacher for many Chinese successful entrepreneurs.
These children, though having been arranged to attend these training schools by their parents, often do not take these classes to heart and pay no attention to the schools' disciplines. Whether they attend the classes or not depends on their mood and the content of the classes.
"If they are unhappy or have other places to go, they merely do not show up to class and give no advanced notification. And sometimes they are just late to classes or leave earlier than others," said Wu.
"But the older generation, though most of them are famous businessmen, have a very strong sense of discipline. They go to class on time and no matter how busy they are, they will come to the class," recalled Wu.
"Success cannot be achieved easily. If you do not work hard, you will ultimately be replaced by others," said Wu who thinks that these young children need to undergo some difficulties in their life, and then they may be able to take over for their parents.
"For most of these training schools, the training span is no longer than one and a half years. If these kids cannot insist on finishing their classes, how can they be able to face challenges in their future jobs," said another teacher in Wu's school.
