As an entrepreneur, I often think about my legacy. I created an ethical will to share my values with my kids.

• Eric Becker is the founder and co-chairman of Cresset, a wealth management firm.
• He’s also a dad of three, including a daughter who died at the age of 21.
• His new book focuses on how companies last 100 years or more.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Eric Becker, author of “The Long Game: A Playbook of the World’s Most Enduring Companies.” It has been edited for length and clarity.

When I was in my 40s, I became fascinated with the idea of an ethical will. It’s not a financial document, but an ancient tradition in which a matriarch or patriarch passes their knowledge to future generations.

I spent two years writing the document, which I hoped to eventually share with my three kids. I included a bit of family history, like the fact that my grandfather used to write the nightlife column for a Baltimore newspaper, highlighting the local jazz clubs. I talked about my own values and our family’s relationship with education.

Then, when I was in my early 50s, my daughter Cara died unexpectedly in her sleep. She had cancer, but her prognosis was great. Unfortunately, she had a fatal reaction to her chemotherapy.

Losing Cara was bone-crushingly painful. I was in a terrible state. Then I stumbled upon my ethical will and thought, “I used to know that guy.” I could see the values and beliefs of the man I was before Cara’s death.

I had created the will for future generations, but it ultimately saved me.

I continued my family legacy of entrepreneurship

Looking at the ethical will, I saw that entrepreneurship was part of our family legacy. My grandfather used to play jazz in those nightclubs he wrote about. My dad was the Jewish king of Christmas. As a college student, he paid his frat brothers to dress up as mall Santas, and that became our family business for 53 years.

My brother and I carried on that legacy, starting a health business in the early 1980s. We eventually sold it to Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and I retired. But a few years after Cara’s death, I realized I missed investing.

I had a close friend who was driven by his values and beliefs, like I was. I had been humbled by losing a child; he’s been humbled by his own cancer diagnosis. Together, we opened Cresset, a wealth management company that’s built around serving families.

I became fascinated with multigenerational companies

Throughout all this, I was fascinated by what made some companies stand the test of time. I’d seen a write-up of the oldest companies in Maryland. There, among household names like utility companies, was a tent rental business, Loade Bros. They had been in business for 200 years.

I was in awe. I learned that the founder had moved to Baltimore as a sailmaker in 1815. The business expanded into flags, civil war tents, and awnings. Today, I can still rent a tent from them.

Whenever my family went on vacation, I would look up the oldest companies and try to meet with their leaders. In Italy, I met a man whose family’s olive oil business had been in operation since the 1500s. He was the 33rd generation.

I want my company to last for 100 years

As I talked with more company leaders, I realized that there were common plays that helped companies survive. The first is the idea of stewardship: the owners and executives always believed that the company was bigger than one individual. As a result, they implemented ethical and intentional succession plans, nurturing the next generation of leadership.

These companies aren’t slow or outdated — quite the opposite. When they recognize a pivotal moment, they act decisively. They’re keenly aware of the decisions that are most important.

I was surprised to see that the playbook is the same, whether a company is large or small, located in the US or abroad.

When I founded Cresset, I always said it would be a 100-year project. I’m 63, so I know it will outlive me. That long-term vision is a strong guiding force, just like the ethical will is for my family.

I never shared the ethical will with Cara before she died, but I’ve shared it with my sons. Whether in business or at home, planning for the legacy we’ll leave is powerful.

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