You can sell your business, the cash you can leave to your kids, is upper bounded by how high you can get into the corporate ladder, which for most people, is not very high. Your family can always sell your business and get that cash. I was also referring to a profitable business, not a startup (is pretty uncommon for people to leave startups to their next in kin). I know people who have someone else running their family business (with a pretty good deal for both parties) and focus on other stuff they care about.