Ken Ma, a 32-year-old M.B.A. who is being groomed to become the CEO of his parents’ optical empire, Mott Optical Group, recalls the difficulty of taking over as a “boss’s son” in a family business: “I thought, I am the son of the owner; I can’t make mistakes. People are looking at me—I have to set a good example, I have to be flawless, I have to be knowledgeable about everything.” Ma took the long way to his family business—circling back after trying his hand in banking, teaching English in China, and trying to launch his own start-up. The Atlantic spoke with Ma in the spring of 2018. Click here to read the full story about how Ma is expanding his parents’ optical-shop empire.