Family-owned enterprises grapple with a significant hurdle as the younger generations display a reluctance to assume the responsibility of overseeing and managing the business. While existing research extensively supports the notion of a positive parental role modeling effect in shaping children's entrepreneurial intentions, scant attention has been given to contradictory evidence. This study, grounded in the principles of social learning theory, investigates how the challenges faced by parents in business ownership can negatively influence their children's decisions regarding succession in family businesses. Specifically, we posit that parental work-home interference and entrepreneurial exhaustion have an adverse impact on children's willingness to inherit the family business. Furthermore, we argue that the link between work-home interference and children's intentions to take over the family business is mediated by entrepreneurial exhaustion. Our study, based on a sample of Iranian parent entrepreneurs and their children, provides empirical support for these hypotheses. We discuss the implications of our findings for both research and practical applications.