Dear Dairy Farmer,
I know, it’s bad…
I just finished the book Shoe Dog, a memoir by Phil Knight, the founder of Nike.
The book sat quite well with me and had many passages that I could relate to, forks in the road where I have stood or where I stand. I find myself going back to paragraphs and reading them over and over.
I share this with you as I see parallels.
Mr. Knight looks at the tread on a sneaker as we do a newly planted field. He smells rubber like we breathe in the aroma of the freshly plowed earth. He chooses shoe glue like we choose seed corn.
Many mornings, Mr. Knight looks out across a factory floor and hears stitches being sewn, while we peer into the milking parlor, listening to the pulsation of the milking units. Money, money, money.
And, at the end of the day, we both sit down and look at a balance sheet, decide which bills to pay, and plot the course for tomorrow.
“I’ve spent a fair portion of my life in debt. As a young entrepreneur I became distressingly familiar with that feeling of going to sleep each night, waking up each day, owing many people a sum far greater than I could repay.” -Phil Knight
Sound familiar?
First and foremost, like Mr. Knight, farmers are business owners. Sometimes this is easily forgotten as other roles dominate the daily tasks within the farm business: steward of the land, caretaker of the animals, carpenter, vet, groundskeeper, and the list goes on …
All too often, heart and ego take over in the decision-making process, which is not always the best role for either.
Our struggles as business owners in farming, technology, sales of tractors, or shoemaking are similar and deal with the same issue: Business ebbs and flows.
In good times, we take our eye off the mark, as we feel relief after enduring the intensity of the hard times.
During those hard times, we are forced to re-adjust, pull it in, scrutinize, and wait for the tide to turn. With tweaks and adjustments, we search for reassurance that we made the right decisions.
When will the money come?
There is no guarantee. What worked yesterday is probably not the answer for today. We know this because there is a very high matriculation rate for small businesses, in all industries, farms included.
“And those who urge entrepreneurs to never give up? Charlatans. Sometimes you have to give up. Sometimes knowing when to give up, when to try something else, is genius. Giving up doesn’t mean stopping. Don’t ever stop.” -Phil Knight
Businesses that think outside the box, change with the demands, and, possibly, move out of their comfort zones, and in a totally different direction, survive. Those who don’t, or won’t, fail.
Are you made of grit or fluff?
There is no entitlement to success, whether you are a 5th generation farmer or an owner to a communications business. It’s the same. You must find the wherewithal to make difficult decisions and act fearlessly, changing the course to ensure survival.
Find new ways, be innovative, creative, and hardworking.
Business owning, farm owning, is not a spectator sport. Every day must be an intentional decision to survive and thrive. Don’t stop.
“Short of that, I’d like to share the experience, the ups and downs, so that some young man or woman, somewhere, going through the same trials and ordeals, might be inspired or comforted. Or warned. Some young entrepreneur, maybe, some athlete or painter or novelist [or farmer-KZ], might press on. It’s all the same drive. The same dream.” -Phil Knight
So let’s try this again.
Dear Dairy Farmer,
I know, it’s bad … but you can do whatever you set out to do. Just do something … don’t stop.
With thought,
Kate
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