Farm4Profit Podcast
Profit More from a Positive Mindset
Episode Summary
Joel Lange from Lange Farms near Jefferson, Iowa joins us to share what is working on his farm from lower population corn to an automated grain cart. Joel then helps us shed light on how approaching life, the farm, and everyday trials with a positive mindset can boost your overall profitability.
Episode Notes
- Please Like, Share, Review
- What’s working for Ag – listener or farmer feedback
- Contribute through www.farm4profit.com or farm4profitllc@gmail.com
- How much effect does having a positive outlook on life have on farm profitability?
- A technique I learned that can help with developing a new habit I learned from another podcast. Taking care of a house plant. I know as farmers you help grow and raise all kinds of plants and animals, but focusing energy on a specific house or office plant helps build a habit. The habit for today is having a positive mind set. I struggle with this at times.
- Pick out a plant, not a cactus, and plant it properly in a pot indoors. Place it in a fairly high traffic area so you have to walk by it. Make a mental note each time you walk buy it to have a better attitude or see the positive in things. Each time you water it, fertilize it, or rotate it for sunlight be thinking about the good side of the problems you are facing.
- Why is this important?
- Attitude is contagious. If you have family or employees around you more than likely they are observing your perception and attitude.
- Create the culture of your employees embracing challenges and tackling them.
- Solve the challenges proactively before they become large challenges. This makes them seem less daunting and less negative.
- Don’t be afraid of future problems, reframe the thinking to anticipate where problems may be coming from. (bearings, tires, over sleeping employees, etc…)
- If you don’t know, be vulnerable. Ask for help before the challenge gets out of hand. Surround yourself with experts who will be honest with you and treat you fairly.
- Problems are inevitable – don’t let them take you by surprise.
- Start small and grow. Spilled drink, late employee, flat tire, self-repairable breakdown, and so on
- Use them as teaching moments. You, employees, children, team
- “The Seeing Eye” – training program for guide dogs and the vision impaired. “Seeing Eye has taught me to walk tall, raise my face, without fear, to the sun, wind, and rain. They have taught me to trust in myself.”
- Focus on you goals – not so much on the journey there
- Each task or action is a step towards the goal and we learn from each one.
- Take a step back – we’ve heard this cliché, but some of the most successful business owners and farmers thrive by taking a look at a problem from a step back. Embrace it and see the opportunities to better a process, grow an employee or yourself, and get closer to the goal.
- Summarize
- The people around you will work harder with you and for you if your attitude towards challenges becomes one of growth. Work hard to anticipate and expect problems to happen. When they do take care of them calmly with a thought out process. Work to make the experience a learning opportunity and move towards the goals your farm has in place.
- Challenge
- Start with yourself. Do I over react? Am I easily angered or always negative? What is something I could work on first? Buy that plant and begin framing your mind up into one that seeing the positive side of things. Next, identify a regular occurring problem that you can practice with. (Flat tires, late reports, supplies being out) Then, work on graduating up to solving the problems before they happen!
- Conference Update
- Submit questions and topic suggestions