The week of June 10, Farm Journal is celebrating the next generation of American agriculture. Our goal is to encourage you to plan for the future and cultivate multigenerational success through the transfer of skills and knowledge. Think tomorrow, act today to align your asset, resource and financial legacy.
Cody Goodknight
Chattanooga, Okla.
“My dad taught me to be above average — never be complacent. Now is the time to figure out what you are passionate about, whether it be in crops and/or livestock, and what you can do to stand out. The time of being an average farmer is a recipe to go broke. You need do everything you can do to be above average and do what you can to set yourself apart. Otherwise you are going to be a middle of the road farmer, and that’s a recipe to go broke.”
Chase Dewitz
Steele, N.D.
“A lot of farmers are wrapped up in the farm; everything is about the farm. They don’t have any other outside investments, and they don’t have any lifestyle outside farm. I have been involved in a number of other things financially outside of the farm, and that helps drive you to get your mind on something else you’re involved in that you’re not seeing or working with every single day. I think that’s where the emotion gets so wrapped up in farming. Most farmers are farming 24 hours a day. Everything in their head is about that farm and farming. Then, that ties up all the emotion in and about the farm. You’ve got to be able to let go of that and take emotion out of the business of farming.”
You can apply for The Top Producer Next Gen Award
Maggie Holub
Scribner, Neb.
“One goal I have in the year ahead is diversification and to keep my small town main street vibrant. I’ve purchased our local fitness center in Scribner, Neb., and plan to renovate, add group fitness classes, and make it a wellness community attraction.”
Matt Splitter
Sterling, Kan.
“As a young business owner, we are a modern family living in a dying culture. Agriculture as an industry isn’t dying, but I’ve been a pallbearer more times than I’ve been a groomsman. I’ve been to probably three times more funerals than I’ve been to weddings in my life. The average age of my landowners is in their 70s. We are around more aging folks than growing families. It affects how we manage our business relationships. It has also shaped a reality of death. So as a young family ourselves, and as young business owners, we have to think about how we can be the type of family we want to be when their aren’t a lot of people just like us or in the same stage of life as we are. And we are trying to reinvest in our community and, when we can, recruit new team members to move in.”
Janna Splitter
Sterling, Kan.
“We’ve shifted how we speak about our operation. It’s about framing our farm in a way that doesn’t put us in a box. When you say you farm, people automatically have an impression of what that means in their perspective. So now when we’re having conversations, we introduce ourselves as: We operate a small business. Then they’ll almost always ask what is our business, and we can share a bit more. It’s not to bury the lead, but it is a small shift in the way we can change public perception of what we do. In reality, running a farm is a small business that faces many of the same challenges like all businesses do. This is one way we can highlight that.”
Do you qualify for the Top Producer Next Gen Award?
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