In ag (and any other industry), it’s the truth that there are some people who seem to be more open to change – and some who are less open.

In fact, some people might even be downright against seemingly any change, even when the change might be helpful or provide an advantage for their farm operation. You might even have known some farmers like this during your career. You could even be farming their ground now because they just weren’t able to adapt to the changing landscape of today’s ag world.

The truth is that change is hard for every single person. That’s why I believe that the saying, “In order for change to happen, the pain of staying the same has to become greater than the pain of change” is absolutely true. But why does it have to get to that point? Why aren’t most people able to recognize when change will be helpful, advantageous or just plain necessary – before the situation becomes painful?

Feeling the pain

Most people – farmers included – are inclined to keep doing the same thing the same way. It depends somewhat on your personality as far as how open you naturally are to make changes or try doing something differently. But for most people, a problem must become very painful before they come to the point of making a major change.

When thinking about farm businesses, this can become a problem quickly. For some farmers, the answer to any question involving change might sound something like this: “Because we’ve always done it that way.” But in today’s fast-paced ag world, continuing to do something simply because that’s the way it’s always been done isn’t sustainable and doesn’t keep your farm competitive.

Three questions

Think through these three questions anytime there’s a problem at hand where making a change might make a big difference.

Market changes

On the farm, an aspect that many farmers find can be difficult to bring change to is around their marketing strategy. Often, farmers find themselves doing the same thing each year in their marketing – and that might work out sometimes – or it might not.

A tailored marketing plan that’s flexible with market moves is key. Our market advisors partner with and bring education around different marketing tools. They help farmer clients with planning and execution around marketing decisions.

Get a free two-week trial of our marketing information service (MarketView Basic). Your trial includes regular audio and video updates, technical analysis, recommendations and more. Or learn more about our market advisor programs and offerings at www.waterstreetconsulting,com.