Farm Futures is, at its heart, about analysis. If you’re talking about it we’re writing about it. But what about the things you think about – the worries that take hold of you at night long after the rest of the world has shut down for the evening?  

That question - What keeps you up at night? -- was offered in our nationwide poll in late July and garnered over 800 responses.

When we decided to ask that quirky question we weren’t sure what we would hear, or how to ‘quantify’ the responses. Some of you were miffed that we even asked such an open-ended question.

But we did, and we got an earful.

Some of your answers were thoughtful, some worrisome, and some downright hilarious. Taken together they paint a picture of people who care about their work, family and the future; people with hopes, fears and dreams.

No surprise here

Based on our survey, the greatest cause of sleepless nights for farmers is… marketing and grain prices. No surprise, right? Over 18% of you said this was the leading cause of insomnia. About 12% of you told us finances kept you up at night. Bills to pay, payments to make. No surprise there, either. The next big worry was your health at 9%, followed by weather at just 6%.  

We got a lot of ‘bad,’ as in: “bad back,” “bad food,” “bad leaders.”

Related:This is how you farm without government help

We did have a few readers say they worried about COVID, but not as many as you might think considering we’re living through a worldwide pandemic.

And perhaps most interesting? Some 15% of you said “nothing” – you sleep like a baby. That’s a testament to a lot of things such as a great support system, faith in God, and good decision-making despite working in a very risky job. So, hats off to you folks.

Others were not so fortunate. If you read between the lines, you’ll find a lot of frustration that goes well beyond low grain prices. “Not having a positive agricultural future for my son,” wrote one concerned grower. Another offered: “Someone else is making my decisions. I feel like a puppet.”

Yet another said a mouthful: “Worrying if I'll make enough money on my 2020 crops to cover my operating loans and a couple small loan payments on equipment without having to pay for the loans from my full-time job…because farming is not profitable for the last few years…and now, Covid.”

That covers a lot of ground.

We have readers who don’t mind stating their political views. Yes, we had a lot of “Never Biden” and “Never Trump” in the responses. But we also had this very direct point about government policy:

“Being penalized (not receiving aid) for having managed my commodity sales and not sitting on a year’s worth of corn/soybeans. The CFAP program rewarded growers that clearly didn’t need the money, if they still had more than 50% of their crops left … they should not have been rewarded for holding onto the crops beyond the traditional marketing window.”

Related:Here’s why some farmers get Uncle Sam’s help while others go without

Of course, we had some comedians, too. A few folks thought our question was a literal ask. Some 2% said your wife kept you up. One wrote: “enlarged prostate” (too much information, friend). A handful said, “the dog,” a few more said, “caffeine” or “coffee” while another wrote, “caffeine, alcohol and sex.” Yet another wrote, “Sex...I keep wondering where it went!”

As the brits might say: cheeky!

Did I say comedians?

Here are four more that focus on Washington:

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Thanks to those who shared your thoughts with us. What keeps you up at night? Email me at [email protected]

The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of Farm Futures or Farm Progress.