On the farm, the leader’s focus tends to be on essential operations to produce a great crop, and rightfully so. Leaders are constantly asking themselves questions like:

These are important questions that the leaders of top farm operations are constantly asking themselves. They are always working to improve their farms and make them more efficient, even if it’s a 1% improvement each year. Over time, those 1% improvements really add up to something great!

Invest in yourself

The truth is, though, that the farm’s greatest asset isn’t going to be a brand new piece of machinery or the best, newest farm shop out there. The reality is that the farm’s greatest asset is the farm leader – that’s right, it’s you.

Why is the farm’s leader the greatest asset? The more you can bring to your operation in terms of your leadership abilities and skills, the more your operation will benefit. A leader who is consistently working to improve their own skills will then bring those abilities to work on their operation. They also will likely inspire and motivate the other people on the farm to work to advance their own skills, too.

So if you are the farm’s greatest asset, how are you investing in yourself? And what kind of return do you think you’ll see? The potential return can be as large as the work and effort that you choose to put in, and what you choose to direct your energy toward in your learning.

Where to start

What do you see as the main abilities and skills that will be required of the top farm leaders of the future? And what does your unique operation need from you – both now and in the desired future you imagine for it? Answering those two questions should give you a great start toward figuring out the best place for you to invest in yourself and your leadership.

One of the biggest areas that top farm leaders see that they can invest in themselves to bring more success to their operations is in their business, financial, and marketing skills. Deciding to spend more time learning and practicing these skills is a wise decision for farm leaders who realize that they truly are their farm’s greatest asset.

How will you plan to work on your business, financial or marketing skills this fall and winter once harvest is in the books? Now is a great time to map out some learning goals and find someone who can come alongside you on that journey – as a teacher and adviser.

You might enlist your lender if you are interested in working on your financial skills – if they have the heart of a teacher, they know it will only help both of your toward your goals for you to become more skilled at this. You can also seek out an adviser to help build your marketing skills and financial skills.

How are you navigating this market?

Farmers have found that getting some third-party perspective from our market advisers has helped ease their minds. The advisers help farmer clients with planning and execution around marketing decisions and help keep them up to speed on the rapidly-changing grain market situation – and how it impacts their operation.

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