Over the years, I learned a lot from my students in ag class. While we were pumping manure last fall, I passed one of my former students who was applying lime to another farmer’s field. When we passed, he immediately called me to see how I was doing. Then I asked him if he liked what he was doing. He said he loved his job working at a quarry doing multiple outdoor things with machinery and then he said, “I can’t believe I did my other job for 21 years knowing now how much I like doing this.”
He was the best welder I ever had in ag class. I wish I could say that I taught him that, but I didn’t do anything special. My assumption is that because he was so skilled at welding, he thought that is what he should do. He did that for 21 years and I can guarantee you he did it well. Then he took a little chance stepping away from what he was great at only to find out that he now loves what he is doing operating equipment. He ended by saying, “I can’t believe I didn’t make this change sooner.”
So, I was being reminded by a student about the importance of being willing to change. He was comfortable welding, but now he has discovered something even better. Is there something you’re resisting change on and as a result missing an opportunity? Sometimes people are so comfortable and set in what they are doing that I shake my head because I can see them missing something, but they are unwilling to change.
One time I met with a young farmer who had a 16-row planter and was working hard to get started. I asked him about his dad’s situation, and he said his dad had a bunch of land he would not rent to him because the dad had an 8-row wide (38”) planter. His dad told him that if he did not use the 8-row wide planter, he would not rent him his ground. Dad would not change his mind and was missing the opportunity to work with his son. How crazy is that?
Then I met with a farming heir who had an absolutely perfect scenario laid out to him by his parents. The total land buyout costs were less than most farmers pay for rent, and he would end up owning the whole farm, but he would not pay a life insurance premium making things fair to his siblings. His parents were giving him a $80/acre rent reduction but wouldn’t pay $40/acre for life insurance to own the whole farm. He wasn’t willing to change.
Then I had a family that had an attorney friend who had worked with their family for years. When a spouse passed away and the surviving spouse wanted to work with the attorney “friend” who told them it would cost $80,000 to close the estate. I know multiple other attorneys who would’ve easily closed that estate for $10,000 or less. Would the surviving spouse be willing to change to save $70,000?
It's kind of crazy how many times we are either comfortable or stubborn, but either way we become very resistant to change, while opportunities for something better slide right on by.
I sure was thankful for that phone conversation with my former student that day. He unknowingly reminding me how we all need to have our eyes open for opportunity, even if that involves a little change. The happiness in his voice was undeniable. For him it clearly was not too late to change. It left me wondering, “Is there something I need to change?” If you are reading this, it is not too late for you. But if we are reading about you then it will be too late.
Myron Friesen is the co-owner of Farm Financial Strategies Inc. in Osage, Iowa. He can be contacted at 866-524-3636 or friesen@farmestate.com.
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May 29, 2021 at 05:34PM
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It's never too late to change course - AG Week
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