Learning farmer’s inspiring breakthroughs.

I was extremely fortunate to have been born on a successful, highly mechanised farm in central NSW, Australia. It was a mixed farm with a long riverfrontage, and my early learning experiences were fun.

I hope this case study will help you through the droughts, floods, fires, and the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic and whatever problems and frustrations you might face.

See a Case Study by Peter Sergeant in the Knowledge Base.

Learning should be fun.

I worked on the farm throughout my formative years, even driving tractors before I could reach the pedals while sitting on the seat. I attribute many of the vital life and business principles I’ve learned to the grounding I received from my father and his friends while working on the farm.

My tertiary education at Hawkesbury Agricultural College strengthened my appreciation of agriculture, horticulture, and animal husbandry and gave me a clearer understanding of the basic principles.

Throughout these years, I studied the processes of many farmers carefully. This enhanced my knowledge, which led to starting my first business at the age of 23. The agricultural machinery business exposed me to many more prosperous farmers, humour, innovation, and wisdom.

I want to share some of their wisdom with you, as many valuable ideas can be adapted to improve any business or organisation, particularly during hard times. It’s just a matter of applying good action-oriented understanding, and you will improve your performance. 

Learn how farmers plan their operations.

Farming is an increasingly competitive, complicated, and risky business, and making well-informed decisions is a significant factor in having a profitable farm. Like other businesses, farmers are subject to the four seasons, world markets, and commodity prices beyond their control. 

They know they will have many sleepless nights if they don’t plan. They prepare for certain types of crops while also considering the kind of soil they have, the fertilisers and irrigation they need to use, and crop rotations. It takes a long time before a farmer can reap the harvest, so planning must be clear, practical and hard-nosed.

Take a look at the basics. Before a crop even starts growing, it has to develop roots. When a crop is first planted, it begins as seeds, and then before it becomes a plant, it has to form its roots before it does anything else.  As a calf matures, it must learn how to become a cow. How good are the foundational roles in your organisation for developing a sound business in the future? 

Take up the ‘farmer learning challenge.’

My challenge is to build organisations and communities by thinking and learning like a farmer. Start planning all your inputs and outputs. Think about the seasonal fluctuations and risks you could face, as they won’t disappear.

Learning to plant ‘seeds’ (ideas) daily helps businesses grow successfully. Go out and plant something great, something you want to be in your future. Consider the roots you’re planting in your business and personal life because, without roots, nothing grows, and you can quickly end up in the wrong places. 

Quotable quotes.

“When tillage begins, other arts follow. The farmers, therefore, are the founders of human civilisation”. Daniel Webster

“You don’t buy a farm; you buy water and soil first if you want to be successful”. Alan Sergeant

“Each of us has about 40 chances to accomplish our goals in life. I learned this first through agriculture because all farmers can expect to have about 40 growing seasons, giving them just 40 chances to improve on every harvest”. Howard Buffett