My Top 3 Takeaways from Montana's Next Generation Conference

Kari Lewis
                As a Montana’s Next Generation Conference host committee member, I certainly didn’t get to see as many of the presentations as I would have like, but those that I did see were excellent.  Throughout the talks I noticed some common themes that I hope to apply to my own operation in the coming year.  The following were my top three takeaways.

"You cannot be a low-cost producer
unless you have great records."  Matt Roberts

                First, it’s the low-cost producer that wins.  The low-cost producer is the first producer to start making money when the market begins climbing, and they make money longer into the market cycle as well.  The low-cost producer knows their costs of production.  Matt Roberts, Friday’s keynote speaker, said, “You cannot be a low-cost producer unless you have great records.” 

                This point tied into Travis Standley’s ‘Top Tier Producer’ workshop on Saturday where he said that of the top ranches he has worked with, they know their costs/head/day, and that their budget is far more important to them personally than it is even to their banker.  Whether it’s feed supplement for the cowherd or fertilizer costs for the wheat crop, it is critical to know costs/unit when making decisions.  Standley had ranchers work through an example comparing various feed supplements to illustrate that less dollars/ton may not always be the most economical, it’s cost/head/day that really matters. 

Secondly, “If you want to improve your business, improve your books,” Roberts pointedly said.  Roberts shared that Apple knows their cost of production to the fourth decimal point, yet most farms don’t know their returns within $10/acre.  You must know where you’re making your money in order to know where to put your money.  Did that soil amendment or extra fall supplementation really pay?  Only your records can explain if that was a wise investment or not. 

Lastly, when it comes to farm or ranch transition, Matt Roberts shared two tips.  First, the number one thing that you can do to increase the probability of transferring your operation to the next generation is to improve your bookkeeping.  Secondly, build the farm so you have something to transition.   

“You’re in the absolute most complicated small business in the world,” Matt Roberts shared. As one producer, I can’t control the markets, weather, or Washington politics.  However, I can control my bookkeeping and costs and to me, and that’s a great first step towards striving to be a top tier producer. 

86,400 Seconds

Jesse Fulbright, MSU Liberty County Extension

Time management continues to be a tricky thing for me.  Perhaps it is that all powerful phrase, “No,” that leads to my poor time management.  I seem to have lost the ability to use that word that often.  So, if you, like me, find that time is slipping away, let’s talk about steps of time management.

In going along with the current fad of Marie Kondo’s and decluttering, get organized!  According to a University of Georgia Extension publication, disorganization leads to poor time management.  One common method to getting organized is a method that many people might be familiar with, using the three-box method.  Labeling the boxes, “keep,” “give away,” and “toss,” you can begin to weed through the clutter.  With that clutter out of the way you can then begin a system of organizing information, with whatever method works best for you.

One thing that I have noticed is that even the busiest of people find time for what they want to do and feel is important.  This isn’t a slight to anyone, but a reality.  If you feel strongly about something, such as a community organization, you’ll find time for it, no matter what.  This goes along with scheduling, which is not recording what you have to do.  Scheduling is making a time commitment to the things you want to do.  Good scheduling requires that you know yourself.  If you know when you are the most productive during the day, you can then schedule your most challenging tasks for when you have the most energy.  In scheduling your time though, beware of the temptation to overschedule yourself and schedule in every little detail and scrap of time.  This is a trap I could find myself falling into.  Instead, try to limit your scheduled time to about ¾ of your day, leaving time for other activities, that let you be you.

One time management strategy that I struggle with is delegation.  However, delegation can be a marvelous time-saver if you delegate things appropriately and to the right people.  That allows you to move on to other tasks, that perhaps you have been procrastinating.  Often these are unpleasant or overwhelming tasks.  Try breaking some of these tasks into smaller segments that require less time and result in realistic deadlines.  This doesn’t mean multi-tasking, as recent studies have shown multi-tasking doesn’t actually save time.  This means finishing what you start, even if the task is small, before moving on to the next task. 

Last, give yourself some attention, because if you aren’t healthy, no amount of planning and time management will make things better.  You deserve time for yourself!

A SAD Feeling

Jesse Fulbright, MSU Liberty County Extension

The month of January, while a busy month for Extension with grower meetings and other engagements, is a bit of a letdown month for me after the euphoria of the holiday season.  Others might experience a “down” feeling or feel blue.  This might be something you experience every winter.  Perhaps, like many Americans, a person may be suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder, appropriately known as SAD.

According to multiple Extension sources around the nation, seasonal affective disorder or seasonal depression is a mood disorder that happens every year at the same time, usually in winter.  Some people with SAD experience very mild symptoms and feel “out of sorts” or irritable.  Others have debilitating symptoms that interfere with relationships and productivity.

Criteria to diagnose SAD include a regular relationship between the onset of depressive episodes and the time of year, with it being a repeating pattern for at least the past two years.  The cause of the depression is not related to an obvious seasonal psychosocial stressor, such as being unemployed every winter.  The feeling of depression also will disappear in the spring.  Continuing on, no non-seasonal episodes of depression occur during the same time period. 

So, what causes SAD?  Although the exact cause is unknown, researchers believe that changes in the amount of daily sunlight cause changes in the body’s internal biological clock, known as our circadian rhythm, and in turn, mood altering brain chemicals.  Circadian rhythm is a 24-hour cycle that affects our eating and sleeping patterns, brain wave activity, hormone production, and other biological activities.  In susceptible people, less daily sunlight and the seasonal changes in circadian rhythm can bring on depression and negative thinking.  Experts also believe that reduced sunlight during fall and winter leads to lower production levels of the “feel good” chemical serotonin in the brain.  When you are “a quart low in serotonin,” you can feel tired, depressed, and crave carbohydrates.

Here are some ways to counteract the effects of SAD:  First, get more sunlight.  Ways to do this are enjoying the outdoors during sun hours and, when indoors, having a window near where one sits or works during the sunny part of the day.  Eat healthy foods and exercise.  Spend time doing enjoyable activities with positive and upbeat people.  Prescribed light therapy may make a difference for some people in treating the symptoms of SAD.  This involves exposure to a very bright light (usually fluorescent) for 30 minutes or more each day during the winter months.  Some people may need mental health therapy and/or prescription anti-depressants during this time of the year.  Avoid alcohol and illegal drugs, which can impair one’s judgment when making decisions and dealing with other people and could make SAD worse.  Finally, please don’t be afraid to seek professional help.  Being healthy physically, as well as mentally is vitally important to us all.

Financial Recordkeeping- An Important Life Skill!

Jesse Fulbright, MSU Liberty County Extension

Many, if not all of us, use some sort of recordkeeping in our lives.  That used to involve a checkbook register primarily.  While some still keep financial records that way, there are other, more efficient ways, especially if you are running a business, such as a farm corporation. 

In many cases people feel overwhelmed by record keeping because it takes time, a change in behavior and for some, the requirement to learn a new skill or software.  For many, when they need a new equipment part they may run to town and purchase it, put the receipt in their pocket or throw it on the dash of their truck.  Perhaps this is a stereotype or a broad, sweeping generalization.  However, the image can be painted fairly easily, no matter if we are talking a piece of equipment or a drink at the store.  Often, the receipt from a transaction is either destroyed in the laundry or blows out the window and never does get recorded.  The result is inaccurate records. 

Good record keeping requires the discipline to record each and every transaction that occurs for your business regardless of how great or small.  Without having basic knowledge of our income and expenses how can someone make an informed decision about their business?  Proper accounting can assist many farms and businesses in knowing the value of their business. 

According to a Michigan State University Extension publication there are two basic forms of accounting that are considered standard: accrual accounting and cash accounting.

Accrual accounting is used by most businesses outside of production agriculture.  It necessitates recording all transactions when they take place regardless of whether or not cash has actually been exchanged.  For example, if producer A has done some custom work for neighboring producer B, producer A sends producer B an invoice for the custom work.  Although producer A has not yet been paid, the transaction is recorded in the accounting as an Account Receivable and Producer B would record the transaction as an Account Payable.  This system makes it very easy to track all services rendered (income and expenses) thereby allowing a producer to see exactly what has occurred within a year’s period of time.

Cash accounting, which is accepted for use within production agriculture and only a few other industries, means recording transactions only when cash is either received or paid out.  In the previous example no record would be entered because no cash transaction has occurred.  Once producer B finally pays producer A, a transaction would be recorded.  When using the cash accounting system accrual adjustments have to be made in order to provide the necessary information to create financial ratios that can help determine the strength of the farm or business.  Cash accounting is the most used and widely accepted method of accounting for production agriculture.

Heads up! Three deadlines coming quickly!

Happy New Year!  We have LOTS of Extension programs coming up, so I wanted to highlight them and remind you of their registration deadlines that are soon approaching.

This Friday, January 4, is our deadline to register for the Calvin’ Fever – Ladies Day out workshop, which is NEXT Saturday, January 12 in Shelby.  Calving season is not far off and this will be tremendous opportunity to brush up before those calves start hitting the ground.  We are extremely fortunate to have Dr. Steven Hjartarson of the Northern Vet Clinic of Cut Bank on hand to share about calving difficulties and how to manage them, he has a tremendous amount of practical knowledge and we’re really looking forward to having him!  We’ll also cover calving management and newborn calf care, with some great hands-on activities you don’t want to miss as well!  The class is just $10, which includes snacks, materials, and lunch!  If you would like to wrap up the afternoon with a fun freezer meals session which will include making meals to stock your freezer for calving, that’s just $15 addition and it will be well worth it!  Contact the Pondera County Extension office to register by this Friday, January 4. 

Next week are our local MSU Extension Cropping Seminars around the Golden Triangle which will cover paraquat safety, cropping systems, pest management, integrated weed management, herbicide resistance, marketing, and risk management.  Our seminar in Cut Bank will be Wednesday, January 9, in the Glacier County Library basement, with registration beginning at 8:30 a.m.  In Cut Bank, our lunchtime speaker will be Greg Stordahl, Montana Department of Agriculture State Grain Lab Bureau Chief who will speak on Crop Quality Issues of 2018.  The seminar is free, and lunch is provided, but we ask that you RSVP to our office by this coming Monday, January 7 so we can get a headcount on lunch.  There will be three pesticide points available.  For those of you out of the Cut Bank area, contact your local Extension Office for seminar details. 

Lastly, our Early Bird rates for Montana’s Next Generation Conference ends next Friday, January 11.  Be sure to get on our website, www.mtnextgen.com, for a complete conference agenda and registration details.  There is nowhere in Montana that there’s the variety of topics and caliber of speakers as there is at Montana’s Next Generation Conference, this is one event you certainly don’t want to miss!  We’ve had folks comment that just the food alone is worth the registration cost, and the education is outstanding to boot!  Again, register at www.mtnextgen.com by next Friday for the Early Bird pricing.   

Please contact our office with any questions at 406-873-2239 or kari.lewis@montana.edu.