By Kevin Schulz
The Land Editor
August 29, 2008 03:11 am
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This summer my family and I took a wonderful vacation to the east coast. We had our general course plotted out, had all the reservations made, knew the sites we wanted to see.
Along the way we would check into our lodging or stop to eat and talk with the locals about our travels. We’d inquire about specific sites and how to find them, and the common question came back, “well, you have a GPS, don’t you?”
Well, no, we didn’t have a GPS. We have a road map, and we knew where we wanted to go. That’s good enough, right?
Not necessarily.
When we take these trips, I usually drive and my wife navigates. We usually make a pretty good team. East Coast driving, however, became a little trying for the two of us.
As we were trying to maneuver around the Boston area, we had had enough and broke down to join the rest of the techno crowd. We went to the nearest Best Buy to buy a GPS system.
What a lifesaver. It saved the trip, sweat under my collar and kept the girls from learning some creative uses of the English language.
I am now a firm believer — everyone should have a GPS.
I’m not talking about the GPS model such as I bought; most everyone has one of those already. I’m speaking of a GPS metaphorically. Everyone needs to have some device or system that helps them get to where they need to, or want to, be. A “Grand Plan to Success,” if you will.
As I said before, we knew where we needed to get to, we even had the specific address of our lodging, but unfamiliarity with the territory made finding our way difficult.
Every farmer and family knows where they want to be — financially independent. But how do you get there? Especially in the unfamiliar territory of the recent marketing climate.
Everyone needs to have a plan specific to their situation. No one cookie-cutter plan will work for everyone. Not everyone has the same overhead, same standards of living or the same amount of risk they are willing to withstand.
Extension livestock educator Chuck Schwartau offers some tips for the planning process on Page 6B. His tips come from the “Dairy OnTime” project, but can be applicable to any Minnesota operation.
A big step in any farm plan needs to revolve around the marketing of the farm’s product. Every producer needs to hone their marketing skills by taking a top-notch marketing course. I don’t care if you’ve taken marketing courses in the past. Markets of late have changed the climate so much and old marketing standbys may not be the best tools to use today.
The Land’s “Grain Angles” columnist Dennis Kelly has always stressed the importance of a good marketing plan. In today’s installment, found on Page 24A, Kelly writes of the importance of a thorough enterprise analysis and getting a good handle on cost of production projections for the 2009 crop.
It’s been said that anybody can make money on $5 corn. That may be true, but why not make the most money possible. Find a marketing analyst you trust or enroll in a Farm Business Management course, but most importantly learn all that you can from whoever you can.
Even though you may know where you want to go, don’t lose your way.
Kevin Schulz is the editor of The Land. He may be reached at editor@thelandonline.com.
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