Profitable Farmer

And so, I continue my series of interviews with remarkable rural Australian women.   Ladies & gentlemen, meet Lyn Sykes.   Spending some time in nursing and counselling in her early career, Lyn found herself invited to help a group of farmers better manage family communication… and the rest, as they say, is history!   Thirty years plus and a highly successful career later, Lyn has become an icon in our industry on all things family alignment, communication and succession.   Having studied with Lyn over 20 years ago as a ‘whipper-snapper’ farm consultant, it is with great pleasure that I re-connect with her to discuss a host of critical family farming topics, including:   where and why farm succession goes wrong; how communication can fall apart; what helps make it right; Lyn’s process for fostering good outcomes; and the role you best play as the mother, father, son, daughter, in-law or out-law to each succession conversation!   As you will glean, I have a lot of respect for Lyn. I see he

Strong Commodity Prices, a favourable season (for many!), low interest rates and strong capital gains… have you EVER seen such optimism?   In Greg Johnsson’s opinion – this is (for most!) about as good as it gets.   And he is right – if you are not making solid profits now, there could be something wrong in your farm business.   In this Podcast, I call on FOA Founder and fellow Director Greg Johnsson to answer three key questions:   What do we do to make the most of the optimism we are experiencing? How can we justify an expansion step given the current land values? What are the key financial metrics I need to be monitoring to make the best on-farm decisions at this time?   Greg is second to none in the on-farm analysis space and shares the importance of knowing your numbers, benchmarking, and making robust, confident decisions based on the numbers in front of us.   Importantly, for those wanting to develop your financial skill-set, I give a real insight into FOA’s Farm Financial Framework pro

Do you have an overly active mind and struggle at times with overthinking ??   Trust me on this. YOU ARE NOT ALONE.   As farmers, we often work alone and have a heap of time to think… deeply… about things that serve us AND things that may not.   This interview with FOA Head Coach Tracy Secombe reminds us that we are trained to be ‘in our heads’ and logically problem-solve to ‘manufacturer’ our goals, plans, and futures. This can become exhausting, and perhaps there is an alternative way of creating your future you might like to explore…   I used to overthink intensely, and it has taken me to a chapter in my life where I suffered from low self-esteem, depression and burnout. Learning to take control of this has been a major turning point in my life.   As farm-focused entrepreneurs, being aware of, being able to slow down and then master our thoughts is fundamental to our success.   Not doing this can be a significant contributor to mental fatigue, burnout, low self-esteem and depression. In this

If you love food & cooking, Maggie Beer is Australia’s much-loved national icon and go-to authority. If you love your kids, it’s Maggie Dent! Well-known to many of you and revered as the ‘The Queen of Common Sense’, Maggie is an absolute champion on all things parenting. Maggie’s roots are very strongly tied to Agriculture. She is passionate about this community – our strength, endurance, resilience, and success for our families. She gets it. She gets us. Maggie has so SO much to offer. During this episode, we scratch the surface on how to be: Better husbands and wives; mainstays for our boys; carers to our daughters; rocks in our families; and great citizens within our communities. Maggie has changed Jane & my life, and helped us immensely as we navigate what it takes to raise four little people in our world. We love her books, we value her courses, and I highly recommend her Podcast – Parental As Anything! As we navigate COVID restrictions, lockdown challenges and all things involved w

My podcast has been hijacked!!! In this Episode, Farm Owners Academy’s Farm Business Coach, David Westbrook, takes the reins and interviews an extraordinary woman making a big, big difference in the lives of thousands of families.   Back in 2016, David experienced a life-changing lesson.   That lesson?   ‘Humans sacrifice their health in order to make money. Then they sacrifice money to recuperate their health.’ - Dalai Lama   Through the curiosity of this lesson, David & his wife Becky went searching for mentors to improve their health. That’s when they came across Jo Whitton.   Jo is best known for helping people journey to good health through healing foods and ‘food as medicine’. She has over 270,000 Facebook followers and uses her social media platforms along with her cookbooks and retreats to educate people to a better way of living using a healing, whole food diet without the overwhelm.   In this episode, you will learn how you can change your life through some simple lessons. This is

In this episode, and building upon our last Profitable Farmer conversation on ‘people wrangling’ with FOA General Manager Sam Johnsson, I have the privilege of interviewing the Managing Director and Head Recruiter at DroverAg Recruitment, John Boote.   John arrives into HR Management & Ag Recruitment with over 20 years’ experience in farm management on the Cattle Stations across the Northern Territory & Western Australia. Sitting at the helm of this specialist Agricultural Recruitment agency, John and his team deliver employment solutions to primary producers, property owners and farmers all over Australia. ​​​​​​​ Being on the frontline of the agricultural employment marketplace, John is acutely aware of the very real challenge of matching (young) talent and agri-employees with our nation’s farming businesses.   The thing I like about John is that he is pragmatic and a straight talker. He calls it as he sees it. Like me, he has observed a number of issues at play in our industry all around what

Over 15,000 kilometres of new fencing completed More than 16,000 kilometres of old fencing cleaned up or restored In excess of 11,000 farming families lifted from adversity Many thousands of communities deeply impacted The lives of so many completely transformed   It gives me great pleasure to introduce Kevin Butler to share his BlazeAid Story.   In the aftermath of the 2009 Black Saturday fires, after a simple request for help to an iconic national community including over 30,000 volunteers… this is truly one of Australia’s greatest regional & rural stories.   The reach and impact BlazeAid has, and will continue to have, on the lives of those adversely affected by fire, flood and the vagaries of our incredible landscape - in terms of both physical farm and individual farmer recovery - is immeasurable.   It is now not surprising to me that when I first called BlazeAid to ask for help on behalf of two of our members, Kevin - its Founder and Chairman - answered my call. On top of that, he was g

Managing people, both family and in farming business, can undoubtedly be one of our greatest challenges. Not only do we have to navigate delicate working relationships with our brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, mothers and fathers – grandmothers and grandfathers for some too! But, equally, we have casual, full-time, part-time, contractor, client and supplier relationships to ‘wrangle’, navigate, manage, influence and inspire. With this in mind in this podcast, I ask Sam Johnsson, the new General Manager here at Farm Owners Academy (FOA), to share his experience and insight into all things leadership. Sam is a cracking bloke – calm, composed, thoughtful, measured, pragmatic, collaborative yet decisive. He joins FOA after ten highly successful years in management with the leading Australasian advisory & building engineering firm, Aurecon. Over the past three years, Sam progressed to becoming one of the youngest Directors at Aurecon, responsible for the results and performance of over 65 professionals

For me, Farm Owners Academy is a strong example of good business practice, well-applied. We are seven years old and have enjoyed significant growth year on year. We are an expanding team, all well-aligned to a common goal and cause. We deliver results, adding real and lasting value to the lives of those we serve. I am immensely proud to be part of this team and community. I am also very pleased that we are congruent; we practice what we preach. Farm Owners Academy and the Profitable Farmer Podcast succeed because we apply the very business principles we teach - impeccably and with real intent. For this, I thank the WHOLE FOA team. In this podcast, I ask that you humour me as I: reflect on our growth and our results, particularly over the last 18-months; share key elements of our strategic plan - our new vision and roadmap and explain how it sets the foundations now for further growth and expansion; explore an important construct about ‘How to Avoid The Business Price Trap’, and outline the steps yo

It is rare to meet true game changers and genuine leaders of Commerce & Industry, let alone get to interview two! In this episode, we meet Gaethan Cutri and Salah Sukkarieh - both pioneers in their own right. Salah Sukkarieh is the Professor of Robotics and Intelligent Systems at the University of Sydney and CEO of Agerris, a new Agtech startup company from the Australian Centre for Field Robotics, developing autonomous robotic solutions to improve agricultural productivity and environmental sustainability. Salah is an international expert in the research, development and commercialisation of field robotic systems and has led a number of robotics and intelligent systems R&D projects in logistics, commercial aviation, aerospace, education, environment monitoring, agriculture and mining.  More detail here:  The University of Sydney - Salah Sukkarieh Gaethan Cutri is Owner and Managing Director at Cutri Fruits. Under his leadership, and over the past 15 years, Cutri Farms has increased its fruit pro

It gives me great pleasure to welcome Andrew Roberts ‘Robbo’ back to the Profitable Farmer podcast. Not only is Robbo one of the founders of Farm Owners Academy and the previous host of this Podcast, but he has also been my Business Coach and great friend for over 15 years. It is always compelling to catch up with Robbo and ‘shoot the breeze’. In this conversation, we explore the definition of a successful business, the construct of being FREE from your business – having it resourced and set up so that it can work without you! This is ultimately what investors are looking for, and this is, in my opinion, the ultimate legacy we can pass on to future generations. Importantly, we explore what needs to happen both in business and on farms in order to move in this direction. We touch on the strategy, systems, structures and resources required to get there, and we explain the set path to follow to make this a reality. We also discuss the MINDSET and IDENTITY SHIFT needed to move from being a busy technical farm

Every six months, I like to check in with Terry Tran, our resident investment specialist and founder of the Freedom Trader, to get his insights into the global marketplace, our local economy and investing in the equity market and off-farm.   In this interview, we explore: the global economy given the ongoing pandemic; the impact that significant government intervention might have; what we might expect in terms of inflation, interest rates and economic recovery; Terry’s investment philosophy; and, his recent client and personal investment results.   We also explore Terry's passion for teaching farming families how to become competent, disciplined and successful investors in an ever-volatile and often unpredictable economic environment.   An essential component of running a successful farming business involves diversifying your asset-base, cashflows and wealth off-farm. Successful intergenerational change and creating meaningful legacies for future generations often depend on this. Terry reminds us

Our work ethic is legendary. No question.   Our ability to handle volatility, variability, risk, genuine adversity, constant change, and daily corrections is to be truly admired.   Equally, business ownership AND farming can be a lonely place.   Many of us have been here – playing full tilt, often without regular breaks for years.   It is no wonder so many of us, over time, become tired, stressed, overwhelmed, and fatigued.   Ladies & gentleman, BURNOUT in business is a very real thing!   Many of us are so entrenched in the busyness of our farms and lives that we don’t stop to check-in, or even acknowledge it.   Let me be clear: burnout is the single biggest reason for small business failure GLOBALLY. It is why only 6% of businesses that start do not get to celebrate their tenth birthday.   Where are you in relation to burning out?   I have been there – and it’s not much fun.   In this important podcast, Farm Owners Academy’s Head Coach and Personal Development Guru, Tracy Secombe, and

I have heard it said in my travels that success leaves clues.   I have also heard it said that history often repeats itself.   In this podcast, we hear the story of a 95-year-old gentleman - also a great Australian businessman and entrepreneur.   This story is told through the eyes of his now 62-year-old son – also a great Australian businessman and entrepreneur. This is a story of initiative, passion, grit, determination and persistence.   We hear how important traits of success in leadership and life can be passed down through generations, and how these traits are perhaps the most important things we can wish to inherit from the generation before us or provide to the generations that follow.   We hear about dedication to making a significant difference to an industry that he and his incredible wife genuinely love.   We hear of how it feels for that same husband and wife team to see their 38-year-old vision and dream become a reality.   In this Podcast, we also get to learn about:   what it t

So the saying goes…   The first generation starts a business. The second generation builds it up. The third generation ruins it.   I am sure we have all heard this bandied around over the years…   In my estimation, the Hutcheon & Pearce story, led by Arron Hutcheon, is a great rural and regional example of how to buck this trend, and thrive.   In this episode, I am fortunate to speak with Arron Hutcheon, third generation Managing Director to the highly successfully Hutcheon & Pearce John Deere Dealership to the Riverina and beyond.   Arron is a young, genuine, authentic and confident business leader. Under his watch and over 20 years, the H&P business has grown from 60 to 300 employees. The business how operates across 14 locations, and is recognised for excellence within the global John Deere franchise, now delivering the latest and most sophisticated machinery and in-paddock production service & technologies to thousands of farm businesses across southern New South Wales.   In

In our estimation, less than 5% of farming families have documented, accurate and meaningful family and business plans. In this episode, I speak with Farm Owners Academy (FOA), Farm Business Coach, David ‘Westy’ Westbrook about the importance of strategic planning and the method FOA recommend in making our farm business plans compelling, actionable and highly effective.   As Westy and his family embark on their FOA National Farm Client Tour over 12 months, and as they visit and support over 100 of our farming clients on this specific process, I saw it as perfect timing to dig a little deeper on: why planning is important; what makes up a world-class strategic plan; how to keep it from collecting dust in a cupboard somewhere; how to bring it to life; how to use it as a core leadership tool in aligning and inspiring your team to greater levels of achievement; and how this can enrol powers greater than you to see you achieve more in life than you can imagine. Becky and Westy have been stand-out client

Are you open to explore a deeper meaning to life? In this episode, I let you in on a secret and introduce you to an important man in my life. Over the last 5 years, I have enrolled the support of Diego (Dig) Bortolin. Dig has been a great friend, confidant, mentor and spiritual guide to me. He has supported me to face my fears; explore my self-doubt; move through my anxieties, challenge my limiting beliefs; work on my primary relationships, develop as a human, and then find my flow, set-down compelling and meaningful intentions and live a rich and fulfilling life…in the moment. Over that time, my life has changed dramatically. I used to try and control and command, out-smart the universe, win at life intellectually, suppress, ignore or avoid my emotions, and not trust my intuition and instinct. I am proud to share that my spiritual journey has been deeply fulfilling and significant for me. I am so very grateful to have an amazing man like Dig in my corner, helping me be at my best as I turn up to my fam

I have heard it said that there is no such thing as a 'perfect family'. Who can relate to this? In business, and within our families, there are so many different personalities… so many complex people that we have to deal with, work with, and lead. For many, THIS can be our greatest challenge! In this podcast, and to complement my prior two episodes on Planning & Negotiation, I explore DiSC Personality Profiling. We will discover how a deeper understanding of our individual Personality Type and Behavioural Traits can see us better communicate and manage our team and families, and help us adapt and overcome the various relationship challenges we may be experiencing. In this episode, I: introduce you to DiSC Personality Profiling describe in detail the 4 distinct personality types we each fall into explore where conflict and lack of cohesion can come from explain how we can better understand each other how we can better adapt our communication to lead each and every member of your team more effec

Negotiation is not what we think it is. Negotiation is a skill that all successful business minds and influencers in society learn, master and successfully apply. Yet at the same time, it is a crucial skill very few of us are ever taught. As a result, most of us battle through life and business… ‘winging it’, getting it wrong, damaging relationships, ‘settling for less’, missing out and often making a massive mess along the way. How to get the very best outcome requires, in my experience, an approach that is counter-intuitive to how we have been taught to play. In this episode I explore both the art and science of negotiation.   We explore: what is a negotiation and why it is not what we think! how so many ‘get it wrong’ how careful preparation will avoid costly mistakes specifics on what that careful preparation looks like how to initiate and enter into the conversation strongly how to lead the process well how to navigate what can play out how to reduce the likelihood of unfavourable

During my business and entrepreneurship journey, I have been lucky enough to study with and learn from some incredible minds. Through Marshall Thurber, and his ‘Money & You’ course, I have been introduced to the truly profound business thinkings of both W Edward Deming and Buckminster Fuller. In this episode, and as we collectively set down our plans and priorities for the new year, I share some of the most compelling entrepreneurial philosophies and principles pioneered by the great ‘Bucky’ Fuller! In this conversation we explore: why goal-setting is so important why being in motion towards your goal is more important than the goal itself! why trying to ‘find your purpose’ isn’t it! why selfless goals & objectives are so much more impactful why adding value into the lives of others is so very important, for you and them! how the setting up of your plans to achieve your goals increases the likelihood of their attainment why regular reconnection with your goals is imperative, for you, your fam