ClO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, May 22, 1993 I F % IfeFv A MANAGEMENT FASTBALLS, POP-UPS, SACRIFICE FLIES AND FARMING Alan W. Strock Farm Management Extension Agent Did you ever think about how successful farming is like success ful baseball? The successful farmer and the the successful baseball player, team, and/or manager have many things in common. Now that the baseball season is in full swing and the Philadelphia Phillies are making mincemeat of the rest of the National League, it’s a good time to discuss these similarities. Since a baseball team has nine players on the field, nine ways that baseball and farming are similar follows. Eye On The Ball First: Keep your eye on the ball. Farmers must always keep their eye on their mission, goals, and objectives of their farm. The mis sion may be to provide a high stan dard of living and comfortable retirement for the farm family, or to enjoy being one’s own boss, or enjoy the outdoor, rural family liv ing environment that provides ample time for recreation, spiritu al, and personal growth for all involved. Farmers often get caught up in ©MORTON BUILDINGS, INC. 3368 York Rd. Gettysburg, PA 17325 717/624-3331 Call or wrta today for mort Information the daily grind of chores and forget the big picture of why they are really farming. Almost all success ful business people have set lofty goals at the start of their career and never loose sight of that goal or mission. Second: To win, you must be strong up the middle. The “middle” for today’s farmer is his/ her financial management ability, the financial health of the business, and the high but cost-effective pro ductivity of the farm’s crops and livestock. If the farm employs additional labor, the manager must also be a strong capable labor man ager. How the farmer manages his assets is more important than the amount of effort that he or she puls into the business. Expect The Heater! Third: Always be ready for a curve, but expect a fastball. Far mers need to make cash flow pro jections using their own five- or 10-year averages, but must always allow for the farmer’s version of the curveball, a drought, a flood, a wet spring, or low commodity prices. Farmers need to be flexible in their financial planning, their building plans, and their cropping and feeding programs. Fourth: Cover all the bases. As baseball has four inficldcrs and a Excellence Since 1903 CONTACT: 1-800-447-7436 Re Strong Up The Middle Cover All Bases P.O. Box 126, Phllllpsburg, NJ 08865 908/454-7900 Ulinofc only, call 1400-42646 U catcher to cover all the bases, far mers should at least annually com plete a balance sheet, a profit and loss statement, and a whole farm analysis. Budgets and cash flows for all the farm enterprises should be completed. Farmers should know if their breeding replacement program is profitable and if their various crop enterprises are profitable. Also educate to your weaknesses and hire consultants to complement and to cover the bases you don’t want to or can’t. Have a network of consultants that includes extension agents and specialists, veterina rians, DHIA supervisor, feed salesman, artificial inseminator, mechanics and machinery sales men, crop experts, legal advisors, bankers, accountants, and other successful farmers. Back lip The Play Fifth: Back up the play. As base ball players must move from their fielding position to back up a base in expectation of an overthrow, farmers must make contingency plans for when the unexpected happens. Farmers need insurance to cover the prospective losses they can’t self-insure. Consider crop insur ance especially if you live in a ’"VMi 60” & 72” 24” 24”-30"-36”-48” CEILING CIRCULATING EXHAUST Air • Hyd. Gas Hydraulic - Air Pedestal Hydraulic OR Let Us Design A Tunnel Ventilation System For You! Uniform Air Flow Throughout Your Barn. Air Speed 2-3 Mile Per Hour. Good For All Seasons. Give Us A Ca 11... We Will Stop In And Lay Out A System Best Suited For Your Building At No Cost To You. Install It Yourself Or Let Us Do It For You 111 lIHI Better Hydraulics 252 North Shirk Road, New Holland, PA 17557 717-354-6066 \Jvn) Box 56, RR 1. Atglen, PA 19310 .. u _ . Mon. thru Fn. 215-593-2981 7 am - 5 pm droughty area. Keep two to six months of personal family living expenses in cash or near cash investments in case of a disability, other tragedy, or extremely low commodity prices. Poor Defenses Lose Sixth: A poor defense costs wins. Farmers must have plans to defend against disease, poor pro duction, and financial disasters. Defend the misuse of your time. Proper time management rather than money is the key ingredient to farm, family, and marketing success. Sacrifices Are Required! Seventh: Sometime sacrifice bunts and flies are needed to score. Farmers at times need to sacrifice money and their personal time to be successful. Sometimes farm improvements and additions are needed worse than house improve ments or additions. To keep (he next generation interested in the farm, the older generation must allow the younger one to make mistakes even though it may cost some money. Don’t be afraid to try new innovations even if failure is a real possibility. Sacri fice some ground to do on-the farm research and development experiments as well as variety trials. Be A Team Player And Leader Eighth: Be a team player. The most successful farmers arc active in their community, church, farm organizations, and/or social groups, and/or have a hobby or some other avenue of release from the strain and routine of farming. They realize they need to farm to live, not live to farm. Many successful farmers are industry leaders in cooperatives and/or other farm organizations, and are the real decision makers on many of the managing boards because of their progressive thoughts, attitudes, and actions. Avoid Expensive Free Agents Ninth: Expensive free agents don’t necessarily bring champion ships. Expensive feed and forage additives, storage facilities, bulls, cows, sows, and boars don’t neces sarily yield higher profits. All expenses, whether operating expenses or capital assets, must yield a positive return. So, in closing, as the great Yogi Berra once said, “When you get to the fork in the road, lake it!” Installation* By; HYDRAULIC Vs/ SYSTEMS & SERVICE 252 N. Shirk Road New Holland. PA 17557 (717) 354-6066 Paul Zook * Hydraulic & Air Systems Installations * New Setups - Add-Ons - Service Work * Air Compressor Installations & Service * Fully Equipped Service Trucks - Will Ttavel
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