The Rural Voice, 1980-08, Page 19FARM MANAGEMENT
Farmers need a break too
BY BARBARA ALVES
Assoc. Ag. Rep.
Wanted. One farmer. Must be expert on animal conformation,
health and nutrition, accounting, economics, law, construction,
engineering, safety, machinery, field crops, soils, fertilizers, and
yes, even manure. Must be in good health, be on call 24 hours a
day and have the patience of Job.
Are you being pulled in too many directions and trying to do
too many things? Do you have a choice? Yes, you do!
Farmers are not strangers to hard work. But there's a
difference between going in circles and going in the direction you
want to. Both can be accomplished by hard work.
Would you like more time to relax, attend a meeting or take a
course, or get away for a weekend? Your neighbour has time to
get away. Why don't you?
Each day we're allotted 24 hours of a non-renewable resource -
time. Some make better use of it than others. How do people use
time better? Simple! They work smarter, not harder.
The first step to working smarter is to take some time to think.
Never say you don't have enough time to think and plan. Think
when you're discing your field or stacking hay in the mow.
Think about all the tasks you do. I know a dairy farmer who is
proud of all the hard work he does but he never really
accomplishes anything. Why? Because he doesn't have any
purposes or goals in mind. Sure he'd like to improve his BCA but
he may never do it. He hasn't set any concrete goals. Improve
BCA is vague. "I want to have a BCA of 140 by 1983" is better.
Set short term and long term goals. One way to increase his
BCA is to make better feed. "This year I'm planting an 80%
alfalfa hay field." That's a shorter term goal. Even shorter is
"Next week I'm having my feed tested and my ration balanced."
Now we've done some thinking and have some goals. We've
even done some planning on how to get there. So how does that
save time?
When you know where you want to go, think about the tasks
you do each day. Why do you do them? Do they help you reach
your goals? If they don't can you eliminate some jobs?
Can you delegate some jobs to someone else? Perhaps your
spouse or an older child could keep the records. Young children
are often delighted to help. Assigning jobs to children
contributes to their abilities and makes them feel useful. But
don't just assign a job. Teach them how and why. Motivate your
workers. Offer rewards, set goals and most importantly say "you
did a good job." Everybody likes to be appreciated.
Use your imagination. Do you have to do a job this way? Think
of different ways. Some of your most ridiculous ideas turn out to
be the best.
Invest time to plan. It will save time in the long run. You can
also invest money to save time.
Your time may be better spent doing things you are not good
at or don't like to do. This may cost some money initially but
saves you time and money later.
Invest time to organize yourself. Keep things in your office,
barn or shop where you need them and don't put them back
where they belong. Don't waste time looking for things. Keep
spare parts around, and think of ways to save steps in the barn.
Combine jobs. Do two or three things at once.
These are only a few ways to save time. There are many more.
You do have a choice. If you are in control of your twenty-four
hours each day, you'll reach your goals and have more time to
use to your best advantage.
VISTA VILLA
Happenings
Some really good things
are happening to our Hampshires
& Yorkshires
Sired by KJ9 Solution
Long, Tall, Heavy Boned, Level
topped bred in ability to transmit
continued growth to heavy weights
without laying on fat.
Sired by Mountain, $6750 Sire
From 1979 Summer Hampshire
Conference
We are making Mountains
out of molehills.
If you need a Solution to your Yorkshire
boar requirements or need to move
further up the Mountain to success
in the hog business, look us up.
ROBERT J. ROBINSON
4.519-345-2317 R.R. 4 Walton, Ont.
THE RURAL VOICE/AUGUST 1980 PG. 17