Andy Junkin

I can tell you the full story without fear of divulging secrets because this same story could be told on so many farms. This is the question every farmer needs to ask when things don’t go as they think they should: Do you want to be right, or do you want things to be right?

When your farm’s successor looks in the mirror, who do they see? A boy or a man’s man? Daddy’s little girl or a farmer who is kicking butt and taking names? Self-esteem is how you value or perceive yourself. You can also call it self-respect.

When you’re a successful farmer, you shape your world. It’s your job to level mountains and create new ones by sheer determination. You have many employees who work for you – and when you say “jump,” they say “How high?”

The way we see things or react to things, although almost never recognized, plays a huge role in why farming partnerships fail or slowly come apart at the seams.

There are a lot of farmers in their 30s and 40s who don’t know what their future looks like. The truth be told: 77% of farms don’t have a succession plan. And this obviously has a lot to do with why only…

NOTE: This article was originally published in Progessive Dairy magazine. It was voted as the Top 3 article of the year! The day I left for college, my mother showed me our farm’s financials and told me if I didn’t…

I believe that every farm should have their business plan framed and hung above the toilet. Fifty years ago, farms didn’t need business plans. That is because the farm didn’t grow at that fast a rate and the biggest move you might have made in your lifetime is buying the farm next door.

Growing up, the only way she could get time with dad was by being in the barn. The only way she could gain his attention was by working hard on the farm and “being of use.” She dreamed of being…

Did Christmas suck this year? Everyone talks about Christmas being the most joyous time of year, but for many family farms, it isn’t. Why? There’s a different reason for everyone, but being the guy behind the scenes, I can see…

As a farm succession mediator, I have seen some extreme situations. In fact, the memory of my first client is ingrained in my mind after having to take a shotgun out of his hands. That farmer had lived to set…