Personal consultation at home. Very Shallow DOF. Developed from RAW; retouched with special care and attention; Small amount of grain added for best final impression. 16 bit RGB color profile. Branimir76/iStock/Getty Images

Farm families gain clarity from financial transparency

Farm Family Coach: It doesn’t mean having to share every personal expense or do away with clear boundaries in leadership

On family farms, especially multi-generational operations, being open about finances isn’t just good practice — it’s essential for business survival and harmonious relationships, Alyssa Brown writes.

Close-up of a mature woman farmer sitting in combine harvester talking on a cb radio in farm field. Photo: AJ_Watt/E+/Getty Images

Run the farm with its people in mind

Farm Family Coach: Developing skills in HR management is especially valuable on farms with employees or a multi-generational workforce

Learning the human resources side of management and leadership is particularly helpful if your farm business has employees or a multi-generational workforce, farm family coach Lydia Carpenter writes.





Mother in the middle

Mother in the middle

Farm Family Coach: This Mother’s Day, work to communicate with each other, not through Mom as an intermediary

When two family members are unable to have effective communication, they often turn to someone else to hear them out. Many times, alas, this is Mom.

Like machinery, farming family teams require alignment and organization.

Focus on your family strengths to move forward

Seeds of Encouragement: The Appreciative Inquiry exercise can shed new light on the potential of your people

Elaine writes: What if you could break free from being stuck, by emphasizing the positive aspects of your farm family business? One of my core strengths, according to the Clifton StrengthsFinder quiz, is positivity. As a coach I often see the positive choices ahead and I hope this article by my coaching teammate Crisol Gonzalez […] Read more


Ask, don’t assume, what level of involvement each person would like to have in the farm’s decision-making process.

Build a simple, effective farm framework for decision-making

Seeds of Encouragement: Ask the right questions now to establish a governance model that works for your farm family

If you listen to enough ag podcasts, you’ll soon conclude that the success of a farm family business comes from people having the power to flourish and make good decisions. Courtney Pullen’s book Intentional Wealth: How Families Build Legacies of Stewardship and Financial Health speaks to effective family systems. Strong families that know their values […] Read more

Ian pauses for a picture while harvesting a few of Joseph’s carrots for fresh eating.

A visit from the aunties

Eppich News: Hot weather meant more tree watering and some creative air conditioning on the ranch

July stayed hot and dry. Gregory kept working away at the ditch hay and John worked as much summerfallow as he could. I was able to keep the main floor of the house a pleasant temperature as long as I did all the cooking on the barbecue, but the upstairs, where we sleep, would get […] Read more


Our questions and thoughts can create great conversations — if we let them.

Watch your words

Seeds of Encouragement: Self-defeating language can kill transition conversations and affect your mental health

Recently in one of our amazing membership coaching calls a farmer sighed loudly about his transition frustration and said, “It is what it is.” This sparked a lively conversation about how we handle our mental well-being, which is often bathed in waves of frustration as we try to navigate the needs and wants of founders […] Read more

farm kids gathering sheaves from swath in field

Farm kids not immune to farm stressors

CASA on Farm Safety: New study shows risks for youths on the farm go beyond just physical well-being

They say it takes a village to raise a child. And a new study is highlighting that notion when it comes to mental in farm youth, revealing that children aren’t immune to stressors on the family farm The study, from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, explores how economic stressors affect the mental health of farmers […] Read more