Entries by amindaxer

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If I Ran the Circus…

What a tumultuous year! The last twelve months in the dairy industry looked like a cross between two of Dr. Seuss’ children’s books. On the one hand, it parallels If I Ran the Circus with its irrational supply and demand, particularly on commodities that are plentiful in comparison with their current usage, yet remain overpriced. On the other hand, our industry scenario seems to be replicating Stop That Ball with an economy that appears relatively lifeless, yet in other ways seems completely out of control when we look at the painful process of loan approvals and the dramatic changes in real estate. Hopefully, things will be appearing more normal again soon!

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You Won’t See How

David Allen, in his book entitled Ready for Anything stated:

“You won’t see how to do it until you see yourself doing it. Our brain’s pattern-recognition mechanism is triggered by the images you identify with and the focus you hold. You see the outcome first, and then you are unconsciously made conscious of information. If you won’t see yourself having or doing something until you see how to do it, you’ll never recognize the methods, though they are all around you. Notice what you notice and how you make that happen.”

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Planning for your Feed Needs

Sounds like a given doesn’t it? However, it has been my observation that those producers who do the best job of mastering the feed acquisition game seem to be the ones that thrive financially, year in and year out. Since feed, as an expense, can consume 50-60% of your total revenue, it is crucial that you manage its cost as if your business depended on it because, in reality, it very well might.

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Coming Up With the Cash

One of the most common problems faced by many businesses today revolves around their ability to obtain financing they need. This challenge becomes even more pronounced when we are faced with a tight lending environment. This has been compounded by the Sub Prime Mortgage mess and its related financial issues! This certainly magnifies the importance of maintaining a solid banking relationship.

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Where Have All the Lenders Gone?

Wow! Wasn’t 2009 a real tragedy in terms of overall cash flow and bottom line results? It was absolutely pathetic for most producers. Since then dairymen have been enjoying the fruits of higher milk prices. How can we avoid revealing the same calamities again? What could you have done differently as a manager? These are critical items to spend some time on.

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How to Be a Change Leader

Previously, I talked about how to come up with ideas to improve your operation and implement positive change. “The Best way to manage change successfully is to create it.” Peter Drucker in his book, The Daily Drucker, discusses how to be a Change Leader! “One cannot manage change. One can only be ahead of it. In a period of upheavals, such as the one we are living in, change is the norm. To be sure, it is painful and risky, and above all it requires a great deal of very hard work.”

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March 2010 Issue

Are you tracking your monthly cash flows? This probably sounds like a silly question, but there are some producers who, believe it or not, still don’t do this on a regular basis. The rationale behind this is questionable, but, for whatever reason, they just simply pay bills as best they can and move forward or, sometimes, backward.

Some possible reasons I believe people fail to do this include the following:

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February 2010 Issue

The Business Confidence Maximizer™ Online Newsletter John Ellsworth & ©Success Strategies, Inc. Maximizing Your Management Success “I believe it is important to position yourself to successfully handle obstacles and overcome business hurdles.” Do you ever have that feeling that your neighbors or brother-in-law seem to be doing better than you in certain areas of their […]