John and I returned from a conference last month that I mentioned in my last post, a cattle marketing school focused on a sell-buy approach. I learned a lot of new things, and I’m glad I went. I'm a nerd and enjoy learning new things. I was always the kid with pencils, paper, and my highlighter ready for class, sitting in the front row. Everybody hated me, but everybody wanted to sit next to me. We did attempt to sit in the back row at this conference just because we were a tad late, but the instructor called us out and we promptly moved to the first table. It was a great experience to be with my husband, learn more about his industry, and show off my math skills. Yes, the librarian has mad math skills, well, until trigonometry rolls around, and then I'm in tears, but thankfully, trig was not on the agenda. At the conference, my husband and I were known as “The Honeymooners” by Doug, AKA Mr. Cattlemaster. He's a friend of my husband and frequently holds a cattle marketing school, teaching a sell/buy approach. He called us “The Honeymooners” because I posted about our suite with a jetted tub at the Holiday Inn before we arrived. We were legends for our swanky room. Only the best for me! Doug also knows I'm a teacher, so I was called out a bit for that, in fact, right as the conference started. Doug said I would judge him for his grammatical errors on a slideshow, and he would be correct. I would have if I had found any, but he either had a very good editor or I was distracted by the math problems he set before us. His wife was there, behind the scenes, running the show (he'll admit to that), so she might have also been his editor. I was an apt pupil though. I had my pencil, pen, and highlighter ready, and Doug provided us with a workbook. He focused on showing us a formula that included supplies, time, and profit into each sale and purchase, and we practiced that to figure out specific prices that we should buy cattle, so we could go home, figure out our own numbers for our farm, and market accordingly. I saw it as a way to remind ourselves that it's all math, to take the guesswork out, and narrow down what we can make a profit on, and numbers don't lie. Doug also focused on something that I've seen in teaching and writing workshops, but he's been criticized for including in cattle marketing, and that's a psychology lesson. The first hour or so of the workshop focused on building confidence and breaking down some of the hang-ups farmers may face. It's necessary for me, as an educator, to hear these words and pass on this kind of lesson to my students, and as a writer these motivational speeches are a good way to keep up the pace when sometimes you don’t have a finished product for months or even years, so, of course, even a farmer needs this kind of encouragement. It’s a job that’s going to have good and bad years, not just good and bad days. It was a good start to the workshop because the rest was hard work, but also fulfilling. I learned a lot about my husband and my husband got a lot out of it and has been working hard practicing it at home. If you are interested in attending Doug’s marketing school, I highly recommend it. Look for him on Facebook and Twitter as Mr. Cattlemaster. He often writes for Beef magazine as well. The rest of the conference was work, but we did socialize a bit and enjoyed a few days without the kids. Since the days were full, we even enjoyed a swim each morning at 6:00 A.M. before breakfast. If a pool is available, I do not skip a swim, no matter how early I have to get up or how late it makes me as I try to rush to the back seats in the conference. Another highlight was the rental car, which was much nicer than ours. Also, I got some good laughs listening to the cattlemen gossip, and Doug's wife said they're the worst, and it sounded about right when Doug said she compared them to junior high students in their drama. It was entertaining. “The Honeymooners” went home refreshed and ready to conquer the world. That's just what you need from a good conference. It was motivational and educational. If you're interested in Doug's conference, the links are below and his next one will be hosted in June in Beatrice, Nebraska. Tell him “The Honeymooners” sent you. Doug’s website - https://mrcattlemaster.com/ Marketing School Info and Registration - https://mrcattlemaster.com/marketing-school/ Leave a Reply. |
AuthorThis is my therapeutic release for all the things that annoy me about living on a farm. If I can make it humorous, I can survive it. |