If you read Country Guide you are most likely a farm manager or owner which means that perhaps you’re often focused on human resources management.
But if you don’t think you’re great with people, not to worry.
Many times, I’ve come across farm managers who have evolved their people skills in a short amount of time with dedicated effort.
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Try following the basics below to build your on-farm leadership skills.
Go to them
Leadership is partly about empowerment and the best way to empower others is to ask for their thoughts. Asking the people around you “What do you think?” acts as a stop sign. It makes you pause for a moment, look around, assess and continue. It doesn’t mean that you need to change your direction; you’re simply gathering more information about the route. Maybe someone else might notice a leak in your tire before you do.
As portrayed in the movie The Darkest Hour*, Winston Churchill was struggling with a decision during World War II that would affect the nation. He did something he had never done before: he went down into the subway and rode “the tube” to gather advice from citizens.
He had no idea they felt so strongly about going back to war. The first world war had just ended, but they were prepared to fight again for their freedom at any cost.
The point of this story isn’t just to highlight an incredible example of that generation’s resiliency, but to show you that you can’t always make major decisions without input or buy-in from the team around you.
Go first
Management theories and advice from leadership books do not only apply to teams working in offices. When it comes to managing a team or being managed by a business leader, everyone has similar needs and issues.
For example, people need to feel that they can trust their leader if they’re going to commit themselves to a bigger purpose.
But it’s a myth that as a leader you must gain your employees’ trust before you can show your vulnerability.
One easy way you can build trust is to show your team that they can trust you. I suggest that you check out The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. You can ask ChatGPT for a summary of the five points, but what’s important to note here is that teams often face several pitfalls as they “grow together.”
Show them you care
I asked my dad for a leadership story about my grandfather who, in the 1980s, founded and developed Harvest Services, an after-market combine parts manufacturing company. In its heyday my grandfather managed 17 people.
Dad said that every single morning Grandpa Bert would walk through the office and shops to greet everyone with a “good morning.” Even just a smile would make his employees feel appreciated, motivating them simply by knowing that someone cared they were there. He rarely lost his temper and while he used few words to communicate, he always seemed to say the right things.
Call yourself out
As a leader you cannot call out others without having the awareness to call yourself out when required. We all make mistakes and there will always be situations where we wish we could have handled things differently. So, stop saying you should (or shouldn’t) have done this or that and start acting on it. Remember that vulnerability is the fastest way to trust.
The CEO of AG1 had a ritual every Sunday afternoon during her kids’ nap time. She would think about someone she admired and imagined what that person would do or say in her position. Based on those reflections, she emailed herself one thing she planned to improve that week. At the end of the year, she had 52 things she called herself out on and over which she took ownership and improved.
Some people are just naturally good with others. Some need a bit more guidance to help them work on their self-awareness. And that’s okay. Because what matters is that you want to improve.
The main causes of team conflict are usually confusion or misunderstandings about what a leader is thinking, how important something is to them and how to get it done the way the leader envisioned it in their mind.
Keep sharing your vision and your expectations while balancing accountability and empowerment.
It might be one of the hardest jobs you’ll ever have, but it will also be the most rewarding.
*The movie’s producer took artistic license with this scene. There is no record that this happened in real life.
