You have an emotional connection to the food you grow. Your farm and everything on it is your life. From planting to harvesting, every rise and fall, especially the rise and fall, can really mess up your head. Also, when you try to capture every nickel and dime possible, you may not execute very well. There was an emphasis on joining. Find someone who can help you think in the coming year.

Greg Lumsden is the cargill marketing guide. 'It's all about setting goals and getting back to blocking and solving marketing plans,' he says.

"Know your real numbers, your revenue goals and what those numbers mean for your marketing plan. I think the other key for us farmers is to understand the critical time frame. In the whole marketing process, there are two to three times as many opportunities as there are good sales opportunity years." He said. "By identifying these sales targets, you will make offers based on profitability and market opportunities, and then ensure that emotions are removed by executing and retaining these offers."

Let go of last year and talk about the possibilities for this season.

"We sat down with the customer and looked at what the conservative estimate was, what your production was, and came up with the most accurate thing we could predict," Lumsden said. "And then from there, we typically look at 10 to 15 percent of sales, thinking we want to make a sale that makes sense to the customer's marketing plan, and that plan will actually make an impact, but leave some bushels as new opportunities come in."

Remind yourself of what you can and can't control, and laugh. It's good therapy.

It is important to control weeds and pests when farming. Fertilization is also crucial. Then, for many people, there must be good high-pressure spray hoses and sturdy fittings.

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