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I have lived in other peoples houses all my life.

I have owned houses other people have lived in

I am 67 years old and never lived in a house I own

That means I have no idea what it feels like to invest in a lifetime of investing in my own dreams

I took some-one to lunch today to say thank you for the all the pro bono work they had done for me and our organisation.

I selected the restaurant because it knew it featured the produce of one of our supporting partners. A partner I am very proud to be aligned with. The menu featured a number of branded produce yet not once did the restaurant team members tell me and my dining partner why this produce was on the menu. The big question is why?

I grew up in a family where domestic violence  was an everyday occurrence

Both my mother and my father shared joint responsibility for the nightmare they invited their children into

My father left us without telling a responsible adult when I think I was 8 years old

I was the eldest. My mother had a chronic depressive disorder and on both sides of the family  everyone just did what they always did – pretend everything is normal

This means that 8 year old’s have to make big decisions when their mothers don’t wake up and daddy decides his family isn’t his responsibility any more.

Its time we all  stood up

Friday nights can be tough. They are that time of the week where you reflect on the conversations you have had and the important work you have got done and you decide if you are moving forward or going round in circles.

I can definitely see forward movement from young people in agriculture through the extraordinary applications we are receiving for our Young Farming Champions program

There is also significant international interest in replicating the Action for Agriculture programs overseas and I am working with some very exciting people to create a template of what that could look like

BUT my major frustration remains and that is.

We have a leadership system in agriculture that invites people with big ideas to stand in the arena by themselves until they can beg or borrow enough money to pilot their big idea. Success requires you to attract other volunteers who also have day jobs, who toil and toil and toil pouring their hearts and souls into your big idea ( and adding their ideas) until they are as burnt out as you.

I have been looking for a model that invites people to identify an arena they want to be part of. An arena that cultivates a culture where everyone is working together towards a common goal and everyone can actively see every Friday night that their collaboration is having IMPACT.

Two models I am witnessing that are potentially achieving this are Farmers for Climate Action and the Voices for Movement both of which have attracted significant philanthropic funding

There is hope on the horizon for a new model through conversations I have been having with other people running leadership programs. These bright minds might just have come up with a model that will deliver significant rewards for the personal well being of the people in the arena and the agriculture sector.

The next step in this process happens on Monday. Fingers crossed my journal reflections next Friday are less focused on our abhorrent political system and more focused on grass roots empowerment

Sometimes you just have to step up and say it like it is

Tonight I will watch the young people I work with step up organically and  deliver one of the highlights of my career realisation aspirations

In 2012 I won the inaugural Bob Hawke Landcare Award

I remember the event

I remember the morning after

The first call was from the CEO of a dairy co-operative who told me they were going to sue me for information I had provided to Senate Estimates on Milk Price

The second call was from me to Australia’s second largest agricultural research and development cooperation who had decided the organisation who was building their cohort of  confident communicators and trusted voices was at the bottom of the list of organisation they paid and it was perfectly acceptable that my family business would carry their debt.

Its tough out there.

My tips when you eventually find the people who genuinely want the best outcomes for the greater good.

Embrace them.

Work with them

Do something amazing together

I am finally in that space and I am sooooo grateful

We have all heard a eulogy that includes “He/She didn’t suffer fools gladly”

When I hear it I cringe – I know some-one will say that in my eulogy and I face palm ( after washing my hands for 20 seconds)

How do you change years and years of habits that include eye rolling, heavy breathing and saying what you think before you think about what you said.

Stronger together symbol. Words We are stronger together appearing behind torn brown paper. Wooden pencil. Business, motivational and we are stronger together concept. Copy space.

Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) is one of the best-known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. These birds are dark brown, with lighter golden-brown plumage on their napes. Immature eagles of this species typically have white on the tail and often have white markings on the wings. Golden eagles use their agility and speed combined with powerful feet and massive, sharp talons to snatch up a variety of prey (mainly hares, rabbits, marmots and other ground squirrels).

Its a given

” In the course of your life you will be continually encountering fools. There are simply too many to avoid. We can classify people as fools by the following rubric: when it comes to practical life, what should matter is getting long-term results, and getting the work done in as efficient and creative a manner as possible.”

Fools carry with them a different scale of values:

• They place more importance on short-term matters-grabbing immediate money, getting attention from the public or media, and looking good.
• They are ruled by their ego and insecurities.
• They tend to enjoy drama and political intrigue for their own sake.
• When they criticize, they always emphasize matters that are irrelevant to the overall picture or argument.
• They are more interested in their career and position than in the truth.
• You can distinguish them by how little they get done, or by how hard they make it for others to get results.
• They lack a certain common sense, getting worked up about things that are not really important while ignoring problems that will spell doom in the long-term. Source 

The natural tendency with fools is to lower yourself to their level. They annoy you, get under your skin, and draw you into a battle. In the process, you feel petty and confused. You lose a sense of what is really important. You can’t win an argument or get them to see your side or change their behavior, because rationality and results don’t matter to them. You simply waste valuable time and emotional energy.

So how do you learn to be strategic? I am learning to be more strategic in the language I use by surrounding myself with people who think and talk strategically and when I meet them I introduce them to the young people I work with.

Meet Charlie Arnot who conducted a two hour workshop for the young people I work with yesterday. Charlie is the ultimate strategic thinker. In this short extract from the workshop he discusses traditional issues management in agriculture  and how we can move from being the “Party of No” to the “Party of Solutions”

Charlie finished his workshop by giving the young people I work with an Optimising Sustainability Framework model to help them work with people in agriculture to create an culture of accepting change and being willing to listen to, and hear the message.

In dealing with fools you must adopt the following philosophy: they are simply a part of life, like rocks or furniture.

All of us have foolish sides, moments in which we lose our heads and think more of our ego or short-term goals. It is human nature. Seeing this foolishness within you, you can then accept it in others. This will allow you to smile at their antics, to tolerate their presence as you would a silly child, and to avoid the madness of trying to change them. It is all part of the human comedy.

In 2005 I was awarded the inaugural Kiama Electorate Woman of the Year and I was completely overwhelmed by Imposter Syndrome for good reason.

There were a lot of women in my community who had achieved more than me.

So what did I do?

I could have spent my life feeling unworthy or I could embrace I was in the right place at the right time and show the world I was worthy

Trust me there was no shortage of people in my inner family circle who felt the need to express that they felt I was unworthy

When your family dont feel the need to help lift you up,  you seriously start to doubt yourself.

Trust me – that’s the time to decide if you are in the right family.  DNA isn’t everything.

Girlfriend when somebody says you are unworthy. Work your butt off to show their faith in you is warranted

Stand tall

Be Proud

We are all worthy

amd we dont need the silver cup to prove it.