{"id":88,"date":"2013-12-31T21:32:22","date_gmt":"2013-12-31T21:32:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/?p=88"},"modified":"2013-12-31T21:32:22","modified_gmt":"2013-12-31T21:32:22","slug":"year-1-done","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/?p=88","title":{"rendered":"Year 1. Done."},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s just a memory now. \u00a0Or at least almost. \u00a0I still have a couple dozen bins of apples in the storage, and I still need to find a little time to dump the few pumpkins on the back porch that didn’t find a home. \u00a0But for the most part, the 2013 season – my first season managing the orchard – is history. \u00a0And yes, I’m happy about it!<\/p>\n

My last post alluded to the sheer exhaustion we were all feeling, but that’s a memory now too. \u00a0After two nice big holidays with my family, and a five day family trip to the in-law’s in Indiana wherein I was forced to do pretty much nothing but sit, eat, rest, and shop… \u00a0I’m feeling pretty good! \u00a0 Here in the extreme west of the time zone, I’ve even remembered how to sleep late!<\/p>\n

This is just the kind of break we all need to reflect on the year behind, and think about what will be done differently in the coming year. \u00a0So here are some reflections and resolutions:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Do something about the things that drive me nuts. \u00a0Some of those factors are outside of my control (weather), some are expensive to change (aging infrastructure), some take time and effort (planting new crops), and some are really pretty simple but somehow just keep getting ignored. \u00a0But one thing’s for sure, if something bothers me now, I’m pretty sure it is going to bother me in 10 years. \u00a0So it is better to fix it than ignore it. \u00a0(Kind of like the homeowner who installs new carpet just as they sell their home.)<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Organization is more important than ever. \u00a0We are growing a dozen different crops, sold through many channels and customers, with a score of employees, with more and more government “help” than ever. \u00a0A large business would have dedicated employees for all of those different things, but my business has me (and my wife). \u00a0We don’t have time to waste on inefficiency. \u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Stay ahead of the game. \u00a0Crop seasons wait for no man. \u00a0Pruning, fertilizing, planting, spraying, thinning, and harvesting all need to be done at exactly the right time. \u00a0This year, I’m going to sketch out all of the important things I know are going to need to be done. \u00a0Really, it is just project management. \u00a0I’ve got some experience in that; all we need to do is apply it to the big project of bringing the 2014 harvest home (and then selling it at a profit). \u00a0A project plan will make me feel more confident that all of the tasks are getting done at the right time.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Identify those employees who can handle less supervision and turn them loose. \u00a0Some employees need to be told how to do everything; but some have the capability and motivation to see what needs to be done and find the right way to do it. \u00a0When I see those traits, I need to leverage it. \u00a0It frees me up to do more important stuff.<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Remember why I’m doing this. \u00a0It isn’t all about the money – though to quote George Bailey “it come in pretty handy down here bub!” \u00a0As we thought about designing our Christmas cards this year, we realized that we hadn’t taken a single picture of the family on the farm. \u00a0Nor had we spent more than a few minutes on the fun little paddleboat that Mom and Dad bought for the kids. \u00a0Heck, I didn’t even go fishing in the pond this year. \u00a0Yep. \u00a0We can do better.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    So we move forward to 2014. \u00a0May the coming year be fruitful for all!<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    It’s just a memory now. \u00a0Or at least almost. \u00a0I still have a couple dozen bins of apples in the storage, and I still need to find a little time to dump the few pumpkins on the back porch that didn’t find a home. \u00a0But for the most part, the 2013 season – my first […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-88","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=88"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":89,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88\/revisions\/89"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=88"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=88"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.shaworchards.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=88"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}