Learn how to manage and prioritize farm decisions using the “big rock” approach

Farm families are masters of momentum. When something needs doing, they get after it. So, it’s easy to value the kind of efficiency that comes from quick meetings in the morning, shared phone lists or a whiteboard full of tasks.

For some families, it’s an invaluable habit to gather informally daily or weekly in the shop, yard, barn office, milk house or even around the lunch table to discuss who is doing what and where resources must be allocated.

Stone picking is like meeting to discuss tasks: any age and skill set can help, a little equipment can help a lot, it’s focused on the physical resources and the results you can see immediately. Efficiency is the ultimate goal, and even though we may hate meetings, we do it.

But when it comes to farmers taking the time to work on their farm, not just in their farm, it feels like a huge job, like moving big, buried rocks. It takes more time, patience, information, team effort and a well-thought-out plan.

Taking a “big rock” approach to deciding and making impactful change is loosely based on a well-known business book called Traction, by Gino Wickman. (Shout-out to Evan Shout from Maverick Ag for recommending this book to me years ago when we were both speaking in Red Deer, Alta.) According to Wickman, big rock issues tend to be future-focused and require collaboration and accountability to get them done.

They can also be game-changing for your business, so don’t underestimate their importance. Big rocks are like the foundation of a building: get them right and your building is strong; don’t put in the effort and what accumulates on top will eventually come tumbling down.

Big rocks are the longer-term projects and issues that take real effort to move. In Traction, they’re designed for 90-day cycles, but most farm families have seasonal constraints. Some seasons, we barely have enough hours to run the business, let alone build new systems or tackle heavier challenges.

Without clear goals and intentional big rock meetings, those important issues get pushed aside — first for a day, then a week, then a season. Eventually we start steering around them or burying them, losing opportunities and eroding enthusiasm, especially among the younger generation who is keen to improve.

If your family has blow-ups over day-to-day operations, chances are there’s a big rock sitting underneath the surface that needs attention.

It takes consistent effort over time to understand, set goals, create solutions and implement ways to deal with big rocks. They require effort, focus and buy-in, sitting down together as a team. They’re not things you can decide by yourself while planting corn or in a quick conversation passing each other in the laneway.

Consistently meeting keeps the big rocks rolling. It’s so easy to become distracted from day-to-day demands, and yet people are motivated by bigger goals and accomplishments.

Sometimes it’s as simple as tweaking a communication routine you’re already doing to be a little more robust. For example, our poultry farm has a regular flock review with the feed salesman, the chick supplier, processor representative and my son, our farm manager. Afterwards, my son and I usually continue business discussions. It wasn’t until we added a little formality (agenda, financial update, etc.) that this one-on-one time became less about complaining and more about resolving big rock issues.

What are your big rocks?

Wickman suggests three to seven big rocks, but smaller family farms should tackle only three and then prioritize the other rocks.

Your first big rock decision is to collectively decide which initial rocks you want to move and whether it’s important enough to be a big rock. This approach is particularly useful for solving issues around succession planning, such as completing prenuptial, cohabitation and marital agreements.

Wickman’s big rocks are achievable in three months, but that’s by corporate management teams, not farmers with busy-season gaps who often need more time.

The questions to ask are: is your big rock measurable, financially doable and can it be completed in under a year? Is it specific enough to solve? For example, instead of choosing “build a new shop,” the first big rock to consider is the planning stage; then you can start to think about the building phase.

A time management tool called the Eisenhower Matrix (below), which was popularized by Stephen Covey in his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, uses four quadrants to prioritize time and resources and schedule long-term projects. If your big rock is in the top half, it’s important enough to be a big rock problem and, in my experience, the solutions tend to be in the top right corner, “not urgent but important.”

Big rocks, collaborative solutions

The reason to have big rock meetings is to create alignment, accountability and, most importantly, to capture the diverse experiences, knowledge, ideas and opinions of the farm’s leadership team. It’s also a time to find holes in a project, come up with alternatives, ask questions or maybe outright reject ideas before you spend money.

This can be extremely powerful — and what a cool way to keep your farm growing and improving in substantial ways. But be warned: big rock meetings can be hard on egos, especially if you mostly have had your own way in the past because, suddenly, your ideas are being questioned and even rejected.

It’s also a great way to mentor the next generation about business thinking, giving them space to think through their ideas and learn the power of positive and negative feedback.

Big rock decision-making starts by answering “Why do it?” and then dives into the how-to-get-it-done. Brené Brown, professor, author and podcaster, uses five “C” words to discuss and decide: context, colour, cost, connections and consequences. (For a full explanation, read the 5 Cs of Strategic Thinking, Decision Making and Delegating.)

I’ve been working with a family of next-generation siblings who are preparing to take over the dairy farm. They discuss their big rock projects using the following questions:

• What will it look like when completed?
• Does it match the farm’s core values, vision and mission (if you have those)?
• How will it help the farm and the people now and in the future?
• What will it cost (approximately) to do? (Can we afford it?)
• What will it cost if we don’t do it?
• How long will it take?
• What are the next steps/required actions?
• Who is responsible?
• What are the major hurdles that have to be overcome?

Once they all agree to proceed, and the project kicks into action, every big rock meeting involves updates and discussions about costs, changes, timelines, next steps and issues that arise.

When everyone is on board, working together and headed in the same direction, those big rocks become cornerstones of the future of a farm, not something to avoid.